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Re: Full URLs in PDF documents

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From: Schroeder, Karole
Date: Feb 28, 2023 1:11PM

A couple questions come to mind, and I single no one out because this is happening everywhere:

First, why are we using PDF documents on online platforms? What good reason is there for the PDF document versus a web page? Consider that PDF documents are typically intended for print and print media already has several limitations for people with a variety of disabilities. If the information can be converted into a webpage without losing meaning (putting the aesthetic look and feel of print media aside), then it should be in webpage form: instructions, forms, and promotions.

Second, why are we spelling out URLs on web pages or documents on online platforms? For those of us with poor memory, long URLs are hard to remember. If I'm not already struggling to type a URL out, I am forgetting the order of the characters in the URL and having to go back and forth between the document and the web address bar of a browser. And like QR codes seen on webpages, if you are already on a computer with internet access, simply selecting the link should be enough to get you to the listed website. Less concern about remembering or typing.

Karole Schroeder, CPACC (she/her/hers)
Electronic and Information Resources Accessibility Coordinator (EIRAC)
Office of Information Security | Division of Information Technology
Phone: 361.825.3154


6300 Ocean Dr.
Corpus Christi, TX 78412
361.825.5700 | tamucc.edu