Manual Editing
How manual review fits into PDF remediation for tags, reading order, alt text, tables, forms, and export verification.
When to use manual editing
Use manual review when a PDF requires judgment about meaning or sequence. Dense tables, charts, scanned pages, forms, legal or public documents, and unusual layouts often need human decisions before export.
What manual edits should affect
Manual edits should be artifact-focused. Tag roles, reading order, figure alt text, table relationships, form labels, title, language, and metadata need to survive in the exported PDF where applicable.
- ✓Tags and roles
- ✓Reading order
- ✓Figure alt text
- ✓Table headers and cells
- ✓Form labels and tab order
Verify after export
After manual editing, export the corrected PDF and verify the exported artifact. Do not treat a UI-only status change as proof that the file is fixed.
Implementation checklist
- 1Identify ambiguous issues
- 2Edit the relevant structure or metadata
- 3Export the PDF
- 4Confirm edits survive export
- 5Re-check the artifact
Questions about Manual Editing
Do manual edits need to change the downloaded PDF?+
Yes. Manual editing is only useful when the exported PDF physically contains the correction.
What usually needs manual review?+
Complex tables, charts, scans, forms, unusual layouts, and ambiguous reading order often need review.