Glossary
Searchable terminology from accessibility, web standards, and related fields.
70 results found in Input Methods.
- Alternative Input Method (Alternative Input, Non-Standard Input)
- Any method of providing input to a computer or device that differs from the conventional keyboard, mouse, and touchscreen interfaces. Alternative input methods are essential for people with motor, sen…
- Area Pointing (Point and Click, Mouse Pointing)
- Area pointing is the conventional target-acquisition paradigm in graphical user interfaces, in which the user must move a cursor inside a confined two-dimensional target region and then execute a clic…
- Auto-Correction (Autocorrect, Automatic error correction, Spell correction)
- A software feature that automatically detects and corrects typing errors, typically by comparing entered text against a dictionary and suggesting or applying the closest match based on string distance…
- Back Tap (Back Tap Gesture)
- An iOS accessibility feature that allows users to trigger actions by tapping on the back of their iPhone two or three times. Back Tap can be configured to activate shortcuts, accessibility features, o…
- Biometric Control (Biometric Input, Physiological Control Interface)
- The use of measurable biological signals from the human body — such as brain waves (EEG), skin conductance (galvanic skin response), muscle electrical activity (EMG), heart rate, or eye movements — as…
- Brain-Computer Interface (BCI, Brain-Machine Interface, BMI, Neural Interface)
- A technology that enables direct communication between the brain and an external device by detecting and interpreting neural signals. BCIs can use invasive methods (implanted electrodes) or non-invasi…
- Clutching (Clutch Mechanism, Clutch Gesture)
- In gesture- and motion-based input systems, a mechanism that lets the user temporarily disengage the recogniser so that everyday, non-communicative movements — reaching, adjusting posture, gesturing s…
- Command Recognition (Command Classification, Input Recognition)
- The process by which a computer system interprets and classifies a user's input action — such as a gesture, voice command, or key press — as a specific intended command from a predefined vocabulary of…
- Connected Speech Recognition (Continuous Speech Recognition)
- A form of automatic speech recognition in which users speak words naturally, with normal coarticulation and minimal pauses, rather than pausing between each word as required by older 'discrete' or 'is…
- Continuous Voice Control (Continuous Vocal Control, Proportional Voice Control)
- A voice interaction paradigm in which vocal parameters such as pitch, loudness, vowel quality, and timbre are used to provide smooth, proportional, real-time control of a system, as opposed to discret…
- Curse of Dimensionality (Accessibility)
- In an accessibility context, the practical barrier that arises when a player or user must coordinate a large number of distinct inputs simultaneously or in rapid succession — for example, moving, aimi…
- Cursor Control (Pointer Control, Cursor Navigation)
- The ability to direct and position an on-screen cursor or pointer using an input device such as a mouse, trackball, touchpad, joystick, or eye tracker. Cursor control is a fundamental requirement for …
- Cursor Deviation (Cursor Drift, Path Deviation)
- The difference between the actual path taken by a cursor and the ideal straight-line path between the starting point and the target. Cursor deviation is a key performance metric in evaluating alternat…
- Cursor Movement (Cursor Navigation, Pointer Movement, Mouse Movement)
- The process of controlling the position of a pointer or cursor on screen using an input device such as a mouse, trackpad, or joystick. Cursor movement efficiency is a key metric in accessibility resea…
- DTMF (Dual-Tone Multi-Frequency, Touch-Tone)
- DTMF (Dual-Tone Multi-Frequency) is the signaling system used when pressing keys on a telephone keypad, where each key press generates a unique combination of two audio frequencies. In accessibility c…
- Debounce (Debounce Filter, Key Debounce, Bounce Key Filter)
- A keyboard accessibility feature that filters out unintended extra keypresses caused by tremor or imprecise motor control. When enabled, the system ignores rapid successive activations of the same key…
- Direction-Based Navigation (Directional Navigation, Direction-Based Cursor Control)
- A cursor control method where users issue directional commands such as "move left," "move up," or "move down" to reposition the cursor on screen. In speech-based implementations, these commands move t…
- Dwell Activation (Dwell Click, Dwell Selection)
- An input method where an action is triggered by maintaining focus on a target for a specified period of time (the dwell time). Commonly used with eye tracking and head tracking systems, dwell activati…
- Dwell Time (Gaze Dwell, Fixation Duration)
- The length of time a user must maintain their gaze on a target element to trigger a selection in eye gaze technology systems. Dwell time is a critical parameter in gaze-based interfaces: too short and…
- Dynamic Keyboard (Adaptive Keyboard, Self-Adjusting Keyboard)
- An assistive technology concept in which a keyboard automatically adjusts its input parameters — such as key repeat rate, debounce time, and acceptance delay — based on the user's typing patterns and …