RefWorks Accessibility Guide
The RefWorks team is committed to providing all our users with a fully accessible experience for collecting, organizing, managing and formatting references. RefWorks is continually designed and developed to meet Level AA of the W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG 2.1) and Section 508 of the US Rehabilitation Act for features and functions.
This guide explains how to use the accessible features in RefWorks (for unique RefWorks actions) and provides links to external accessibility resources (for general actions).
For the RefWorks Accessibility Statement, see RefWorks Accessibility Statement.
Keyboard Navigation for Write-n-Cite for Mac (Word 2008, VoiceOver)
This section describes how to use the keyboard to navigate Write-n-Cite for Mac without using a mouse.
- These instructions are based on Word 2008 with the following keyboard settings:
- Keyboard: F1, F2, etc. keys are used as standard function keys on a Mac laptop
- Keyboard > Shortcuts > Full keyboard access > All controls
- To get started, Learn about setting up the Mac keyboard up for accessibility at Deque University.
Navigating to the Write-n-Cite Toolbar
The following steps describe how to navigate to the Write-n-Cite toolbar using the keyboard:
- Press Control + F6 to move focus to the Write-n-Cite toolbar.
- If the Write-n-Cite toolbar is not visible:
- Press Control +F2 to move focus to the menu bar.
- Press the Right Arrow key to move focus to View and press Spacebar to open the menu.
- Press the Down Arrow key to move focus to Toolbars.
- Press the Right Arrow key to enter the Toolbars sub-menu.
- Press the Down Arrow key to move focus to RefWorks and press Spacebar.
Focus will move to the Write-n-Cite toolbar.
- Press Control + Option + Right/Left Arrow key to move focus between items in the Write-n-Cite toolbar.
Inserting and Editing a Citation
The following steps describe how to insert and edit a citation using the keyboard:
Opening the Insert/Edit Citation Modal
- In the main document, place the cursor where you want to insert or edit a citation.
- Move the focus to the Insert Citation button in the Write-n-Cite toolbar (see Navigate to the Write-n-Cite Toolbar directions).
- Press Control + Option + Spacebar to open the Insert/Edit Citation modal.
Selecting and Editing a Reference
The following steps describe how to select and edit a reference using the keyboard:
- Press Tab to move focus to the Folder View or Reference View tab.
- Press the Right/Left Arrow key to toggle between Folder View and Reference View.
- Press Tab to move focus to the reference list.
- Press the Up/Down Arrow key to navigate up and down the list.
- Folder View: press the Right/Left Arrow key to expand and collapse folders.
- Move focus to the reference you want to cite.
- Press Tab to move focus outside of the list (the reference will stay selected).
- Press Tab/Shift + Tab to move focus to the edit options.
- Press Spacebar to check/uncheck checkboxes.
- To add multiple references to a citation:
- After selecting and editing a citation, press Tab to move focus to the (+) add button.
- Press Spacebar to add a new reference row.
- Press Tab until you have moved focus back to the list of references. Select a reference as described above.
Bottom of the Write-n-Cite Insert/Edit Modal - Press Return or press Tab/Shift+Tab to move focus to the Save button and press Spacebar.
- To cancel this citation, press Escape or press Tab/Shift+Tab to move focus to the Cancel button and press Spacebar.
Summary of Commands
The following section contains a summary of the keyboard commands that you can use in Write-n-Cite.
Word Menu Bar
| Task | Command |
|---|---|
| Move focus to the Word menu bar | Control +F2 |
| Move focus between menu options | Right/Left arrow key |
| Activate/select a menu item | Spacebar |
| Navigate up and down a list dropdown menu | Up/Down arrow key |
| Open a submenu | Right arrow key |
Write-n-Cite Toolbar
| Task | Command |
|---|---|
| Move focus to the Write-n-Cite toolbar | Control + F6 |
| Move focus between menu items in the Write-n-Cite toolbar | Control + Option + Right/Left arrow key |
| Activate an item in the Write-n-Cite toolbar | Control + Option + Spacebar |
Insert/Edit Citation Modal
| Task | Command |
|---|---|
| Go to next/previous focusable item (table/list, input field, button) | Tab/Shift+Tab |
| Navigate up and down items in a list/table | Up/Down arrow key |
| Toggle between tabs | Right/Left arrow key |
| Expand and collapse folders | Right/Left arrow key |
| Check/Uncheck checkbox | Spacebar |
| Save entry | Return |
| Cancel/close modal | Escape |
External Resources
This section contains a list of external resources for navigating with the keyboard.
General Resources
- AbilityNet
- Deque University (screen reader keyboard shortcuts and gestures)
Browser Add-ons
This section contains a list of browser add-ins for navigating with the keyboard.
Google Chrome Add-ons
- Zoomy (web page magnification)
- Change Colors (for color contrast)
- For more, browse Chrome accessibility extensions
Firefox Add-ons
- NoSquint add-on (web page magnification)
- Color Changer (for color contrast)
- For more, browse Firefox accessibility add-ons