Computer and web accessibility

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We've had a long-standing interest in making computers and the web more accessible to visually-impaired people. (Back in 1986 we even published an article about this in BYTE magazine!) Most efforts in this area, like our own early ones, have centered on to making computers and the web more accessible to blind people. Coming from a vision science background, though, we have believed that it's equally important to address accessibility for those with low vision. In some ways this is more of a challenge than enhancing access for blind people, because those with low vision benefit most from presentation formats that are customized to their specific needs, and because of the huge range of magnifications required to accommodate the spectrum of users with low vision. In our work on legibility, described elsewhere on this site, we've spent a lot of time studying typography, color contrast, and other aspects of presentation that make things more accessible to those with both normal and low vision.

Several years ago, while at Lighthouse International, and with funding from the National Eye Institute we developed a free extension for the Mozilla Firefox web browser, that is designed specifically for users with low vision, and accommodates a very broad range of visual capabilities. There are fancier, more feature-rich accessibility programs, but they are costly, challenging to learn, and they generally run on only a single operating system platform. LowBrowse, on the other hand, is a simple program that allows users to view all text in their preferred font at their preferred size, and in their preferred colors, runs on Windows, Mac OS X and Linux. (It currently runs only on Firefox versions 3.0-3.6, however). To read more about LowBrowse or to install it, see our LowBrowse Installation and Documentation page.

When it was first released in 2008-2009, LowBrowse received a great deal of media attention, with articles discussing it in scores of publications, some with very wide circulation, including InformationWeek, NetworkWorld, and the Wall Street Journal. The online version of the Wall Street Journal article also included a video (shown below) solely about LowBrowse™, and was on that day (September 9, 2008) the “most emailed” article on the WSJ.com web site!

Relevant publications

Arditi, A. & Lu, J. (2008). Low Vision Access to the Web via a Firefox Browser Extension. Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science, 49, E-Abstract 1513.

Arditi, A. and Lu, J. (2008). Accessible web browser design for users with low vision. Proceedings of the 52nd Annual Meeting of the Human Factors & Ergonomics Society. Washington, D.C. Human Factors & Ergonomics Society, 576-580.

Arditi, A. (2008). Overview of web and computer accessibility issues in low vision. Paper presentation at Vision 2008, the 9th International Conference on Low Vision, Montreal, QC, Canada 113.1

Arditi, A. and Lu, J. (2008). Accessible Web Browser Interface Design for Users with Low Vision. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Meeting, New York, NY.

Lu, J., & Arditi, A. (2008). User interface software for low vision access to the internet. Journal of Vision, 8(6):630, 630a, http://journalofvision.org/8/6/630/, doi:10.1167/8.6.630.

Lu, J. & Arditi (2008). User interface software for low vision access to the web. Paper presentation at Vision 2008, the 9th International Conference on Low Vision, Montreal, QC, Canada 113.5

Arditi, A. and Cho, J. (2007) Letter case, legibility and low vision. Vision Research, 47, 2499-2505.

Arditi, A., Vanderheiden, G. and Kelso, D. A (2007). Quantitative Rule for Accessible Contrast of Colored Text on Computer Displays. Optometry and Vision Science, 84, E-Abstract 070059.

Arditi, A. and Cho, J. (2005). Serifs and font legibility. Vision Research, 45(23), 2926-2933.

Arditi, A. and Vanderheiden, G. (2005). Proposal for an Accessible Color Contrast Standard for Text on the World Wide Web. Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science 46, E-Abstract 2331.

Arditi, A. (2004). Selecting fonts for low vision. In Functional Vision: A Practitioner’s Guide to Evaluation and Intervention, Amanda Lueck (Ed.) American Foundation for the Blind Press.

Arditi, A. (2004). Effective colour contrast: designing for people with partial sight and colour deficiencies. The Luminaires, 3(5), 21-23.

Arditi, A. (2004). Information accessibility: Bringing the web to elders with low vision. Maximizing Human Potential, 12(2).

Arditi, A. (2004). Adjustable typography: An approach to enhancing low vision text accessibility. Ergonomics, 47(5), 469-482.

Arditi, A. (2003). Low Vision Web Browsing and Allocation of Screen Space Resources. Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science, 44, E-Abstract 2767.

Arditi, A. (2002). Effective color contrast and partial sight: Designing for people with partial sight and color deficiencies. Second Edition. Brochure published by The Arlene R. Gordon Research Institute, The Lighthouse Inc., New York, NY.

Arditi, A. (2002). Addressing the screen navigation problem in computer displays for low vision. Supplement to Optometry and Vision Science, 79 (12S), 279.

Hanson, V., Fairweather, P., Arditi, A., Brown, F., Crayne, S., Detweiler, S., Richards, J. Schwerdtfeger, R., Tibbitts, B. and Trewin, S. (2001). Making the web accessible to seniors. Proceedings of the International Conference on Aging. Toronto, Canada: ICTA . 54- 59.

Hanson, V. L., Fairweather, P.G., Arditi, A., Brown, F., Crayne, S., Detweiler, S., Richards, J.T., Schwerdtfeger, R. and Tibbitts, B. (2001). Transcoding web pages for users with vision disabilities. In Conference and Workshop on Assistive Technologies for Vision and Hearing Impairment: Support Technologies for Independent Living and Work, August 2001.

Arditi, A., Hanson, V., Fairweather, P., Brown, F., Crayne, S. Daggett, G., Detweiler, S., Richards, J. , Schwerdtfeger, R., , Tibbitts, B., and Trwein, S. (2001). A gateway to enhance visual access to the World Wide Web. Supplement to Optometry and Vision Science, 78 (12S), 134.

Arditi, A. (2000). Print and web design for the visually impaired. Visual Arts Trends, 3S, 2.4-2.5

Stuen, C., Arditi, A., Horowitz, A., Lang, M.A., Rosenthal, B. and Seidman, K. (Eds). (2000). Vision Rehabilitation: Assessment, Intervention and Outcomes. Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Swets and Zeitlinger.

Arditi, A. and Cho, J. (2000). Letter case and text legibility. Supplement to Perception, 29, 45.

Arditi, A., (1999). Making text more legible for those with low vision. Vision ‘99 International Conference on Low Vision Abstract Book. New York: Lighthouse International. 142.

Arditi, A., (1999). Reading with elicited sequential presentation: A variant of RSVP. Vision ‘99 International Conference on Low Vision Abstracts. New York: Lighthouse International, 183.

Arditi, A. (1999). Adjustable typography for low vision reading. Supplement to Optometry and Vision Science, 76 (12S), 124.

Arditi, A. (1999). Elicited sequential presentation for low vision reading. Vision Research, 39, 4412-4418.

Arditi, A., (1998). Low vision reading is faster for elicited sequential presentation than RSVP. Supplement to Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science 39(4), S175.

Arditi, A., Lee, K., Rosenthal, B., Higgins, K.E., Liu, L. (1998). Elicited sequential presentation vs. RSVP and CCTV in low vision reading. Supplement to Perception, 27(14).

Arditi, A. and Rosenthal, B. (1997). Tips for computer users with impaired vision. Aging and Vision News, 9(1).

Arditi, A. (1996). Typography, visual accessibility and low vision. Low vision perspectives. Loomis, CA: Humanware, Inc.

Arditi, A. and Knoblauch, K. (1996). Effective color contrast and low vision. In B. Rosenthal and R. Cole (Eds.) Functional Assessment of Low Vision. St. Louis, Mosby, 129-135.

Arditi, A. (1996). Typography, print legibility, and low vision. In R. Cole and B. Rosenthal (Eds.) Remediation and Management of Low Vision. St. Louis, Mosby, 237-248.

Arditi, A., Cagenello, R. and Jacobs, B. (1995). Effects of aspect ratio and spacing on legibility of small letters. Supplement to Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science, 36(4), S671.

Knoblauch, K., Arditi, A. and Szlyk, J. (1991). Effects of chromatic and luminance contrast on reading. Journal of the Optical Society of America A, 8, 428-439.

Arditi, A., Knoblauch, K. and Grunwald, I. (1990). Reading with fixed and variable character pitch. Journal of the Optical Society of America A, 7, 2011-2015.

DiLorenzo, J.R. and Arditi, A. (1987). Effect of artificial voice feedback delay in typing and its implications for the blind user. Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, and Computers, 19, 283-285.

Arditi, A. and Gillman, A. (1986). Computing for the blind user. BYTE, 11(3), 199-208.

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