As the web continues to evolve, so does our need for achieving an accessible web for people with disabilities. Content management systems (CMSs) have well observed accessibility problems with generated content, and in recent years, several features have been proposed in order to minimize or eliminate these problems. This study investigated CMSs in current use to find common accessibility problems and evaluated a set of features proposed by Acosta, T. et al. in 2018, targeting these problems. The study initially found a general lack of information, guidance and technical support provided by CMSs to editors promoting the generation of accessible content. The results indicate that even editors highly aware of accessibility may not be able to create accessible content due to the limitations of their systems. The study also received positive feedback towards the evaluated features from professionals, indicating that the features are of practical value and may help the editor by minimizing or eliminating common accessibility problems in content generated through CMSs. / Webben fortsätter att utvecklas, och det gör också vårt behov av att göra webben tillgänglig för personer med funktionshinder. Innehållshanteringssystem (CMS) har flera kända tillgänglighetsproblem med dess genererande innehåll och under de senaste åren så har ett antal tillgänglighetsfunktioner föreslagits för att minimera eller eliminera dessa problem. Den här studien undersökte CMS som används idag för att hitta vanliga tillgänglighetsproblem och evaluerade en samling av föreslagna funktioner av Acosta, T. et al. som riktade sig mot dessa problem. Studien fann i början en generell brist på information, vägledning och tekniskt stöd från CMS till redaktörer som främjar skapandet av tillgängligt innehåll. Resultaten visar att även redaktörer som är medvetna om tillgänglighet inte alltid har möjligheten att skapa tillgängligt innehåll på grund av begränsningarna i deras system. Studien fick också positiv återkoppling av de utvärderade funktionerna från yrkesverksamma inom området, vilket indikerar att funktionerna har ett praktiskt värde och kan hjälpa redaktören genom att minimera eller eliminera vanliga tillgänglighetsproblem i innehåll som skapats via CMS.

Was bedeutet Barrierefreiheit im Internet? Welche Elemente auf einer Website werden zur Barriere für Menschen mit Sehbehinderungen oder Blindheit? Was sind Barrieren für gehörlose Menschen und was sind Barrieren für körperlich eingeschränkte Menschen? Und wie können diese Barrieren erkannt und abgebaut werden? Welche Lösungsmöglichkeiten gibt es und mit welchem Aufwand sind diese umzusetzen? Die Arbeit zeigt am Beispiel einer Plattform für Studierende mit Behinderungen an der TU Dresden Barrieren im täglichen Umgang mit elektronischen Dienstleistungen für betroffene Nutzer auf. Dafür wird die Anwendung verschiedener anerkannter Evaluationsmethoden am Praxisobjekt demonstriert und mit echten Nutzer-Interviews ergänzt. Auf der Grundlage der erhobenen Daten wird das der Plattform zugrundeliegende Kontextszenario qualifiziert und erweitert und ein Redesign durchgeführt. Die erfolgreiche Anwendung und Umsetzung der Richtlinien für Barrierefreiheit und Gebrauchstauglichkeit wird anschließend dokumentiert und demonstriert.

Acessibilidade na Web tem como objetivo possibilitar que qualquer pessoa possa entender e interagir com o conteúdo de uma página Web, independente de deficiências ou outros fatores. Embora exista uma grande quantidade de trabalhos realizados na área, pode-se ainda perceber que pessoas com alguns tipos específicos de deficiências encontram mais dificuldades ao navegar na Web, como no caso dos usuários cegos. Com intuito de minimizar os problemas enfrentados por esses usuários cegos ao navegar na Web, foi proposta nesta tese uma abordagem que consiste em extrair automaticamente o conhecimento de navegação implícito na apresentação visual de uma página Web e alterar o design dessa navegação de uma maneira otimizada a esses usuários. Com esse objetivo, primeiramente foram estudados os trabalhos relacionados aos principais problemas enfrentados pelos usuários cegos ao interagir com a Web, assim como os conjuntos de diretrizes de acessibilidade e usabilidade específicos para minimizar esses problemas, fundamentados em um mapeamento sistemático conduzido sobre o tema. Após a identificação dos problemas e diretrizes, foi desenvolvido um classificador baseado no método Naïve Bayes, considerando-se três características comumente encontradas nos padrões de design de menus de navegação, com intuito de classificar automaticamente os links contidos nesta página em diferentes classes referentes às estruturas de navegação. Após desenvolvido, o método foi testado e avaliado em sites governamentais por meio de uma análise estatística, apresentando um boa taxa de acerto em suas classificações. Com base nas dificuldades encontradas na primeira etapa de pesquisa, foi proposto um modelo de interface próprio aos usuários cegos que utilizam a Web com auxílio de um leitor de tela. Com base no classificador desenvolvido, foi proposta uma abordagem para automaticamente transformar os links de navegação classificados pelo método, em um padrão de navegação otimizado aos leitores de tela. Como prova de conceito, foi realizada uma extração semiautomática de conteúdo das páginas Web, com intuito de transformar esse conteúdo para o novo modelo de interface proposto. Nesse contexto, foi desenvolvido um protótipo de mecanismo de apoio, denominado NavAux. Esse protótipo foi avaliado através de um percurso cognitivo. Para isso, foram definidas algumas tarefas e a exploração da interface foi realizada com apoio do leitor de tela JAWS. Os resultados apresentaram indícios de que a abordagem proposta pode ser considerada uma alternativa viável para minimizar os problemas de acessibilidade enfrentados pelos usuários cegos ao navegar na Web. / Web Accessibility aims to enable that any individual may understand and interact with a Web page content, regardless of disabilities or other factors. Although there is a large number of research studies in this area, it can be noted individuals with some specific types of disabilities find it more difficulty browsing the Web, such as those who are blind. In order to minimize the problems faced by blind users when browsing the Web, the study reported in this thesis proposed an approach which consists in automatically extracting the navigation knowledge implicit in the visual presentation of a Web page and changing this navigation design to an optimized way to those users. For this purpose, the research started with a review of the papers related to the main problems faced by blind users when interacting to the Web, as well as the specific sets of accessibility and usability guidelines to minimize these problems, based on a systematic mapping study conducted on the topic. After identifying the problems and guidelines, the next step involved the development of a classifier based on the Naïve Bayes methods, considering three features commonly found in the design patterns of navigation menus, in order to automatically classify the links contained on each page into different classes relating to the navigation structures. After developed, the method was tested and assessed in governmental websites through an statistical analysis, showing a good success rate in its classifications. Based on the difficulties encountered during the first step of the research, the study proposed an interface model tailored to blind users who use the Web with the help of a screen reader. Based on the developed classifier, the study proposed an approach to automatically transform the browsing links classified by the method into an optimized navigation standard to screen readers. As a proof of concept, the following step involved a semi-automatic extraction of Web pages content, in order to transform this content to a new proposed interface model. In this context, was developed a prototype of the mechanism, named NavAux. This prototype was evaluated through a cognitive walkthrough. To this, were defined some tasks and the interface operation was performed with support of the JAWS screen reader. The results presented signs that the proposed approach can be considered a viable alternative to minimize the accessibility problems faced by blind users when browsing the Web.

A diversificação nas formas de acesso à Web, alavancada pelo crescente uso de dispositivos ubíquos, principalmente smartphones e tablets, tem motivado o desenvolvimento de métodos para adaptação do conteúdo disponível na Web, dado que grande parte do conteúdo não foi projetado para ser acessado nesse novo contexto. O conteúdo Web é composto por diversos elementos que, em geral, fornecem interatividade aos usuários. Alguns destes elementos, tais como menus, são responsáveis por auxiliar a navegação no site, ajudando na localização e acesso das informações que por ventura o usuário esteja procurando. No entanto, muitos dos menus disponíveis na Web não foram desenvolvidos de uma forma acessível e nem suportam a interação em dispositivos, criando dificuldades que impedem os usuários interagirem satisfatoriamente com esses elementos. Além da diversificação de modos de acesso, existe também a diversificação do perfil de usuários que fazem uso dos recursos da Web. Alguns desses usuários encontram barreiras que tendem a dificultar ou limitar seu acesso às aplicações e conteúdos Web em geral. Nesse sentindo, este trabalho teve como objetivo principal abordar o problema de adaptação de conteúdo Web para dispositivos móveis, com foco nos menus, fornecendo uma solução personalizada de acordo com as preferências do usuário, a fim de que as barreiras de interação fossem reduzidas ou eliminadas. Inicialmente estudou-se os diferentes padrões de menus, bem como as diretrizes de acessibilidade e usabilidade para criação de menus acessíveis. A partir desses estudos, foi desenvolvido uma metamodelo que deu origem a linguagem AMenu, contendo todos os detalhes técnicos sobre a acessibilidade e usabilidade. Em seguida, foi desenvolvida a ferramenta AMeG, para validar a linguagem AMenu. Com base na avaliação da linguagem, foi desenvolvido o mecanismo de adaptação, que faz uso da linguagem AMenu para geração dos menus acessíveis e adaptados para dispositivos móveis. Finalmente, um estudo de caso com usuários idosos foi conduzido, a fim de comparar os menus gerados pelo mecanismo em relação aos menus originais. Os resultados obtidos apontam um melhor desempenho na interação com os menus gerados pelo mecanismo, uma vez que os participantes obtiveram uma redução de 54% no tempo de realização das tarefas e cometeram 82% menos erros. Por outro lado, os resultados apontam que todos os participantes responderam melhor à abordagem de adaptação desenvolvida neste estudo, uma vez que eles conseguiram concluir com sucesso todas as tarefas definidas para o estudo. / The diversity of means to use the Internet, ensured by the growing upcoming of ubiquitous devices such as tablets and smartphones, has promoted research on adaptation of the content that used to be mostly targeted only to desktop platform into this new context now known as the mobile devices. Some of the elements such as the menus are designed to facilitate the usage of the website once they help at finding and using the information that the user looks for. However, most of the menus available on websites do not apply the mobile devices, nor provide users with interaction, which nearly disables the interaction with the mentioned devices. There yet must be added the profile diversity of the web content users. Some of these users, such as elderly people, find limitations that tend to hamper their access to web content on the mobile devices, once aging commonly represents both physical (visual, hearing and motor abilities) and cognitive (attention, memory and reasoning issues) impairment that directly interferes on the usage of the computing devices that do not portray adjustments to such audience profile. This paper aims at investigating the issues related to the adaptation of web contents into the mobile devices. We focused on the menus in order to reduce or eliminate the limitations elderly people could find while using the mobile devices. We initially analyzed different patterns and structure of menus, as well as the guidelines upon accessibility and usability involved in the menus designing process. Based on this analysis, we developed a metamodel that originated the AMenu language, in which all technical data upon accessibility and usability involved in the menus designing process was included. Then, we developed the AMeG tool in order to assess the language created under the development perspective. Based on this assessment, we developed of an adaption mechanism that uses the AMenu language to generate menus adapted to the mobile devices. We then run a study case with elderly people in order to assess the menus generated by the mechanism, based on the comparison with the original ones. The results demonstrated that the participants had a better performance in the interaction while using the menus generated by the mechanism rather than the original ones, since they spent 54% less time performing tasks and made 82% less mistakes compared to the original menus. We also verified a quitting average of 33% among the participants while performing the assigned tasks using the original menus. On the other hand, the results point out that all participants responded better to the approach developed in this study as they all managed to successfully finish all the assigned tasks.

O crescente número de pessoas que utilizam a Web e sua vasta quantidade de conteúdo têm motivado especialistas em computação a investigar e acompanhar a experimentação desses usuários. Podese observar que um grande número de usuários que adere ao uso da Internet é o das pessoas com meia-idade, de 40 a 59 anos, e os idosos com idade superior a 60 anos. Trata-se de um público interessado e potencialmente pró-ativo para usufruir das possibilidades que a Web proporciona a cada dia. No entanto, barreiras que dificultam o acesso à informação são naturalmente encontradas com o avançar da idade. Dificuldades como a perda parcial ou total da visão, a redução de precisão dos movimentos, e a diminuição de memorização dos passos a serem realizados são alguns exemplos dessas barreiras. Para superar as dificuldades apresentadas pelos usuários, estudos têm sido realizados visando minimizá-las, de maneira geral. Seus resultados encontram-se sintetizados em normas / orientações a serem seguidas visando proporcionar melhor usabilidade e acessibilidade para toda diversidade de usuários. Nesse contexto, na presente pesquisa, investiga-se quais dessas normas junto com os padrões para a criação de websites que disponibilizam conteúdos proporcionam melhor adequação para atender à demanda das pessoas com idade mais avançada. Assim, foram estudados diferentes tipos de menus de navegação que disponibilizam as subnavegações conforme a necessidade do usuário (no inglês conhecido como menus drop-down) com diferentes propriedades e avaliado qual menu e suas propriedades apresentavam melhores resultados, entre eles, foi verificado o tempo de uso do menu e o número de erros cometidos para uma determinada tarefa. Conclui-se que, menus com melhores contraste e um tempo mediano de resposta ao realizar a interação, apresentaram melhores resultados / With the constant number of people who use facilitated through the use of the Web and its vast amount of content, have motivated computer specialists to investigate and monitor the trial of those users. It may be noted that a large number of users joining the Internet use is that of people aged mature (middle-aged, 40 to 59 years, and the elderly aged 60 years). It is a potentially interested public and pro-active to enjoy the possibilities that the Web provides each day. However, barriers to access to information are found naturally with advancing age, difficulties as the partial or total loss of vision, reducing accuracy of movements, and decreased retention of steps to be performed are some examples of these barriers . To overcome the difficulties presented by the users, studies have been conducted in order to minimize them in general. Their results are summarized in standards / guidelines to be followed in order to provide better usability and accessibility for the whole range of different types of users. In this context, the present study, we investigate which of these standards along with standards for the creation of websites that provide content provide better adaptation to meet the demand of people with older age. Thus, we studied different types of navigation menus that provide the subnavegações as needed by the user with different properties and evaluated their properties which menu and had better results, among them was found the time to use the menu and the number of errors for a particular task. It can be concluded that menus with better contrast and a median time of response to make the interaction, showed better results

While credibility perception on the Web is a well-researched topic across multiple disciplines, extant studies have not considered nonvisual modalities of Web access. This research explores how Web users who are blind or visually impaired perceive the credibility of online information and how the screen reader used by them to interact with the Web mediates the process. Credibility perception was studied in the context of the screen reader users’ everyday information practices, examining in depth the effect of Web accessibility on their online information interactions, information practices and credibility perception. Adopting an exploratory approach, a sequential multimethods research design was used. Between April and July 2008 data were collected from adult screen reader users residing in Ontario, Canada through an electronic questionnaire survey (N=60) to identify salient issues, which were then examined deeper through semi-structured interviews with a subsample (N=13) during June 2009. Hands-on online information activities (with participant observation and think-aloud protocol) were also conducted during the interview session. Primary findings emerged through qualitative content analysis of descriptive data, with quantitative results guiding and supplementing the analysis. Online information credibility perception is found to be a dynamic and social process. It is governed by users’ assumptions based on their past experiences, personal knowledge/beliefs and social inputs. Assumptions evolve over time and usage into personal heuristics. The credibility perception process spans three phases—prediction, evaluation and corroboration—permeating the information seeking, using and sharing practices of users. Evaluation of website and web content depends on users’ online interaction proficiency and is bounded by the interface affordances provided by the screen reader and the amount of meta-information provided by the websites for interpreting visual/spatial features. Community support scaffolds users towards more effective technology management and credibility perception. Therefore, promoting inclusion in the online participatory culture will enhance the information practices of screen reader users.

While credibility perception on the Web is a well-researched topic across multiple disciplines, extant studies have not considered nonvisual modalities of Web access. This research explores how Web users who are blind or visually impaired perceive the credibility of online information and how the screen reader used by them to interact with the Web mediates the process. Credibility perception was studied in the context of the screen reader users’ everyday information practices, examining in depth the effect of Web accessibility on their online information interactions, information practices and credibility perception. Adopting an exploratory approach, a sequential multimethods research design was used. Between April and July 2008 data were collected from adult screen reader users residing in Ontario, Canada through an electronic questionnaire survey (N=60) to identify salient issues, which were then examined deeper through semi-structured interviews with a subsample (N=13) during June 2009. Hands-on online information activities (with participant observation and think-aloud protocol) were also conducted during the interview session. Primary findings emerged through qualitative content analysis of descriptive data, with quantitative results guiding and supplementing the analysis. Online information credibility perception is found to be a dynamic and social process. It is governed by users’ assumptions based on their past experiences, personal knowledge/beliefs and social inputs. Assumptions evolve over time and usage into personal heuristics. The credibility perception process spans three phases—prediction, evaluation and corroboration—permeating the information seeking, using and sharing practices of users. Evaluation of website and web content depends on users’ online interaction proficiency and is bounded by the interface affordances provided by the screen reader and the amount of meta-information provided by the websites for interpreting visual/spatial features. Community support scaffolds users towards more effective technology management and credibility perception. Therefore, promoting inclusion in the online participatory culture will enhance the information practices of screen reader users.

Workshop Mensch-Computer-Vernetzung Web Accessibility Gestaltung von Webseiten um eine Nutzung mit vielen verschiedenen Zugangsmgeräten (Scrennreader, Bildschirmlupe) und unter verschiedenen technischen Bedingungen (langsame Anbindung, veraltete Software, keine Farbe) weitestgehend uneingeschränkt zu ermöglichen.

Στη σημερινή κοινωνία της πληροφορίας, το Διαδίκτυο αποτελεί ένα πολύτιμο εργαλείο ανταλλαγής ιδεών και πληροφοριών. Η εύκολη και αποτελεσματική πρόσβαση στο Διαδίκτυο για όλους τους ανθρώπους, ανεξάρτητα από τις φυσικές ή νοητικές τους ικανότητες, αποτελεί επιτακτική ανάγκη τόσο για ηθικούς όσο και για οικονομικούς λόγους. Στόχος της συγκεκριμένης διπλωματικής εργασίας είναι η παρουσίαση των μιας εφαρμογής που αποσκοπεί: α) στην ευαισθητοποίηση των σχεδιαστών δικτυακών τόπων σε θέματα προσβασιμότητας και β) στη μεταλαμπάδευση των βασικών κανόνων και πρακτικών που απαιτούνται για την υλοποίηση προσβάσιμων δικτυακών τόπων. Η βασική ιδέα της εργασίας είναι η δημιουργία ενός ελεύθερα διατιθέμενου Διαδικτυακού εργαλείου το οποίο να αναδεικνύει μέσω αντιπροσωπευτικών παραδειγμάτων τα προβλήματα που προκύπτουν από την έλλειψη προσβασιμότητας και να επιτρέπει την εκμάθηση των βασικών σχεδιαστικών κανόνων προσβασιμότητας. Το εργαλείο αυτό απευθύνεται τόσο στους ανθρώπους που αναπτύσσουν σήμερα ιστοτόπους όσο και σε φοιτητές και καθηγητές που διαμορφώνουν σε κάποιο βαθμό τη συνείδηση και τις πρακτικές των μελλοντικών σχεδιαστών. Στα πλαίσια της σχεδίασης του εν λόγω εργαλείου έγινε αρχικά μια εκτενής μελέτη στην οποία διερευνήθηκε η προσβασιμότητα 50 ελληνικών δικτυακών τόπων. Από τη μελέτη αυτή προέκυψαν αντιπροσωπευτικά παραδείγματα παραβίασης των κανόνων προσβασιμότητας, τα οποία αποτελούν το βασικό περιεχόμενο της εφαρμογής. Παράλληλα η διπλωματική εργασία περιγράφει βασικές έννοιες που σχετίζονται με την διαδικτυακή προσβασιμότητα, όπως τις κατηγορίες ανθρώπων που αφορά κυρίως, τις βοηθητικές τεχνολογίες που χρησιμοποιούν, καθώς και τις μεθοδολογίες που χρησιμοποιούνται για την αξιολόγηση της προσβασιμότητας δικτυακών τόπων. / Ιn today’s information society the Web has become an invaluable way to access information and exchange ideas. Providing easy and effective access to the Web for all people, despite their different physical and cognitive abilities, is an essential aspect for both moral and financial reasons. The goal of this thesis is to present an application that aims to: a) increase awareness of web designers on the subject of accessibility and b) disseminate and teach Web accessibility guidelines and good design practices. The thesis describes the design steps followed to produce a freely-distributed web-based application that adopts an example-based learning approach. The tool exposes people to the accessibility impasses that arise when certain, established guidelines are violated and supports its users to learn existing accessibility guidelines and good design practices. The tool is addressed to Web practitioners, teachers and last but not least students who currently shape their future Web development practices. The examples used in the tool were derived from an in-depth, web accessibility evaluation study of 50 Greek websites. The thesis also provides introductory information to the subject of web accessibility, such as people mainly affected by inaccessible websites, assistive technologies and accessibility evaluation methods and tools.

The digital world is acquiring more space in today’s society. With this being said, it is important to keep the web content interpretable for everyone, despite any kind of disability. This study focuses on colour vision deficiency and how to implement a real-time colour correction instantly in the web browser, without any additional assistive technologies needed. Two almost identical webpages have been developed for this project, with the difference being that one is with a colour correction function and one without, who then are measured in page-loading time to see if there is any greater loss of performance when executing the colour conversion.