About this site

Each page of this site contains 4 main sections:

Top or Banner Navigation:
The top navigation consists of links to the sites accessibility features; text only / high contrasting version; controls to change text size; the Irish language version of the site; and other navigation.

Header  or Main Navigation:
The header consists of the main or primary navigation of the site,  together with the askcomreg.ie logo.

Left Hand Column:
The left hand column consists of the second-level website navigation and website direct links to site inner pages.

Right Hand Column:
The right hand column consists of askcomreg.ie News and Events.
 
Main Page Content Pane:
The main page content pane contains the information, text and imagery for the page that you are viewing.

Right Hand Column:
The right hand column consists of askcomreg.ie News and Events.

Footer:
The footer contains the of the footer navigation.

Site Map:
You may also navigate the site by clicking on the Site Map.

Access Keys

Access keys have not been enabled within the HTML of this website as there is currently no defined standard for use of access keys and as they often conflict with short cut keys of different browsers and assistive technologies in use.

Shortcut Links

If you are using a screen-reader (such as JAWS) you will be given the option to Skip Navigation (bringing you straight to the content), view Accessibilty information (that's this page) or view the Site Map pages.

Links, Images and Tables

All email links will describe that it is an email along with the actual email address. Internal links will explain what the link is and where is will take you to. Links to external sources will describe the link and where it will take you too.

We ensure that all images used in our site are given appropriate alternative text descriptions ("ALT texts"), as required by internationally-recognised Web accessibility guidelines. Any graphical navigation buttons are similarly ALT-tagged. 

Wherever you see this symbol  it means that by clicking on it you can open the document, image, flash movie into a seperate 'pop up' window. Some users prefer this, whilst others hate it, we prefer to give you the choice. If a document or image opens up in a new / seperate window we will pre warn you. We do this in two ways:

1. Visually by using this symbol ;
2. By giving the link an alt / title text of "opens in a pop up window" for visually impaired users.

* Please note that only one pop up window may be present at any time. Please close a window after you have used it. If you find that you have clicked on a document or image and it does not appear, you will probably find it minimised at the bottom of your screen. Clicking on it will restore it.

Text Only / High Visibility Layout & Colours

A text only (non graphical) version of the site runs parallel with the graphical version of the web site. This version is designed with high visibilitylayout and colours, specifically, a black background with yellow and white text. To return back to the full graphics version of the site, click "Graphics Version" in the top navigation. You must have cookies enabled in your browser to change styles.

Printer Friendly Pages

A printer friendly version of the site is available through the top or banner navigation; this will remove all web based formatting and print the pages in a logical A4 format optimised for print.

Changing Your Browser Settings

You can specify the font sizes within your browser though the methods below:

• Increse font size by clicking the text fize functions on the top navigation of this site. The three size options are: Normal, Large and Largest
• To increase the size of text in Windows Explorer 5+, select View > Text Size > Larger/Largest
• To increase the size of text in Netscape 6+, select View > Text Size > Larger or press Ctrl++
• To increase the size of text in Netscape 4, select View > Increase Font or press Ctrl+]

Note: increasing the size of the text may change the visual layout of the page.

Downloads

This site uses PDF (Adobe Acrobat) file format for the publication of large and complex documents. Please note that Adobe Acrobat documents can be converted back to plain text using Adobe's Web-based conversion service.

To view and print PDF files, you must have Adobe® Acrobat® Reader installed:

Click this link to download Adobe® Acrobat® Reader software from the Adobe site.

The site may also publish documents in Microsoft Word format. To view and print Microsoft Word files, you must either have Word installed on your PC or you can download Microsoft Word Viewer software:

Click this link to download Microsoft Word Viewer software from the Microsoft site.

You should be aware that documents held in this format are typically much larger than simple text files. If you are connected via a slow modem over a telephone line, you should consider the likely download time before attempting to retrieve such documents. In order to help you decide, the size of the PDF file is stated alongside its description. 

This site may be viewed in any browser or Internet device, but looks best in one that complies with web standards created by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).

This site has been developed to conform to W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines Level "Triple-A" (AAA), satisfying all Priority 1, 2, and 3 checkpoints. 

Internet Content Rating Associaton (ICRA) Labelling

The ICRA labelling system, owned and operated by the International Content Rating Association, is an independent organisation that allows internet users (especially parents) to make informed decisions about the specific content of a site.

This web site has been labelled using the ICRA labelling system and has achieved a green status, meaning that the content in this site is suitable to viewed by all.

Click here for more information about ICRA.

Assistive Technologies

Within context of this website Assistive technologies refers to the hardware and or software devices that are used by people who may have difficulties using computer technology. Assistive technologies are sometimes referred to as adaptive software.

Assistive technologies can either be input or output devices (i.e. a mouse and keyboard are examples of input devices and a printer and monitor are examples of output devices). Assistive technologies include:

• Screen readers;
• Screen magnifiers;
• Sound notification;
• Voice (or speech) recognition;
• Speech synthesis;
• Voice browsers;
• Text browsers;
• Mouth sticks;
• Head wand;
• Sip and puff switch;
• Alternative or adaptive keyboards;
• Oversized tracker ball mouse;
• Eye tracking.

Information in alternative formats

We offer alternative formats for documents on this website. To request an alternative format please contact the Information Access Executive or email access@comreg.ie. We offer the following alternative formats:

• Braille
• Large Print

We will provide you with a Braille version or a large print version of a ComReg document within 20 working days. If it takes longer, we will contact you.