Alasdair King

Personalising web page presentation for older people

This paper looks at different ways of personalising web page presentation to alleviate functional impairments in older people. The paper considers how impairments may be addressed by web design and through various personalisation instruments: accessibility features of standard browsers, proxy servers, assistive technology, application adaptors, and special purpose browsers. A pilot study of five older web users indicated that the most favoured personalisation technique was overriding the CSS (cascading style sheet) with a readily available one using a standard browser. The least favoured one was using assistive technology. In a follow-up study with 16 older web users, performing goal-directed browsing tasks, overriding CSS remains the most favoured. Assistive technology remains the least favoured and the slowest. Based on user comments, one-take-home message for web personalisation instrument developer is that the best instrument for older persons is one that most faithfully preserves the original layout while requiring the least effort.

TeDUB: A System for Presenting and Exploring Technical Drawings for Blind People

Blind people can access and use textual information effectively in a variety of ways - through Braille, audiotape or computer-based systems. Access and use of graphic information is much more problematic, with tactile versions both time-consuming and difficult to make and textual descriptions failing to provide independent access to the material. The TeDUB Project is developing a system which will automatically generate descriptions of certain classes of graphics (electronic circuit diagrams, UML diagrams and architectural plans) and allow blind people to explore them independently. This system has great potential in work, education and leisure domains to open up independent access to graphic materials for blind people.

Presenting UML Software Engineering Diagrams to Blind People

The TeDUB system promises to deliver a UML diagram tool accessible to blind software engineers. The system uses a number of different interfaces and representation techniques to overcome the challenges of making diagrams created with the Unified Modeling Language usable for blind people. The system is entirely automated and does not require special preparation of UML diagrams by a sighted user. The results of evaluation of the system with thirty-six users were positive. The system was well-received and the participants were able to complete set UML tasks.

Screen magnifiers: evolution and evaluation

While the new generation of screen magnifiers might offer more features, they might not necessarily become more effective. The paper considers how performing usability studies helps researchers understand issues related to screen magnifier design, especially in terms of interface, functions, and features.

Automated interpretation and accessible presentation of technical diagrams for blind people

The EU-supported TeDUB (Technical Drawings Understanding for the Blind) project is developing a software system that aims to make technical diagrams accessible to blind and visually impaired people. It consists of two separate modules: one that analyses drawings either semi-automatically or automatically, and one that presents the results of this analysis to blind people and allows them to interact with it. The system is capable of analysing and presenting diagrams from a number of formally defined domains. A diagram enters the system as one of two types: first, diagrams contained in bitmap images, which do not explicitly contain the semantic structure of their content and thus have to be interpreted by the system, and second, diagrams obtained in a semantically enriched format that already yields this structure. The TeDUB system provides blind users with an interface to navigate and annotate these diagrams using a number of input and output devices. Extensive user evaluations have been carried out and an overall positive response from the participants has shown the effectiveness of the approach.

A Talking Word Processor and Web Browser

This paper presents a talking word processor and a talking web browser aimed at cognitively impaired individuals. Both the word processor and the web browser can display information and text and/or symbols. EdWord provides the user with a simple word-processor in which all objects, including menu items and tool tips are spoken. Microsoft Active Accessibility (MSAA) is used to implement this level of speech access; a feature which is unusual in simple word-processors. EdWeb uses a web browser component that linearises a web page into a single linear document. This style of interface has proved successful with a range of novice web users. Both EdWord and EdWeb are freely available.