Tutorial 6: Make a document accessible with GLOW

Goal: take a real document from "probably fine" to checked, graded and fixed, using GLOW, QUILL's built-in accessibility checker.

GLOW (Guided Layout and Output Workflow) explains each problem it finds in plain words, and only makes the fixes you agree to. Everything is under Tools > GLOW.

0. Switch it on (GLOW is experimental)

GLOW is still experimental, so it is off until you turn it on:

  1. Preferences > Experimental.
  2. Check Enable experimental features. Until this is on, the other experimental choices are greyed out and Tab skips them.
  3. Check GLOW accessibility review and repair (experimental).
  4. Apply. The Tools > GLOW menu appears right away. You do not need to restart.

Experimental means it is still being improved, not that it is unsafe. GLOW always shows you a change before making it, and never changes your original file.

1. Audit what you are writing

  1. Open any Markdown or HTML document you have written.
  2. Tools > GLOW > GLOW Audit Current Document.
  3. The report opens as a normal tab. Arrow through it. Each finding tells you what the problem is, how serious it is, where it is, and what to do about it. For example: headings that skip a level (H1 straight to H4), links that just say "click here", pictures with no description, tables with no header cells, or paragraphs too long to listen to comfortably.

For just the section you are working on, use GLOW Audit Selection / Paragraph instead.

2. Fix it, and see every change

  1. GLOW Fix Current Document. QUILL opens the repaired text in a new preview tab and compares it with your original right away.
  2. Go through the differences. If you accept, you know exactly what changed. If you reject, nothing changes. GLOW never rewrites anything without showing you.
  3. To quickly fix one paragraph where it is, use GLOW Fix Selection / Paragraph. The fixed text stays selected, and Ctrl+Z undoes it in one step.

Problems GLOW can fix for you are marked [auto-fix] in the report. Things that need your judgment, like link wording or long paragraphs, are left for you.

3. Grade the file you are about to send

GLOW can also check files on your computer: Word, PowerPoint, Excel, PDF and EPUB.

  1. Export your document to Word (File > Export > Word Document...), or pick any existing docx.
  2. Tools > GLOW > GLOW Audit File... and choose it. The audit runs in the background and returns a score out of 100, a letter grade, and every finding.
  3. To fix it, choose GLOW Fix File.... GLOW saves a fixed copy next to the original (report.docx becomes report-accessible.docx), checks with you where to save it, and then shows you a new report so you can see what improved. The original file is never modified.

4. Keep GLOW up to date (only when you ask)

Help > Check for GLOW Updates... checks for a newer version of GLOW. It only checks when you ask, and asks again before it downloads anything. Downloads are checked to make sure they are safe, and if an update fails, your old version is put back. A few optional extras go online, such as writing picture descriptions with AI; they ask you first every time. Everything else in GLOW stays on your computer.

5. A routine to try

  1. Write your draft.
  2. Run Audit Current Document.
  3. Fix the things that need your judgment yourself.
  4. Run Fix Current Document for the rest, and accept the changes you want.
  5. Export your file.
  6. Run Audit File on it one last time.

It takes a couple of minutes, and the people you send it to will thank you.

Want more ideas than the checker gives? The AI menu's Accessibility Tune-Up suggests a wider plan for improving your document, and you check every suggestion before anything changes.