How to Adjust Web Browser Color Display for the Visually Impaired

Make viewing webpages easier for the visually impaired.

Viewing a Web page with a light-colored background and dark text poses a problem to some people who are visually impaired. The bright contrast against the dark text can be painful. Depending on the visual impairment, some people prefer websites that have a darker background with a lighter text. The dark background is less painful on the eyes and makes the text easier to read. Although you may not be able to change the color scheme on the individual website you're viewing, there are changes you can make in your Web browser to make viewing high-contrast websites easier to read.

Instructions

Adjusting Mozilla Firefox Display

1. Click the "Options" tab in the "Tools" menu on the Mozilla Firefox menu bar. Once the "Options" window opens, you'll see several tabs listed across the top.

2. Click the "Content" icon. Look towards the middle of the window where it says "Fonts & Colors."

3. Depress the "Colors" button to invoke the "Colors" pop-up window. Here is where you can change the background and text options. You can also choose the link colors for both visited and unvisited links.

4. Remove the check from the "Allow Pages To Choose Their Own Colors, Instead Of My Selections Above" check box and click "OK."

5. Click "OK" in the "Options" window and close Mozilla Firefox. You must restart Firefox for your changes to take effect.

6. Navigate to a few Web pages to test the new color scheme. Check to see if the new color scheme is less painful on your eyes.

Adjusting Internet Explorer Display

1. Click "Tools" in the menu bar and click "Internet Options" from the Tools drop-down menu.

2. Click the "General" tab in the "Internet Options" window, if it's not already pre-selected.

3. Navigate to the bottom of the "Internet Options" window to the "Appearance" section. In the "Appearance" section, click on the "Colors" button to invoke the "Colors" pop-up window.

4. Remove the check from the "Use Windows Colors" check box. Once you remove the check, you can modify the colors for the text, background, visited and unvisited links. If you want to change the "Hover" color, place a check in the "Use Hover Color" box and then select your hover color.

5. Click "OK" on the "Colors" pop-up window and "OK" on the "Internet Options" window. Shut down and restart Internet Explorer. Browse to a few Web pages to see if the new colors are better on your eyes.

Tips & Warnings

• You may have to modify the color scheme for some websites as one color scheme may not work the same for every website you navigate to.

• These steps were tested on Internet Explorer 8 and Mozilla Firefox 3.6.13. The steps may vary depending on older or newer Web browser versions.

Resources

• Mozilla Firefox
• Microsoft.com: Internet Explorer