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Computer Science @ Rochester
Friday, February 13, 2009
10:00 AM
Computer Science Bldg. Room 601
Jeffrey R. Bigham
University of Washington
Improved Access by and for Blind Web Users
The web is an unparalleled information resource, but remains difficult and frustrating for millions of blind and low vision people to use. The openness and flexibility of the web make it possible to better adapt content for all users, but until recently, blind web users have been left out of this process. In this talk, I'll discuss the following three projects designed to improve our understanding of how blind people access the web and enable them to independently improve access: (i) WebinSitu facilitates longitudinal remote user studies, (ii) TrailBlazer makes non-visual access to the web more usable by predicting what users might want to do next, and (iii) WebAnywhere adds speech output to any web page without installing new software. These projects have not only made significant advances in web accessibility and usability for blind web users, but have also yielded general lessons applicable for adapting and delivering content for all users.

Refreshments provided at 9:45 am