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How to increase font size
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HOW TO INCREASE FONT SIZE

How to make the text larger in your web browser, without using any special software.

Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.0, 5.5 and 6.0
Netscape Navigator 4.6
Netscape Navigator 6.2 and 7.0
Screen Magnification Software Summary

The two most popular browsers are Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator. Below you will find a step-by-step guide to enlarging the text in your internet browser. If you have also changed the settings in your operating system and find that this does not magnify the text enough to be useful, then it is worth investigating screen magnification software.

These instructions are for use with the browser versions listed below, however they may also work with other versions of the same web browser.

MICROSOFT INTERNET EXPLORER 5.0, 5.5 AND 6.0

Open your Internet Explorer Web Browser

Choose the drop down menu at the top of the window of the browser marked View

A list of options will appear in the drop down menu, choose text size

Next another drop down menu should appear with options including small, medium, large, largest

Select largest

The text in your browser window should now appear larger.

If this is still too small for you then it may be that you need to look at other ways of enlarging the text on your screen, such as screen magnification software.

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NETSCAPE NAVIGATOR 4.6

Open your Netscape Web Browser

Choose the drop down menu at the top of the window marked Edit

A list of options will appear in the drop down menu, select Preferences

This will open a large window.

In a box on the left hand side of this window you will find a list of choices. At the top of this box you will see the word Appearance and under that fonts and colours.

Select Fonts

Another window will appear called Fonts and under it will be several boxes

In the box will be the text For the encoding and a drop down box. In this box it will read western.

Underneath this there will be the text variable width font and a drop down box. Select the box and a drop down menu should appear. Now choose Arial.

In the box next to this there is the text Size. Choose the drop down box and select 18

Underneath this there will be the text fixed width font and a drop down box. This should already be set by default to Ariel.

In the box next to this there is the text Size. Choose the drop down box and select 18.

Underneath these boxes there is the text Sometimes a document will produce its own fonts.

Beneath this there are three choices. The top choice is Use my default fonts overriding document specified fonts.

Choose this option by selecting the circle next to this sentence.

Now select OK.

The text should now appear larger in the window of your browser. If the text is still not large enough for you then repeat the instruction and when you select Size and make the text larger than 18. If this is still too small for you then it may be that you need to look at other ways of enlarging the text on your screen, such as screen magnification software.

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NETSCAPE NAVIGATION 6.2 AND 7.0

Open your Netscape browser

Hold down the Ctrl button on your keyboard and press the plus (+) key

You will find that this will enlarge the text, to enlarge again repeat the procedure

Keep repeating until the text is enlarged to your requirements

If you need to make the text smaller press ctrl on your keyboard and the minus ( - ) key The text in your browser window should now appear larger. If this is still too small for you then it may be that you need to look at other ways of enlarging the text on your screen, such as screen magnification software.

Consult your browser's online 'Help' for further information.

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SCREEN MAGNIFICATION SOFTWARE SUMMARY

Different methods to magnify all or part of a computer screen.

The magnification products on the market which have been developed for use by partially sighted people are now very sophisticated and powerful. The principle behind magnification software is that the image on the standard computer screen can be artificially enlarged. This means that the screen will display only a proportion of the original contents.

This magnified window is moved around to enable the rest of the screen to be read as required. Screen magnification will normally automatically follow the focus of attention, so that the area around the cursor or mouse pointer is magnified. The user is able to increase or decrease the magnification as required. Packages do vary in the features that they provide but generally features include:

Magnification up to 16 times and sometimes 32 times. Although using magnification at 32 times may prove very difficult to manage practically.

changing the appearance of the cursors and mouse pointer

smoothing jagged edges of characters at larger magnification

altering the colours of text, foreground and background

Screen magnification products vary in price and start at around £175 and can cost up to £600, depending on whether there is speech support built into the program. Some of the more popular products include Lunar, MAGic and Zoomtext.

The Low Vision factsheet describes the different methods used to magnify all or part of the computer screen. It also includes information on large monitors, lighting and standard enhancements to the computer screen. Products are listed along with their suppliers.

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