eBook Central accessibility features
Keyboard navigation
Ebook Central is navigable with your keyboard – the tab, enter, and arrow keys.
Background colour options
This is not an inbuilt option on Ebook Central but the platform is set up to work effectively with browser extensions that change the colour and contrast. Recommendations for the most common browsers are below:
Microsoft Edge: Go to Settings – Accessibility – Page Colours to change the background colour.
Read aloud
Ebook Central does not have an integrated text to speech function but will work with the Microsoft Edge browser (built in function) and other plug-ins including JAWS and VoiceOver.
Ebook central recommends the following:
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Desktop: Chrome + JAWS
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Desktop: Microsoft Edge + JAWS
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Desktop: Firefox + NVDA
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Desktop: Safari + VoiceOver
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Mobile Apple devices: Safari + VoiceOver
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Mobile Android devices: Chrome + TalkBack
Text Only Mode should be enabled to allow PDF book content to be read using a screen reader:
When you are signed in with your Arden credentials you can go to Profile and then Accessibility Settings. Here you can Enable Text Only Mode.
Text options
In Profile – Accessibility Settings, you can also select the OpenDyslexic typeface which is designed to improve readability for people with dyslexia.
Make sure to accept the terms and conditions and Save Changes. See the screenshot showing the Accessibility Settings options
Formats and offline reading
Ebook Central allows you to read on a variety of different devices. Because Ebook Central have designed their online reading system for accessibility, they recommend reading your book online for the best experience.
Ebook Central offers ebooks in two formats, availability is dependent on depending on publisher preferences:
- EPUB is an HTML-based format that supports reflowable text. When users resize their browser or access the book on a smaller device like mobile devices or tablets, the text will automatically reflow to adjust to your screen size.
- PDF is an image-based format that keeps the look and feel of a printed book. The book has a set number of pages with a fixed width. These books may not display as well on smaller devices and may require additional zooming.
Ebooks can be downloaded using Adobe Digital Editions.
Guides on downloading for offline reading:
If you choose to download a chapter or section of the book (within the copyright limits), these can be accessed through Adobe Reader or Microsoft Edge. Both of these platforms have read aloud functionality.
For more information, you can read Ebook Central’s Accessibility Statement