How do I use AccessKeys?

Each of the main areas has an AccessKey assigned to them. This means that you can use the keyboard to jump to any main area from anywhere else in the site.

AccessKeys work slightly differently on Macs and Windows PCs.

Windows PC - Hold the alt key and the appropriate AccessKey at the same time, then press Return .

Mac - Hold the ctrl key and the appropriate AcessKey at the same time.

Below is a list of the AccessKeys applying to the main areas of the site.

Help = 0
Home = 1
Site map = 3
About us = 4
Toolbox = 5
How to...files = 6
Case studies = 7
Calendar = 8

How do I change my screen settings?

This site looks best with a screen resolution (the size of what is shown) of 800 x 600. To change this on a PC running the Windows 95 and upwards operating system, go to Start > Settings > Control Panel > Display > Settings and change the desktop area by using the sliding bar.

On a Mac, you can use the Monitor and Sound Control Panel to change the resolution. On Mac OS X, use System Preferences > Displays.

The text is too small for me to read - how can I change it?

In Internet Explorer go to View > Text size and select Larger or Largest. In Netscape go to View > Increase Font Size. You could also try changing the screen resolution.

What does FAQs mean?

FAQs stands for Frequently Asked Question. If you have any other questions about what different technical words mean visit this site http://www.techweb.com/encyclopedia/ which has all the answers.

Help with documents

MS Word format
MS PowerPoint format
MS Excel format
MS Access format

If you don't have the relevant programs, you can still view these files by downloading the free Microsoft readers. http://office.microsoft.com/Assistance/9798/viewerscvt.aspx

Pdf format

View pdf files by downloading Acrobat Reader, free from Adobe. http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep.html

EPS format

Open Encapsulated Postscript files using most image software programs like PhotoShop, or place them in desktop publishing or word processing documents.

Zip format

Files compressed for faster download. Unzip (decompress) them with one of the many available commercial or shareware programs.

Quicktime and Windows Media Player formats

To be able to use files in Quicktime or Windows Media Player formats, you need the appropriate player. These are installed as standard on many machines, but you can also download them from the relevant websites.
The Quicktime player is available for free from http://www.apple.com/quicktime/ . The Windows Media Player is available as a free download from http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/download/default.asp .

W3C compliance

This site meets all the coding criteria for compliance with W3C CSS (cascading style sheets) and XHTML 1.0. Visit www.w3c.org for more information.

Bobby accessibility

This site has been checked with Bobby and meets level A accessibility rating, including 'alt' tag labelling and other techniques. As the online version of the Bobby checker is limited and does not process certain dynamic file formats, the site has been checked offline using the downloadable Bobby verifier.

For more information, visit the Bobby website. http://bobby.watchfire.com/bobby/html/en/index.jsp

How to update your browser

To take advantage of recent technology improvements, it is advisable to use an up to date web browser. Free updates for Internet Explorer www.microsoft.com and Netscape www.netscape.com are both available online.

Note to Netscape 4.7 users - This site is WC3 standards compliant. Netscape 4.7 isn't. If you have any trouble viewing the site, it is recommended that you upgrade to a later version of Netscape.

Help contacts

If you are experiencing any problems with the functionality of this site or if you experience a technical error, please contact webmaster@electoralcommission.org.uk .

If you would like to contact us to obtain information on any other matter please contact info@electoralcommission.org.uk .

Site help