InDesign Cannot Artifact Leader Dots [Accessibility]

[bren87]

InDesign has no way of artifacting leader dots. This can only be done in PDF. Leader dots are commonly used in tables of contents to guide the reader's eye from the end of the entry to the page number. Leader dots are voiced by access technologies such as screen readers and force users with disabilities to hear, "DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT ..." If they are not artifacted. This is a painstaking process that requires InDesign users to learn PDF Remediation, a highly specialized skillset that is typically outside the role of the average Graphic Designer. Currently, the process for artifacting leader dots is to ind the first leader dot in the Tags tree. Right click on it and choose Show in Content Panel. Expand the content containers until you find the first set of leader dots. Right click on them and choose “Create Artifact.” Ignore the options panel and click “OK” to set the artifact. Repeat with all other leader dots. This issue affects EVERY SINGLE InDesign user who is required to make accessible content. Please make artifacting leader dots an option within InDesign so painstaking remediation is not required.

[kglad]

<moved from cc desktop ideas>

[bren87]

This is where Adobe told me to post it after I submitted this in admin console.  🤷

[kglad]

post it here, https://indesign.uservoice.com/forums/601021-adobe-indesign-feature-requests

[Willi Adelberger]

Instead of dots use a stroke with a dotted line, as it will increase flexibility. Look at the example.

[bren87]

Yes, you can do that, and artifact the dotted line.  But you have to do it manually, instead of using a tab stop with a leader dot that is associated with your Paragraph Styles.

[John Mensinger]

Could also be done with a Character Style applied using a GREP Style within the Paragraph Style.

[bren87]

That is an intriguing idea!  Do you have a resource on that and is this method confirmed to be accessible?

[Willi Adelberger]

Did you look into the example? I did it automatically.

[Bevi Chagnon - PubCom.com · Accepted solution]

@Willi Adelberger, this is a fantastic solution.

And yes, it is automatically done, not manually.

Look at Willi's example more carefully:

• The TOC paragraph style has a nested character style to format the leader rule before the tab stop.
• The matching nested character style sets the underline to generate a thin, 1/2 point dotted rule.
• Because InDesign does an excellent job of artifacting all rules (well, in the recent versions of InDesign!) the dotted leader rule is now artifacted.

Thank You Willi!

— Your grateful colleague, Bevi

[Frans v.d. Geest · Accepted solution]

@Bevi Chagnon - PubCom.com Well Bevi, I wrote about that technique on my blog in... 2009 already! 😉

It then became handy again four years ago for accessibility (so I wrote about it again in 2019)

But, in Dutch!

https://fvdgeest-dtp.blogspot.com/2009/06/inhoudsopgave-beter-uitpunten_24.html

[Bevi Chagnon - PubCom.com]

THANK YOU FRANS!

@Frans v.d. Geest 

[bren87]

This is truly excellent.  I was told this was NOT possible to do in InDesign at an accessibility conference so I reported it.  Thank you for providing this workaround!

[notannhavoc]

I'm having a similar problem - underlined text  - the underline needs to be artifacted  in the resultign pdf but I cannot  selct it in the ID file to  set it as artifact - tried  Willi's workaround but it also generated a line that  is seen as a path - someone said ID does an excellent job of artifacting lines - not so -  perhaps an earlier version - certainly not the current version 18.5

[karin.carlson]

Perhaps there's a difference, to InDesign, between a "rule" and a "path". That's the distinction I'm gathering. I still see the paths in the content panel but they don't appear to be in the tags.

[bren87]

I have been using an artifacted path with the stroke set to dots but it is very manual to add them as anchored objects on each line.  The GREP method above does work but I haven't had time to study it.  If you use the automatic leader dots with a tab stop, they are not artifacted. Paragraph rules, borders, and shading are automatically artifacted.  You are onto something that did not previously occur to me - you could totally do a paragraph border with the stroke set to dots and play with the offset on it, but that still requires some manual manipulation.  ❤️ It would be most ideal if InDesign had a feature to automatically artifact the leader dots generated by tab stops in tables of contents.

[Bevi Chagnon - PubCom.com]

Perhaps there's a difference, to InDesign, between a "rule" and a "path".

By @karin.carlson

A path is a vector element. Could be a border, shading inside a frame, underline, rule, the dot leader in a TOC, or a graphic from Illustrator.

Rather than draw these elements as independent graphic paths, set them in your Paragraph and Character styles instead because this "renders" a faux underline or border that is artifacted, rather than creating a computer graphic object in the file. They'll look the same, but how they are coded is what makes the difference.

Use these settings in your styles:

• Borders
• Shading
• Rules Above/Below
• Underline (in the text portion)

Study the techniques documented above by our colleagues. And use styles, styles, styles, and more styles to end up with the best, most accessible files.

[Bevi Chagnon - PubCom.com · Accepted solution]

Use a character style to set the underline. The style will automatically artifact it in the PDF.

• New Character Style
• Name it Underline or whatever you want
• Set the Underline Options: checkmark to turn it on, and then choose whatever you want for thickness, distance from the baseline, color, etc.

[bren87 · Accepted solution]

Oh wow!  Outstanding; Thank you!!

[Bevi Chagnon - PubCom.com]

It is indeed a handy, dandy hack.

Enjoy!

[karin.carlson]

I am finally needing to use this great tip. My InDesign file was created from imported Word text. This method of making a character style with a dotted "underline" to apply to the TOC for the right-aligned tab is great, BUT, there is also a tab with a dot leader already in the TOC. If I select the TOC, select the tab with the leader dot, delete the dot, and then make a PDF, all is well -- the "underline dots" aren't tagged (they're artifacted). But if I update the TOC, the dot comes back (so I have essentially two dots at that point). Anyone have insight into how I might prevent this from happening? I've made my character style red so you can see the difference between the style and the dot leader. Thanks!

[karin.carlson]

Hi! I'm answering my own question in case it might help someone else. I went to the styles used for the different levels of TOC and removed the dot leader from the paragraph styles directly. (duh)Removed dot from tab in the paragraph style