SCIE website - Help
Using this website
- How do I make the text bigger so that it is easier for me to read?
- How do I change colours so that the contrast is better for me?
- I find a mouse difficult to use. How do I move around without one?
- Can I link to the SCIE website from another website?
- Can I publicise my organisation or resource on SCIE's website?
- Where can I learn more about using the Internet?
- What is social bookmarking?
Downloading and viewing documents
- How do I download files from the SCIE website?
- What are PDF's and how do I read them?
- How do I download and listen to audio files?
- How can I view a Word file if I don't have Word software?
How do I make the text bigger so that it is easier for me to read?
- Using Internet Explorer, go to View > Text size > and select the size you want
- Using Netscape, go to View > Text zoom > and select the size you want
How do I change colours so that the contrast is better for me?
To change the colour of the text and background your browser displays you need to find the Colors option dialogue box.
- Using Internet Explorer, go to Tools > Internet options > Colors then uncheck Use windows colors and select the colours you prefer.
- Using Netscape, go to Edit > Preferences > Colors and select Use my chosen colors
I find a mouse difficult to use. How do I move around without one?
Access keys allow you to move around the main areas of the site without using a mouse.
Press the ALT key (Windows) or the Control key (Mac) and the appropriate letter key to jump to the link, and then Return to activate the link.
- ALT and w - SCIE's work
- ALT and r - SCIE's resources and publications
- ALT and a - About us
- ALT and p - Networks and partners
- ALT and n - News and events
- ALT and v - Vacancies
- ALT and o - Commissions
- ALT and e - Social Care Online
- ALT and g - People management
- ALT and u - email update
- ALT and c - Contact us
- ALT and l - Links
- ALT and m - Site map
- ALT and i - Help
- ALT and h - Home page
- ALT and k - Skip navigation
- ALT and s - Search
- ALT and t - Terms and conditions
- ALT and f - National research register for social care
Access keys may not work at all, or may work differently, depending on the browser you are using.
You can also use the Tab key to move between links.
Can I link to the SCIE website from another website?
Yes. We are happy for other organisations to link to the SCIE website from their website. Below is some standard text you can use to describe SCIE:
SCIE’s aim is to improve the experience of people who use social care by developing and promoting knowledge about good practice in the sector. Using knowledge gathered from diverse sources and a broad range of people and organisations, we develop resources which we share freely, supporting those working in social care and empowering service users.
If you would like a copy of our logo to include also, please email the Communications Team at communicationsteam@scie.org.uk.
Can I publicise my organisation or resource on SCIE's website?
SCIE is frequently asked to publicise other people's work on our website. Unfortunately we are unable to do this as it would be impossible for us to accommodate all the requests we get. However, if you have a publication or Website you would like to publicise, you can send details to our Social Care Online Development Team (email: kmadministrator@scie.org.uk). We may also be able to help you make the whole document freely available on the web.
Where can I learn more about using the Internet?
For detailed information about changing fonts and font sizes using different web browsers and operating systems, and using the keyboard instead of the mouse, visit the BBC's My Web My Way website.
For general online help and web tips, visit the BBC's Webwise website
You can find out more about how to set up your computer to make browsing the web easier and more pleasant at AbilityNet (PC) or Apple Accessibility (Mac).
If you have any problems accessing the content of this site or using any form of adaptive technology, please contact us and we will make every effort to resolve the issue.
Please go to accessibility for information about how the site is built and standards compliance.
What is social bookmarking?
Social bookmarking websites are used by individuals to store links and resources in a single online location. The content can be indexed using keywords and then searched or shared by other users. This forms a network of resources and links on a specific topic.
Because the material is evaluated and indexed by people who understand the meaning of the content any searching on these networks is likely to return more accurate results than search engines that just list websites based on terms and keywords.
To make it easier to share our resources we have added links to the most popular of these site which will automatically add the address and title of the page.
For more information on Social Bookmarking see the Wikipedia entry.
Downloading and viewing documents
How do I download files from the SCIE website?
Some documents on this site can be downloaded on to your computer. This allows you to view them again without re-visiting our website and to print them out.
Just click on the link and the document will open in a new browser window. Links to files will normally tell you the type of file and how big it is.
Nearly all downloadable files on this site are in PDF format - see below for more information. If you cannot download PDF files, or would like information in a different format, please email publications@scie.org.uk.
Occasionally you may experience difficulty downloading a file. You can sometimes get round this by clicking on the link with the right (rather than left) mouse button and then selecting the 'Save target as..' option from the menu. If this does not work, please Contact us.
What are PDFs and how do I read them?
PDF stands for Portable Document Format. It's the most popular way of making downloadable documents available on the web. You need a plug-in called Adobe Acrobat Reader to view these files which you can download for free from Adobe's website.
Users who have concerns about accessibility should visit Adobe's accessibility website. Adobe Acrobat documents can be converted to plain text documents using Online conversion tools for Adobe PDF documents.
Recent version of Acrobat Reader have a 'Read Out Loud' facility, which can be found under the View menu.
We can also provide a 'tagged' version of any PDF, which may work better with access technology like screen readers.
How do I download and listen to audio files?
The audio files on the SCIE website are in MP3 format. Many computers have a media player pre-installed but should you find that you are unable to play any of the files download and install one of the following free media players.
If you experience difficulty playing audio files you can download them by clicking on the link with the right (rather than left) mouse button and then selecting the 'Save target as..' option from the menu. Once the file is downloaded, you can play it by clicking on it.
How can I view a Word file if I don't have Word software?
A free Word viewer is available from Microsoft at the Microsoft Download Center. You'll find Word, Excel and PowerPoint viewers here too.
