Understanding Blind Users\u27 Accessibility and Usability Problems in an Online Task

We believe that Web lacks accessibility and usability, creating problems for blind user’s in online activities. Literature recognizes this problem exists, but does not explain its nature. This understanding is needed to determine accessibility and usability requirements of the Web for blind users. We examine the question: What is the nature of accessibility and usability problems blind users face in completing online tasks? Adopting a task-oriented approach, we investigate this question in the context of online assessment. Employing verbal protocol analysis, we capture evidence of problems 6 blind participants observe and experience completing online assessment. Analysis reveals two aspects of Web design that present accessibility and usability problems for blind users in performing online tasks. Our study contributes with a deep understanding about blind user’s problems due to lack of Web accessibility and usability. Future research may use this understanding to create blind user profile for online assessment applications

Evaluation of Web Accessibility and Usability from Blind User’s Perspective: The Context of Online Assessment

The central premise of our research is that the Web lacks accessibility and usability, creating problems for blind users in Web interactions. We want to understand the nature of accessibility and usability problems blind users face in a Web-based task. Extant literature recognizes this problem exists, but does not explain its nature. This understanding is needed to determine accessibility and usability requirements of the Web for blind users. Our research takes a task-oriented approach to develop this understanding in the context of online assessment. Employing verbal protocol analysis, we capture evidence of problems 6 blind participants observe and experience in completing the task. Analysis reveals two aspects of Web design that present accessibility and usability problems for blind users. Findings will help future research develop blind user profile for Web applications. Our study demonstrates an effective method for qualitative evaluation of Web accessibility and usability for the blind

Developing an Understanding of the Nature of Accessibility and Usability Problems Blind Students Face in Web-Enhanced Instruction Environment

Our motivation is the belief that blind students cannot participate effectively in Web-enhanced instruction due to challenges in non-visual Web interactions. We want to understand nature of accessibility and usability problems they face in WEI environments. Literature informs the Web lacks accessibility and usability, but does not explain what aspects of WEI interactions present difficulties for the blind. This is necessary to improve their WEI participation. Our user-centered, task-oriented approach relies on sound understanding of blind students’ WEI experiences, supplemented by perspectives of instructors, developers and accessibility standards. We employ protocol analysis of blind participants’ verbal reports, content analysis of instructor and developer interviews, and objective accessibility evaluation. Results explain where and why difficulties occur; their character; associated interface elements; coping mechanisms and possible solutions. Findings help instructors, developers and accessibility researchers better appreciate blind students’ needs and challenges. It will help develop WEI environments that support non-visual WEI participation

Understanding blind Users' Web Accessibility and Usability problems.

Our motivation for this research is the belief that blind users cannot participate effectively in routine Web-based activities due to the lack of Web accessibility and usability for non-visual interaction. We take a cognitive, user-centered, task-oriented approach to develop an understanding of accessibility and usability problems that blind users face in Web interactions. This understanding is critically needed to determine accessibility and usability requirements for non-visual Web interaction. We employ verbal protocol analysis for an in-depth examination of difficulties participants face in completing an online assessment through a course management system. We analyze the problems that hinder accessibility and usability and explain the nature of these problems in terms of design principles. Our study contributes an effective method for qualitative evaluation of Web accessibility and usability. Our findings will guide future research to develop more accessible and usable Web applications for blind users

Overdue for an Overhaul: The Redesign of Durham County Public Library's Web Site

A website can provide a powerful way for an organization to communicate with the public. Although organizations often place a large degree of effort in website creation, they typically neglect to consider ongoing maintenance, which is critical in an environment where content, technology, and people evolve. In this paper we conduct a redesign of the Durham County Public Library site. As with many organizations, the Library is short-staffed and their website suffers from outdated content, inconsistent design and poor navigation. Using the Library as a case study, we critique the original website, then propose a new design. Our subsequent implementation and evaluation showed the new design conforms to W3C priority one accessibility guidelines, is ten times smaller, downloads ten times faster, and is easier to update. This case study lends further evidence as to the importance of a good web site design for ongoing maintenance

Taming the inaccessible web

Manuscrito. -- 4 h.; papel; folio. -- Fondo Universidad de Salamanca; sección Claustros; serie Borradores de claustros. -- Buena conservación. -- Fechas: 18/07/1795

ABSTRACT Taming the Inaccessible Web

Visually impaired users are hindered in their efforts to access the largest repository of electronic information in the world, namely the World Wide Web (Web). A visually impaired users information and presentation requirements are different from a sighted user in that they are highly egocentric and non-visual. These requirements can become problems in that the Web is visually centric with regard to presentation and information order / layout, this can (and does) hinder users who need presentation-agnostic access to information. Finding semantic information already encoded directly into documents can help to alleviate these problems and support users who wish to understand the content as opposed to the presentation and order of the information. If this is to happen in the “real world”, however, authors must incur no “design overhead” when creating documents. Our solution, Structural-Semantics for Accessibility and Device Indepen- dence (SADIe) involves building ontologies of Cascading Sytle-Sheets (CSS) and using those ontologies to transform Web pages. In this way we find that we can indeed ‘tame ’ inaccessible Web pages. Categories and Subject Descriptors H.1.2 [Models and Principles]: User/Machine Systems—Human factors / Human information processing