PDF first heading
Silktide checks that the first heading in each of your PDF documents is a top-level heading (H1), usually the document's title.
Why this matters
People using often start by listing a document's headings to get a sense of its structure. The first heading anchors that outline: when it is an H2 or H3, the document appears to start partway through, and every heading after it reads as nested under something that is not there.
How to fix it
- Fix it at the source where possible: apply the Title or Heading 1 style to the document's main heading in the original Word, Google Docs, or InDesign document, then re-export as a tagged PDF.
- Alternatively, change the first heading's tag to H1 in a PDF editor such as Adobe Acrobat Pro.
- Keep the headings after it in order. See PDF heading levels.
How Silktide tests this
- Open each PDF document found on your website.
- Find the first heading tag in document order.
- Report the document if that heading is not an H1.
Documents with no headings at all are reported by PDF headings instead.