Access Keys
Access keys are intended to provide keyboard shortcuts, offering you an alternative form of navigation. This allows users with limited physical capabilities to navigate our web site more easily. However, there are some drawbacks:
- the functionality may depend on the type of operating system you are using .
- they are only (officially) supported by MS IE version 4 (and above) and by Netscape 6x .
- with Windows systems the user has to press the 'Alt' key and the access key, then enter.
- with Macintosh system the user has to press the 'Ctrl' key and the access key.
- Netscape 7.1, Mozilla 1.4.1:
Press and hold ALT key, press letter key. - Internet Explorer:
Press and hold ALT key, press letter key and release ALT; then hit ENTER. - Opera:
Press and release SHIFT+ESCape, then press letter key. - Netscape 4.75:
Shortcut keys are not available. You can TAB through the links and hit ENTER to activate. The good news is, this page is viewable. - Window-Eyes 4.5 with Internet Explorer:
First of all, on the Window-Eyes Mouse menu, the option to Track Mouse with Focus should be on. Turn MSAA off, then hold ALT and hit the hot key. Then hit Enter. My mouse pointer was in the top left of the screen, with the screen showing the proper view.
Using the mouse keys in the numeric keypad, hit the right arrow once, then the mouse is on the first letter. Then with MSAA on, you can arrow down with the keyboard arrow keys and read the text on the screen. - All shortcut-capable browsers:
The link does not need to be in view on your screen for the shortcut key to work.
Search Web site
A dedicated search page is provided and may be reached using Access Key 4, as detailed above. Internet Explorer users can search a page being viewed using Ctrl+F
Keyboard Shortcuts
| Function | Internet Explorer | Netscape Navigator | Opera | Mozzilla |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Save copy of page | Ctrl+S | Ctrl+S | Ctrl+S | Ctrl+S |
| Open bookmarks | Ctrl+I | Ctrl+B | Ctrl+B | |
| Add to bookmarks / favourites | Ctrl+D | Ctrl+D | Ctrl+D | |
| Print page | Ctrl+P | Ctrl+P | Ctrl+P | Ctrl+P |
| Open search bar | Ctrl+E | |||
| Enter web address | ALT+D | F2 | ||
| Go to next page in history | Alt+Right Arrow | X Ctrl+Right Alt+Right |
Alt+Right Arrow | |
| Go to previous page in history | Alt+Left Arrow or Backspace | Z Ctrl+Left Alt+Left Backspace |
Alt+Left Arrow or Backspace | |
| Reload page | Ctrl+R F5 |
Ctrl+R | Ctrl+R F5 |
Ctrl+Shift+R |
| Reload all open pages | Ctrl+F5 Ctrl+Alt+R |
|||
| Stop page loading | Esc | Esc | Esc | Esc |
| Toggle loading and display of images | G | |||
| Zoom in 10% |
Ctrl+= (plus sign) | Ctrl+= (plus sign) | Numeric+0 | Ctrl+= (plus sign) |
| Zoom out 10% | Ctrl+- (minus sign) | Ctrl+- (minus sign) | Numeric-9 | Ctrl+- (minus sign) |
| Zoom in 100% | Ctrl+Numeric+8 | |||
| Zoom out 100% | Ctrl+Numeric-7 | |||
| Home |
Alt+Home | Alt+Home | Ctrl+Shift+Space |
Alt+Home |
| Search | Ctrl+F | Ctrl+Shift+F | ||
| Browse in new page/window | Ctrl+N | Ctrl+N | Ctrl+N | Ctrl+N |
| Cycle to next page | Alt+Right Arrow | Alt+Right Arrow | 2 Ctrl+Tab Alt+Page Down Ctrl+F6 |
Alt+Right Arrow |
| Cycle to previous page | Alt+Left Arrow Backspace | Alt+Left Arrow Backspace | Ctrl+Shift+Tab Alt+Page Up Ctrl+Shift+F6 |
Alt+Left Arrow Backspace |
Text size
Some users might find the site easier to read by increasing the size at which text is displayed. To do this you can adjust your browser's settings by going to the Tools menu, then select 'text size' or 'text zoom' or 'zoom' and increase the size of the text.
On Microsoft Internet Explorer
Hold Alt+V
Then press X followed by Return (Enter)
On Netscape
Hold Alt+V
Then press Z followed by 0 (zero) (or replace the 0 with 2 for extra large
text)
On Opera
Hold Alt+V
Then press Z followed by 0 (zero). Opera also allows you to press the+and-on the keypad to increase and decrease the size respectively.
Changing colours
Changing the site's background colour can be particularly useful for users who rely on magnification technology as white can produce an uncomfortable glare. It is also possible to change the colour of body text on the site. Both can be achieved by changing preferences in your browser:
If you use Microsoft Internet Explorer, go to the Tools menu, select Internet Options, select Accessibility, and put a tick in the box next to "Ignore colours specified on web pages", then select OK. Now go to Colours, select Colours and make changes to text and background colours in the Colours panel.
If you use Netscape Navigator, go to the Edit menu, select Preferences, open the Appearance menu and select Colours. You can set the colour of text and background from here.
If you use Opera, go to the File menu select Preferences, open the 'page style' (under fonts and colours). Ensure 'user mode' options use own settings (default settings). Now go into fonts and colours and you can change the colour options. Select 'View' then select 'Style' then select 'user mode'.
Acronyms
Acronyms and abbreviations are explained (at least) the first time they appear on every page. To view the meaning of a TLA, place your mouse pointer over the acronym, or abbreviation, and, after a short pause, an explanation will appear. Screen reading browsers will handle all acronyms automatically.
External Links & PDF files
These will be opened in a new browser window to allow you to switch between the this web site and the newly opened page.
Documents with the 
icon are in PDF (Portable Document Format), before you can read them you
will need Adobe Acrobat viewer which can be downloaded from www.adobe.com
or by using the Adobe image link at the bottom of any page. You will find
more information about accessibility when using Adobe products here http://access.adobe.com/.
