Literature Reviews

Reviewed research papers, articles, and publications relevant to digital accessibility.

• Web-based Chinese sign language broadcasting system

  Dengfeng Yao, Yunfeng Qiu, Harry Huang (2009) — Proceedings of the 2009 International Cross-Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibililty (W4A)

  This paper presents a web-based Chinese Sign Language (CSL) Broadcasting System that automatically translates text on web pages into animated 3D sign language gestures displayed through a browser plugin. The system addresses an often-overlooked acces…

  • sign language
  • deaf accessibility
  • sign language synthesis
  • 3D animation
  • Chinese Sign Language
  • text-to-sign
  • web accessibility
  • multilingual access

• User tests demonstration: real experiences in measuring web accessibility needs for people with disabilities and the elderly

  Jesus Hernandez Galán, J. Ángel Martinez Usero, M. Jesús Varela Méndez (2009) — Proceedings of the 2009 International Cross-Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibililty (W4A)

  This workshop paper from the ONCE Foundation, CIDAT, and Technosite in Spain describes a practical demonstration of user testing with people with disabilities and elderly participants as part of web accessibility evaluation. Set within the European p…

  • user testing
  • accessibility evaluation
  • aging
  • European accessibility policy
  • UWEM
  • usability testing
  • disability

• TextSL: a screen reader accessible interface for second life

  Bugra Oktay, Eelke Folmer (2010) — Proceedings of the 2010 International Cross Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper presents TextSL, a text-based command interface for Second Life that enables visually impaired users to explore and interact with the virtual world using a screen reader (JAWS). Inspired by multi-user dungeon (MUD) text adventure games lik…

  • virtual worlds
  • screen readers
  • visual impairment
  • blindness
  • text-based interface
  • command-line interface
  • Second Life
  • game accessibility

• Analysis and integration of web accessibility metrics

  Maia Naftali (2010) — Proceedings of the 2010 International Cross Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This Google Student Award paper presents OceanAcc, a semi-automatic accessibility evaluation and analysis tool developed as a thesis project at the University of Buenos Aires. OceanAcc addresses a practical gap: while several accessibility metrics ha…

  • accessibility metrics
  • accessibility evaluation
  • automated testing
  • barrier walkthrough
  • WCAG compliance
  • accessibility tools

• An educational tool to support the accessibility evaluation process

  Christopher Bailey, Elaine Pearson (2010) — Proceedings of the 2010 International Cross Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper describes the Accessibility Evaluation Assistant (AEA), a web-based knowledge management tool designed to help novice auditors — primarily computing students — conduct meaningful accessibility evaluations without expert knowledge or access…

  • accessibility evaluation
  • accessibility education
  • WCAG compliance
  • barrier walkthrough
  • accessibility tools
  • user-centered evaluation

• Enabling the blind in virtual worlds

  William S. Carter (2010) — Proceedings of the 2010 International Cross Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper from IBM's Human Ability and Accessibility Center describes experimental techniques for enabling blind users to participate in virtual world environments. Unlike conventional web content where text and images can be given alternative descr…

  • virtual reality
  • blindness
  • virtual worlds
  • multimodal interaction
  • cognitive overload
  • avatar
  • spatial navigation
  • assistive technology

• Web not for all: a large scale study of web accessibility

  Rui Lopes, Daniel Gomes, Luís Carriço (2010) — Proceedings of the 2010 International Cross Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper presents the first large-scale automated accessibility evaluation of nearly 30 million web pages from the Portuguese Web Archive. The researchers implemented 39 WCAG 1.0 checkpoints (priorities 1 and 2) based on the Unified Web Evaluation …

  • automated testing
  • accessibility evaluation
  • WCAG compliance
  • web science
  • accessibility metrics
  • large-scale study

• Modelling web navigation with the user in mind

  Ruslan Fayzrakhmanov, Max Göbel, Wolfgang Holzinger, Bernhard Krüpl, Andreas Mager, Robert Baumgartner (2010) — Proceedings of the 2010 International Cross Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper introduces the ABBA (Advanced Barrier-free Browser Accessibility) framework, a novel approach to screen reader design that replaces traditional sequential DOM-based navigation with a multi-axial navigation model. The core insight is that c…

  • screen readers
  • web navigation
  • visual impairment
  • semantic web
  • ontology
  • web information extraction
  • document structure

• 3D HapticWebBrowser: towards universal web navigation for the visually impaired

  Nikolaos Kaklanis, Konstantinos Votis, Konstantinos Moustakas, Dimitrios Tzovaras (2010) — Proceedings of the 2010 International Cross Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper presents the 3D HapticWebBrowser, a free open-source web browser that uses haptic (touch feedback) technology to enable visually impaired users to navigate web pages and explore 2D maps. The system transforms HTML elements into "hapgets" —…

  • haptic technology
  • visual impairment
  • blindness
  • multimodal interaction
  • accessible maps
  • web navigation
  • assistive technology
  • 3D interaction
  • open source

• (Voice) website creation and access using phones

  Arun Kumar, Sheetal K. Agarwal, Priyanka Manwani, Ketki Dhanesha (2010) — Proceedings of the 2010 International Cross Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This challenge paper from IBM Research India presents Spoken Web, a platform that enables people to create and access "voice websites" (VoiceSites) entirely through phone calls using speech and DTMF (touch-tone) input. The system takes a fundamentall…

  • voice interface
  • developing countries
  • digital divide
  • low literacy
  • user-generated content
  • mobile accessibility
  • multilingual access