Here's a re-run from a previous e-mail sent to the members earlier this
summer by one of our RESNA Project Associates. Steve Mendelsohn is a
well-known disability policy expert, an attorney, and an individual who is
blind. Steve was also the primary author of the National Council on
Disability's (an independent federal agency) newest publication, "The
Accessible Future" at
http://www.ncd.gov/newsroom/publications/accessiblefuture.html.


Status of PDF Under Section 508 (from Steven Mendelsohn, Esq.)

In my view PDF if used by itself without providing an HTML or
other text version of a document or form is not sufficiently
accessible to meet the requirements of Section 508.  This is not
to say that PDF cannot or should not be used, only that it should
not be the sole available version of a document.

Many people have asked whether the accessibility enhancements
incorporated in Acrobat Reader 5 suffice to make PDF accessible.
The answer is somewhat, but not completely.  Based upon
information received from a number of sources the following
significant limitations exist.

1.  Files created in earlier versions of Adobe Acrobat may not be
readily convertible to accessible formats.

2.  Other features of the new PDF restrict the ability to copy
files even if they are converted.

3.  The reliable conversion of formatting and other nuances
(tables for example) is not certain.


Carol Boyer
Project Associate
RESNA Technical Assistance Project
1700 N. Moore Street, Suite 1540
Arlington, VA 22209
703/524-6686, x- 309 (V)
703/524-6639 (TTY)
703/524-6630 (Fax)
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http://www.resna.org/taproject