Just wanted to let you know I'm having a bad case of the flu. It's one of those flu's that manage to disable your brain in such a way nothing productive comes from it anymore. But I'm feeling a little bit better already (hooray for self-medication). It could be it also has an influence on my English, if so, I apologize in advance.
I hope to continue my work soon, I've had enough of this flu.
Until next time!
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Update
It's about time I gave an update on the things I've been working on. I haven't got much exciting things to write about, I'm still busy with writing the literature review. But I'll do my best to extract some interesting information for you.
Statistics
I started with a section on facts and statistics about blind and visually impaired people. One of the key facts I discovered was the following (from the now defunct page http://www.uniteforsight.org/eye_stats.php (maybe a 404 page is a good idea, (Google Cache still works) ):
And this is why I think it's interesting: people that are getting older now are used to using the computer and Internet. The group of people that will have to change the way they use computers and Internet will be growing, and accessibility-problems will become even more apparent. This underlines the need to raise the overall awareness of the accessibility-issue, and every step taken today doesn't have to be taken later. With my graduation, my research and this blog I hope to contribute to the overall awareness of this issue, and hopefully propose solutions to improve the accessibility of Flash powered embedded musicplayers.
Some other interesting facts about blind and visually impaired people can be found on this World Health Organization Fact-sheet.
Assistive Technologies
Next up I did some research about assistive technologies that are used by blind and visually impaired people to access computers. Screen readers are the mostly used assistive technology by this group. A screen reader conveys the information that is shown on the screen by applications to audio, or if it's supported and wished for, braille (using a refreshable braille display). Screen readers rely heavily on Microsoft Active Accessibility, an Application Programming Interface (API) that was created specifically to help assistive technology interact/access/modify user interfaces on the computer.
Screen readers are very expensive products, because most programs use different ways of presenting the user interface and handle user interaction differently. This creates the need for tailor-made solutions and support. Also, screen readers cover a relative small market, also contributing to the high price. To illustrate this, the standard edition of the most popular screen reader used, JAWS, is priced at $895.00 USD. Not exactly a cheap purchase if you'd ask me.
JAWS is regularly updated and the last version, 11, was released in October 2009. Out of curiosity, I checked the "Whats New in JAWS 11" page, and to my amazement I found the following information in the "Enhancements"-list for Internet Explorer (I left out all the other enhancements not relevant for my statement following this list):
- JAWS no longer reads the wrong page at www.dominos.ca.
- INSERT+F7 on www.liveatc.net now shows all links found on the page.
- JAWS now correctly reads Web page content at the Motley Fool Web site.
- You can now select the preview songs buttons on CDBaby.com
This points out that screen readers have to implement specific solutions for specific pages, for specific browsers, to greaten the accessibility of these pages. These particular enhancements prove that a world wherein the majority of webpages are accessible by default is still a distant dream. It also points out that accessibility of webpages in general is a threeway story:
- The developers of pages have to be aware of accessibility issues
- Browser-developers have to support MSAA during the development of the browser
- Screenreaders have to know what to expect, and handle accordingly
Concluding
Well, I've got to wrap things up. I'm currently writing a section that explains accessibility-problems online in relation to the screen reader (technology). That's for the next time though, this post has gotten pretty long!
Statistics
I started with a section on facts and statistics about blind and visually impaired people. One of the key facts I discovered was the following (from the now defunct page http://www.uniteforsight.org/eye_stats.php (maybe a 404 page is a good idea, (Google Cache still works) ):
In developed countries, for each decade after the age of 40 there is a threefold increase in the prevalence of blindness and vision loss.
And this is why I think it's interesting: people that are getting older now are used to using the computer and Internet. The group of people that will have to change the way they use computers and Internet will be growing, and accessibility-problems will become even more apparent. This underlines the need to raise the overall awareness of the accessibility-issue, and every step taken today doesn't have to be taken later. With my graduation, my research and this blog I hope to contribute to the overall awareness of this issue, and hopefully propose solutions to improve the accessibility of Flash powered embedded musicplayers.
Some other interesting facts about blind and visually impaired people can be found on this World Health Organization Fact-sheet.
Assistive Technologies
Next up I did some research about assistive technologies that are used by blind and visually impaired people to access computers. Screen readers are the mostly used assistive technology by this group. A screen reader conveys the information that is shown on the screen by applications to audio, or if it's supported and wished for, braille (using a refreshable braille display). Screen readers rely heavily on Microsoft Active Accessibility, an Application Programming Interface (API) that was created specifically to help assistive technology interact/access/modify user interfaces on the computer.
Screen readers are very expensive products, because most programs use different ways of presenting the user interface and handle user interaction differently. This creates the need for tailor-made solutions and support. Also, screen readers cover a relative small market, also contributing to the high price. To illustrate this, the standard edition of the most popular screen reader used, JAWS, is priced at $895.00 USD. Not exactly a cheap purchase if you'd ask me.
JAWS is regularly updated and the last version, 11, was released in October 2009. Out of curiosity, I checked the "Whats New in JAWS 11" page, and to my amazement I found the following information in the "Enhancements"-list for Internet Explorer (I left out all the other enhancements not relevant for my statement following this list):
- JAWS no longer reads the wrong page at www.dominos.ca.
- INSERT+F7 on www.liveatc.net now shows all links found on the page.
- JAWS now correctly reads Web page content at the Motley Fool Web site.
- You can now select the preview songs buttons on CDBaby.com
This points out that screen readers have to implement specific solutions for specific pages, for specific browsers, to greaten the accessibility of these pages. These particular enhancements prove that a world wherein the majority of webpages are accessible by default is still a distant dream. It also points out that accessibility of webpages in general is a threeway story:
- The developers of pages have to be aware of accessibility issues
- Browser-developers have to support MSAA during the development of the browser
- Screenreaders have to know what to expect, and handle accordingly
Concluding
Well, I've got to wrap things up. I'm currently writing a section that explains accessibility-problems online in relation to the screen reader (technology). That's for the next time though, this post has gotten pretty long!
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Literature Review
I spent the last days setting up my literature review. Now that that's been done, it's time to get to the meat of the review. After the first impressions by doing some searches on Google Scholar, I'm confident enough all the data I need will be found on the Internet.
I'm will now start to systematically work through the results, looking which papers cite which (one of the very handy features of Scholar), and so will work my way to the most recent online accessibility papers.
The literature review consists of two main parts:
- First I need to explain some facts about blind and visually impaired people and the issues they face with online accessibility.
- Secondly, I'm going to create an overview of studies, solutions and initiatives that have been created to improve accessibility of Flash.
Looks easy enough, but it will take enough time to keep me occupied for at least two weeks. Interesting papers and findings will be shared on this blog.
Oh, and I have to correct some mis-information in my last post: the overview of programs I talked about (programs and tools that have been created to improve accessibility in Flash (music players), like speaking browsers, screenreaders, etc.), is part of the preparation for the quantitative research, and not the literature review. My bad!
I'm will now start to systematically work through the results, looking which papers cite which (one of the very handy features of Scholar), and so will work my way to the most recent online accessibility papers.
The literature review consists of two main parts:
- First I need to explain some facts about blind and visually impaired people and the issues they face with online accessibility.
- Secondly, I'm going to create an overview of studies, solutions and initiatives that have been created to improve accessibility of Flash.
Looks easy enough, but it will take enough time to keep me occupied for at least two weeks. Interesting papers and findings will be shared on this blog.
Oh, and I have to correct some mis-information in my last post: the overview of programs I talked about (programs and tools that have been created to improve accessibility in Flash (music players), like speaking browsers, screenreaders, etc.), is part of the preparation for the quantitative research, and not the literature review. My bad!
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
The general idea
In my previous post I promised to discuss my methodologies, methods and general workflow. For the sake of readability I will sketch the main outlines of the research and will not go into too much detail. When the time comes, I'll give more elaborate explanations about my working methods for that particular part of the research.
The research I will do consists of three core elements, in chronological order:
Literature Review
The literature review's purpose is to create an up-to-date overview of:
- accessibility issues on the Internet relating to Flash(players) and Web 2.0 in general
- research that has been done on methods of improving accessibility related to Flash (music players)
- programs and tools that have been created to improve accessibility in Flash (music players), like speaking browsers, screenreaders, etc.
It will serve as a background and reference for determining the variables and methods used during the quantitative research.
Quantitative Research
During the quantitative research I will create a list of popular Flash (music)players that I will test on accessibility with a checklist based off of the literature review and own findings. Each player will be tested with this checklist; without accessibility tools/programs, and with each one of the accessibility improving tools. The outcome of the quantitative research, coupled with the literature review, will lead to the article I'm going to write, and - if required - the development of a prototype of an accessible music/mp3 player.
Article
The article will introduce readers with sufficient basic technical knowledge of the Internet and it's underlying technologies into the land of the accessibility issues for people with vision-disabilities. It's aim is also to be a clear guide for web-developers/designers to improve accessibility when using musicplayers on their websites or developing players themselves.
That's my graduation for you in a nutshell! I'm not going to promise what I'm going to write about next, but I think it will have something to do about working on the literature review.
The research I will do consists of three core elements, in chronological order:
Literature Review
The literature review's purpose is to create an up-to-date overview of:
- accessibility issues on the Internet relating to Flash(players) and Web 2.0 in general
- research that has been done on methods of improving accessibility related to Flash (music players)
- programs and tools that have been created to improve accessibility in Flash (music players), like speaking browsers, screenreaders, etc.
It will serve as a background and reference for determining the variables and methods used during the quantitative research.
Quantitative Research
During the quantitative research I will create a list of popular Flash (music)players that I will test on accessibility with a checklist based off of the literature review and own findings. Each player will be tested with this checklist; without accessibility tools/programs, and with each one of the accessibility improving tools. The outcome of the quantitative research, coupled with the literature review, will lead to the article I'm going to write, and - if required - the development of a prototype of an accessible music/mp3 player.
Article
The article will introduce readers with sufficient basic technical knowledge of the Internet and it's underlying technologies into the land of the accessibility issues for people with vision-disabilities. It's aim is also to be a clear guide for web-developers/designers to improve accessibility when using musicplayers on their websites or developing players themselves.
That's my graduation for you in a nutshell! I'm not going to promise what I'm going to write about next, but I think it will have something to do about working on the literature review.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Background information
First of all I would like to tell why I have chosen this particular subject to graduate on. Let me give a little background information on the course I'm graduating on.
The course "Communication, Multimedia & Design" is a modern course which aims to educate students in the relatively new field of multimedia. The course's primary goal is to ultimately make the student an allround multimedia specialist. The student must steer his own educational process, leading to an area of expertise the student excels at.
During the years I followed the course, I decided to focus on the technical aspects of the course, mainly programming for the web. I'm familiar with (X)HTML, CSS, JavaScript, JQuery, AJAX-techniques, Actionscript 2.0 and Actionscript 3.0, along with a whole set of IDE's and software packages.During my internship I developed an internal bugtracking system for a company that produces softwarepackages, websites and online services for municipalities, for example, automated online live broadcasting of council meetings. It was also while working for this company that I was made aware of accessibility issues on the Internet. Online services should be accessible for anyone who uses them, including people with a disability. Especially when they replace traditional services, which is true for some municipalities. The trend however is clear: as more and more services become available on the Internet, and more and more people use them, traditional services (can) dissappear. Thats reason one that contributed to the decision for the subject.
The second reason: my own personal passion, Housemusic. I will not bore you with the reasons I'm so passionated about Housemusic, but I will tell you why this also has been a main contributing factor. I regularly purchase music for my hobby online. Online stores often give the user the possibility to preview a track in an embedded player on the website. More often than not, these players are developed in Flash. Given the fact I read about accessibility problems with Flash content, it suddenly sprang to my mind: "How accessible are these embedded music players to blind and visually impaired users, for whom audio often plays a more important role in life than users with eyesight?"
After this flash of insight (no pun intended!), I searched the Internet for research on this particular subject. After scanning recent theses and papers related to accessibility, Flash content and music/video-players I decided it was worthwile to devote my graduation to this subject. I really wanted to do something I could put my heart in during my graduation, and this fits the bill quite nicely. I also hope to create more overall awareness of accessibility issues on the Internet, for normal Internet users as well as developers.
In the next post I'll discuss how I'm going to fill in my graduation.
The course "Communication, Multimedia & Design" is a modern course which aims to educate students in the relatively new field of multimedia. The course's primary goal is to ultimately make the student an allround multimedia specialist. The student must steer his own educational process, leading to an area of expertise the student excels at.
During the years I followed the course, I decided to focus on the technical aspects of the course, mainly programming for the web. I'm familiar with (X)HTML, CSS, JavaScript, JQuery, AJAX-techniques, Actionscript 2.0 and Actionscript 3.0, along with a whole set of IDE's and software packages.During my internship I developed an internal bugtracking system for a company that produces softwarepackages, websites and online services for municipalities, for example, automated online live broadcasting of council meetings. It was also while working for this company that I was made aware of accessibility issues on the Internet. Online services should be accessible for anyone who uses them, including people with a disability. Especially when they replace traditional services, which is true for some municipalities. The trend however is clear: as more and more services become available on the Internet, and more and more people use them, traditional services (can) dissappear. Thats reason one that contributed to the decision for the subject.
The second reason: my own personal passion, Housemusic. I will not bore you with the reasons I'm so passionated about Housemusic, but I will tell you why this also has been a main contributing factor. I regularly purchase music for my hobby online. Online stores often give the user the possibility to preview a track in an embedded player on the website. More often than not, these players are developed in Flash. Given the fact I read about accessibility problems with Flash content, it suddenly sprang to my mind: "How accessible are these embedded music players to blind and visually impaired users, for whom audio often plays a more important role in life than users with eyesight?"
After this flash of insight (no pun intended!), I searched the Internet for research on this particular subject. After scanning recent theses and papers related to accessibility, Flash content and music/video-players I decided it was worthwile to devote my graduation to this subject. I really wanted to do something I could put my heart in during my graduation, and this fits the bill quite nicely. I also hope to create more overall awareness of accessibility issues on the Internet, for normal Internet users as well as developers.
In the next post I'll discuss how I'm going to fill in my graduation.
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