Literature Reviews

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

• Accessibility of Emerging Rich Web Technologies: Web 2.0 and the Semantic Web

  Michael Cooper (2007) — Proceedings of the 2007 International Cross-Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This keynote paper by Michael Cooper of the W3C Web Accessibility Initiative examines the accessibility challenges and opportunities created by the emergence of Web 2.0 technologies in the mid-2000s. Cooper frames Web 2.0 as a paradigm shift characte…

  • WAI-ARIA
  • Web 2.0
  • Semantic Web
  • rich internet applications
  • web standards
  • assistive technology
  • accessibility API
  • dynamic content

• E-learning 2.0: You Are We-LCoME!

  Stefano Ferretti, Silvia Mirri, Ludovico Antonio Muratori, Marco Roccetti, Paola Salomoni (2008) — Proceedings of the 2008 International Cross-Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper presents We-LCoME (Wiki e-Learning Compound Multimedia Environment), a collaborative platform for creating and enriching accessible multimedia e-learning resources. Built on top of DokuWiki, the system allows a community of "prosumers" — l…

  • e-learning
  • multimedia accessibility
  • collaborative authoring
  • Web 2.0
  • SMIL
  • content adaptation
  • captions
  • learning objects
  • wiki
  • ATAG

• One World, One Web ... But Great Diversity

  Brian Kelly, Liddy Nevile, EA Draffan, Sotiris Fanou (2008) — Proceedings of the 2008 International Cross-Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This provocative paper challenges the dominant WAI/WCAG-centric model of web accessibility, arguing that its narrow focus on guideline conformance of individual digital resources fails to account for the diversity of user needs, contexts of use, and …

  • WCAG
  • accessibility policy
  • social model of disability
  • learning disabilities
  • Web 2.0
  • personalized accessibility
  • accessibility metadata
  • inclusive design
  • e-learning
  • holistic accessibility

• Audio Presentation of Auto-Suggest Lists

  Andy Brown, Caroline Jay, Simon Harper (2009) — Proceedings of the 2009 International Cross-Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper investigates how to make auto-suggest lists (ASLs) — the dropdown suggestions that appear as users type in search boxes and form fields — accessible through audio for visually impaired users. Part of the SASWAT (Structured Accessibility St…

  • visual impairment
  • screen readers
  • dynamic content
  • Web 2.0
  • auto-suggest
  • autocomplete
  • eye tracking
  • AJAX
  • ARIA live regions
  • non-visual interaction
  • audio interface

• Audio Access to Calendars

  Andy Brown, Caroline Jay, Simon Harper (2010) — Proceedings of the 2010 International Cross Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper addresses a specific but widespread accessibility problem: pop-up calendar date pickers on the web are effectively unusable by people with visual impairments. These JavaScript widgets dynamically insert tabular calendar content into the pa…

  • visual impairment
  • screen readers
  • dynamic content
  • Web 2.0
  • date picker
  • audio interface
  • eye tracking
  • AJAX
  • user study
  • widget accessibility
  • non-visual interaction

• Using galvanic skin response measures to identify areas of frustration for older web 2.0 users

  Darren Lunn, Simon Harper (2010) — Proceedings of the 2010 International Cross Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper investigates how older web users experience stress and frustration when interacting with Web 2.0 dynamic content, using galvanic skin response (GSR) measurements combined with eye-tracking data. GSR is a physiological indicator that measur…

  • older adults
  • physiological measurement
  • galvanic skin response
  • eye tracking
  • Web 2.0
  • dynamic content
  • cognitive load
  • user research
  • stress measurement

• Web 2.0 and the Semantic Web: Hindrance or Opportunity? W4A -- International Cross-Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility 2007

  Yeliz Yesilada, Simon Harper (2008) — SIGACCESS Access. Comput.

  This is the conference report for the 4th International Cross-Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A) 2007, held at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel in Banff, Canada, co-located with the World Wide Web (WWW) conference. The report summariz…

  • Web 2.0
  • semantic web
  • conference report
  • ARIA
  • assistive technology
  • screen readers
  • dynamic content
  • web accessibility evaluation
  • accessibility APIs