- General Issues and comments including the differences and similarities between my experiences of using assistive technology and the experiences of people in the videos
Resources 1 (University of Wisconsin's, 2008):
- Having the learning material online, helps both since we have the text in an electronic format, we can have a scan through it before attending the class or the online lecture and also we have the material from before that helps us in printing it and have it in front of us during lectures.
- Going to study and make research in the library happens both in my case and disabled students' case.
- We are occasionally highlighting text when needed which is another similarity.
- It takes too much time for a screen reader user to get a layout even for a single page.
- Difficulty in using the mouse as they do not actually know where the pointer is.
- They have no idea on what is going on in the whole page as the screen reader reads word by word in the text.
- When there are graphics in a page there is a list with the links in the page to check them.
- They can increase the speed of the screen reader reads so that they can improve their reading time.
- Zoomtext: enlargement program but only a portion of the page is shown on the monitor.
- When the screen reader speaks the enlargement goes to 2 or 3 words => disoriented.
- The magnifier can be used to magnify only the pieces needed.
- Colours are important as it is easier to distinguish between links with the right colours and they have the ability to change background.
- Spacing is important as extra spacing between lines and links is helpful. It is really overwhelming when there are many resources in a webpage.
- Shapes are equally important as screen reader users understand better what is in the page (text boxes etc).
Resources 2 - AbilityNet (2007), Skills for Access (undated) and AssistiveWare (2008):
- It is important to have a clear, good and unique title to each page and different levels of content.
- Something that really captured my attention is that they get bored of the same old flat electronic voice but they get used to it and sometimes the pronunciation of the screen reader results in awful results.
- Usage of tab key to move between the links
- The more html code that can be used to mark-up different parts of a web page the more the screen reader will understand and the user will understand even more. So the right mark-up at the right places to frame the right kind of content.
- Problems with spelling and grammar are faced very well using a pc as user can go back and forth to correct mistakes etc.
- Using cut or copy and paste is useful till the user will write what is required.
- Bad design:
- Frustration
- Poor confidence
- Feeling stupid
- Badly structured the webpage as a result there is difficulty in navigating around
- Imposition of a big strain on memory in order to be able to remember where things are and how to get to different places.
- Dense, heavy text-scrolling down all the time.
- Non-intuitive layouts-mass of stuff and visual puzzles.
- Lack of flexibility in the choices she has when she wants to navigate around.
- Having big size of the text does not help as the user wants to have a general idea of how the webpage is shown on the screen. Colours and patterned background are problematic too, i.e. having text with white colour in a black background.
- Tricks:
- Cut, copy and paste from one place to another
- Formatting features in word, highlighting certain bits in different colours and change the font size, make bold others, underline things and break it up
- Usage of spell checkers
- Design:
- Security that is built into its section was turned out after a certain amount of time that leads in a tremendous pressure.
- No spell checkers
- There is no way in going back and check the entry of what was written.
But good design is like been given learning wings
- Listen to a lecture and she can go back to it and understand better, take her own time and learn at her own pace.
- Bits to concentrate on and think that she needs to learn about the most.
- Examples of showing how to use a software
- The aesthetic element is very much in harmony with the information contents and the meaning of the piece.
- Not to have a busy design-lots of elements juggling against each other, but to make a good use of the space around different elements.
- Use a good balance of visual and audio elements again to help signposting towards meaning and understanding.
- To what extent do you think they are 'an atrocity perpetuated-mostly-by nondisabled professionals'? (Valerie Brew-Parrish's, 2004)
After re-reading this article, I felt just like the writer, frustrated and just offended no matter that I am a nondisabled person. If I was in their place I would feel like that because it does not help to celebrate Disability Simulation Day. What really made me worried and frustrated me were the abstracts from the simulation activities which were really offensive and unacceptable by me. I would not accept such a kind of thing in order to realize what a disabled person's life is or how disabled people feel with their own needs. It is an atrocity perpetuated mostly by nondisabled professionals as they could simply ask and talk with disabled people and get informed for their lives and their needs. They could even simply read books and different publications in order to get informed. The attitude of the kids and the 'significant' others (nondisabled professionals) is unacceptable as they react in a very humiliating way against disabled people. Making fun of each other and disabled students actions and reactions and even their feelings by using masking tapes, nuts, pudding, thick socks, shoes, beads etc are some of the issues that make me really angry with their attitudes...as this is not professional, but meanness.
References:
AbilityNet (2007) Caroline Talks about her Experience of Using a Computer [online], YouTube - AbilityNet's Channel. Available from: http://uk.youtube.com/ watch?v=ux1EYqmCeTU (accessed 27 October 2010).
AssistiveWare (2008) Videos on computer accessibility [online] Available from: http://www.assistiveware.com/ videos.php (accessed 27 October 2010).
Brew-Parrish, V. (2004) The Wrong Message -Still [online] Available from: http://www.raggededgemagazine.com/ focus/wrongmessage04.html (accessed 27 October 2010).
Skills for Access (undated) Case Studies [online] Available from: http://www.skillsforaccess.org.uk/ casestudies.php (accessed 27 October 2010).
University of Wisconsin (2008) Accessibility Videos and Podcasts [online] Available from: http://www.doit.wisc.edu/ accessibility/ video/ (accessed 27 October 2010).