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Introduction
Individuals with visual impairments face numerous obstacles, but one of
the largest is access to information. Traditional information packages
such as books or computer screens do not fit their needs and must be
adapted in order to be effectively accessed. Adaptive technologies have
been created to bridge this gap, but studies by scholars and
organizations show that the full range of these technologies are not
being widely utilized. This paper discusses the scholarship on adaptive
technologies by information professionals and organizations, and follows
with an exploration of the availability of these technologies to the
average visually impaired consumer. Please note that adaptive
technologies are given brief descriptions within the text; please see
Appendix A for a more detailed glossary.
Discussion
The scholarship on adaptive technologies is diverse, and includes
articles on the types of adaptive technologies that exist, the
guidelines that have been created to facilitate their development and
use, and the gaps in their provision that have been identified by
scholars, librarians and consumers. The following is a very brief
selection of literature that touches on the subject of accessibility.
Scholarly
perspectives
Kerscher (2001) provided a summary of adaptive technologies for reading
text that are available to people with visual impairments. He outlined
the evolution of “talking books" as an alternative to Braille books, the
traditional way of interpreting text with groups of small bumps that
represented characters. Talking books were available in an open reel
tape format, two-, four- and six-track formats, and cassette formats.
These technologies provided audio reading of text in a linear fashion,
which meant that if a person wanted to hear the text out of sequence, as
a student using a textbook might, he/she would have to move through the
text using forward and reverse mechanisms. This was time consuming, as
it is difficult to pinpoint the location of a single page of text on a
reel of tape. More recently, organizations and libraries for the blind
came together to push for a “next generation of talking books”, which
led to the formation of the DAISY (digital accessible information
system) Consortium, a group dedicated to creating digital-based talking
books and readers. The digital technology used in DAISY readers allows
people with visual impairments to listen to text in a linear fashion,
skip through text to chapters and specific pages, adjust the speed of
audio output, and place bookmarks in the text (Beaumont and Judge,
2005).
Kerscher does not discuss technologies that allow people with visual
impairment to access the Internet, nor does he comment on the quality
and availability of adaptive technologies, but much of the recent
scholarship on adaptive technologies is related to these two problems.
Turner (2002) identified a report done in the UK by the Library &
Information Statistics Unit of Loughborough University. This report was
based on a telephone and interview-based survey of just under 600
visually impaired individuals who were asked to rate the performance of
library services available to them, such as the National Library for the
Blind and the Royal National Institute for the Blind. The study found
that consumers tended to prefer cassette-based audio tapes to other
forms of audio technology, and that respondents were often not aware of
the services that were available to them. Turner also indicated that
though legislation such as the Disability Discrimination Act ensured a
receptive environment for implementation of programs to service the
visually impaired population, few libraries had specific policies to
address their needs.
In 2000, Valenza identified a number of adaptive technologies that she
felt were emerging and worthy of library consideration. These included
digital books, web-based Braille services, where screen content is
transmitted to a Braille reader, and screen readers, which transmit text
on a computer screen into spoken text. Yet she also identified major
drawbacks to those technologies that assisted visually impaired library
consumers from fully participating. For example, she discussed her
frustration while watching a patron use a screen reader. The design of
the web site the patron was attempting to access did not allow for clear
and linear reading of the text, but instead skipped back and forth
between frames, graphics and sidebars. She indicated that there were
easy ways libraries could evaluate the accessibility of their own
web-based services. One example is Bobby, a tool that allows users to
input the URL of a web site and generate a list of the elements in the
site that present problems for visually impaired consumers.
Five years later, Westin (2005) identified similar problems still
occurring today related to web access for the visually impaired and
others with disabilities, arguing that this population will increase
dramatically in the US (and, by extension, Canada) as the Baby Boomer
generation ages. He identified a key barrier for those seeking access to
web-based technology:
“In the case of the Web, the adaptive technological problems can be
particularly vexing because of its stateless, two-tiered (i.e.,
client/server) architecture. That is, the adaptive technologies reside
on the client side, but the Web content can be designed and served with
no knowledge of how the AT is configured, or even that such is being
used. Consequently, Web content that is designed without regard for such
technologies can render the content useless for the end user.” (p. iii)
Westin mentioned ways in which Windows can be configured to allow for
better access for those with limited vision, such as setting preferences
for font and size, but indicated that graphics may still be unavailable
to users. He called for better textual information to be embedded within
the code of web sites to allow for aural cues to be transmitted through
screen readers, and encouraged businesses to embrace compliance to
government accessibility guidelines as part of good business practice.
Westin also discussed the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) of the
World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). This group advocates for Web
accessibility and has developed guidelines and techniques to assist both
web and software developers in creating web content for people with a
range of accessibility issues. It claims to “[pursue] accessibility of
the Web through five primary activities:
- ensuring that core technologies of the Web support accessibility
- developing guidelines for Web content, user agents, and authoring
tools
- facilitating development of evaluation and repair tools for
accessibility
- conducting education and outreach
- coordinating with research and development that can affect future
accessibility of the Web (Web Accessibility Initiative, 2005a)
The
WAI web site includes practical instructions to web site and software
developers on how to achieve compliance with its guidelines. Each
guideline includes a checkpoint, which is a practical example of the
guideline at work, and a priority rating, which indicates whether a
developer must, should or may implement the guideline in question (Web
Accessibility Initiative, 2005b). This set of guidelines has the
potential to effectively resolve the conflict identified by Westin.
Based on the recommendations of the W3C and US government regulations,
specifically section 508 of the American Disabilities Act, Byerley and
Chambers (2002) evaluated two popular library tools. After citing some
rather disheartening studies that indicated US academic and public
libraries were ineffective at providing adequate web-based services to
clients with visual impairments, they used two screen reader
technologies to attempt to navigate Periodical Abstracts, a ProQuest
product, and ASAP, a Gale Group product. The researchers tested the
products themselves and then had two visually impaired individuals (a
university student and a consultant) test the products. The results
indicated several areas for improvement but were largely positive,
noting that both companies are aware of compliance issues. A similar
study of e-journals (Coonin, 2002), however, found a much lower level of
compliance to section 508 and the WAI. The study evaluated 12 popular
e-journal aggregators such as JSTOR, Kluwer Online and Science Direct
using the Bobby system, and found numerous problems such as lack of
alternative text in hot spots or images, and inability to read image
PDFs with a screen reader.
Organizational
perspectives
Organizations such as the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB)
and the Canadian Library Association (CLA) are aware of these same gaps
in service presented in the scholarly literature. This awareness is
reflected in organizational policy and advocacy activity, which aims to
increase access to adaptive technologies for those with visual
impairments.
The CNIB is a national organization that provides services for people
with a range of visual impairments. It is a not for profit organization
that depends on volunteers and donations to allow them to provide
“rehabilitation, library accessibility, mobility and other special
technological programs and services” for Canadians with visual
impairments (CNIB, 2005d). It identifies its seven core services as
library services, counselling and referral, rehabilitation teaching,
orientation and mobility, vision rehabilitation, technical aids and
career development and employment (CNIB, 2005e). The CNIB also offers
unique and comprehensive programs specifically for individuals who are
both deaf and blind.
The CNIB Library web site points out that “Canada is the only G8 country
that does not fund library services for people who are blind or visually
impaired” (CNIB, 2005a). To that end, the organization has recently
released a report entitled “An Unequal Playing Field: Report on the
Needs of People who are Blind or Visually Impaired Living in Canada” (CNIB,
2005b). The report echoes the findings of Turner in that many people in
Canada do not access adaptive technologies because they are not able to
get information about them. After transportation, adaptive technologies
were the next greatest unmet need identified by people with visual
impairments polled for the report (CNIB, 2005b, p.74). Over 80 percent
of people in this study used adaptive technologies, but upon closer
inspection the percentage of people using technologies other than
cassette tapes drops dramatically to approximately 20 percent,
especially among seniors. High-tech products like DAISY readers and
adaptive computer equipment are largely not used because of the costs
associated with them (CNIB, 2005b, p.77-83).
The Canadian Library Association also recently released a report on the
needs of visually impaired individuals. Entitled “Opening the Book: A
Strategy for a National Network for Equitable Library Service for
Canadians with Print Disabilities” (CLA, 2005), the CLA report pointed
out that Canada has no national legislation aimed at national library
services for people with visual impairments (p. 2). The report stated
that ten percent of the Canadian population is print disabled in some
way; this statistic includes people with visual impairments. This report
considers all people with print disabilities, including those who cannot
physically hold a book or are cognitively impaired. Because of this, the
CLA singled out the CNIB for its contributions for people with visual
impairments, but also pointed out that less than five percent of printed
information in Canada is available in alternate formats (CLA, 2005,
p.19). The CLA referred to a report released by the Council on Access to
Information for Print-Disabled Canadians, formed by National Librarian
Roch Carriere, entitled “Fulfilling the Promise: The Report of the Task
Force on Access to Information for Print-Disabled Canadians,” which
pointed out that public libraries are excellent hubs for access to
special materials for people with print disabilities. It stated that
many public libraries were already providing products and services for
this population, and made numerous recommendations to the government to
make these universally accessible (Library and Archives Canada, 2000).
Adaptive
technologies: opportunities for consumers
From an academic perspective, there is ample awareness of the challenges
regarding access to information and access to adaptive technologies for
people with visual impairments. The larger issue, however, is how this
awareness impacts the experiences of visually impaired consumers. The
following is a discussion of the practical availability of the adaptive
technologies and opportunities identified by scholars and organizations.
The Canadian National Institute for the Blind
As might be expected, the most comprehensive provider of adaptive
technologies to visually impaired consumers is the CNIB. It distributes
technical aids to visually impaired Canadians anywhere in the country
through its “Products for Independence” catalogue and Technical Aids
Service stores across the country. These services collect product
information from manufacturers of adaptive technologies, from medical
aids to games to watches to recording equipment, into one resource so
that consumers can compare prices and features. The stores, which are
located in every CNIB office, offer a selection of the products featured
in the catalogues (CNIB, 2005g). Products are suitable for individuals
with varying degrees of visual impairment; clocks and watches, for
instance, are available in large print formats, with talking features,
or in Braille. In addition to products that assist clients in their
activities of daily living, the catalogue and stores offer numerous
products that allow access to print and audio information, such as
Braille embossing paper, magnifiers and DAISY players (CNIB, 2005f).
The CNIB’s Library for the Blind provides Braille books, audio books,
digital audio books and descriptive video (video with an audio track
that describes the image) to its clients. The collection includes
material for adults and children. It is presently pursuing a project
entitled “That All May Read”, which will result in the transformation of
its collection of materials from analog to digital technology, thereby
increasing service levels and availability to its clients (CNIB, 2005a).
The library’s web site presents impressive statistics in regards to its
collection. It offers 4,000 DAISY CDs, 13,000 Braille titles, 18,000
Braille music scores and music books, 2,500 PrintBraille titles, 630
described videos, 9 DAISY magazines and 28 Braille magazines. In
addition, it has access to thousands of online titles in digital audio,
e-text and e-Braille, numerous newspapers and digital media material,
and reference databases. The library has developed a partnership with
the National Library for the Blind in the United Kingdom which allows
clients to access its holdings as well (CNIB, 2005c).
Other useful services provided by the library are listed on the various
pages of its web site, such as telephone access to listen to favourite
magazines, reader advisory services, and the Skyclub Internet discussion
group. It also has a music library that contains Braille copies of
instrumental and vocal musical scores, operatic librettos and books on
music. The children’s library features a kid’s reading club, Braille
reading competitions and the Spinoza Talking Bear program, which
provides talking book machines in the form of teddy bears to children.
Even the web site itself served as an excellent example of
accessibility. In form and appearance, it conformed to the suggestions
given in the scholarly literature regarding clarity and ease of use for
individuals using screen readers.
The CNIB library catalogue provides users with the option of searching
its catalogue and catalogues of other libraries that had significant
collections of materials for people with visual impairments. The search
screen features keyword and browse searching and has a very clear,
uncomplicated interface suitable for use by individuals employing screen
readers. The digital library catalogue features a number of national and
local newspapers, popular magazines and reference works (CNIB, 2005h).
Public libraries
The CNIB provides access to its library collection and services to
individuals anywhere in Canada, but local libraries often carry
materials that are suitable for use by people with visual impairments as
well. The Halifax Public Library, for example, has a section in its web
site devoted to people with access issues. In it, they specify that they
provide “talking books…descriptive and closed-captioned videos and
large-print books” as well as TDD Numbers at their reference desks
(Halifax Public Library, 2005a).
The library’s online catalogue provides two access points for people
with visual impairments. The interface links to a Large Print and
Special Format section that divides resources into large print fiction
and non-fiction, books on tape, and books on CD. In addition to this,
clients can enter the word “Braille” into the regular catalogue to find
books in Braille format (Halifax Public Library, 2005b).
Provision of service to people with visual impairments in public
libraries varies by location. Libraries in small, remote or rural
centres may have a more limited collection of audio or Braille books on
site. Such libraries may also choose to concentrate on the acquisition
of audio material over Braille, perhaps as a way of attracting the
growing population of people who enjoy audio books and do not have
visual impairments, or who have print disabilities other than visual
impairment. This is not necessarily a major barrier, however, because
visually impaired clients have access to interlibrary loans through
their public libraries, which allows them to access the resources of
libraries across the country and around the world, in addition to the
aforementioned CNIB Library collection.
Adaptive Technology Resource
Centre
The Adaptive Technology Resource Centre (ATRC) at the University of
Toronto is an excellent resource for both individuals and libraries that
are interested in the kinds of technologies available to people with
visual impairments (University of Toronto, n.d. a). The organization
provides a number of services from consultation to research and
development. One particularly useful service is the Vision Technology
Service, available to individuals who are “unable to perform every day
age-related visual tasks in spite of conventional medical, surgical
and/or routine refractive interventions (such as glasses)” (University
of Toronto, n.d. d). Clients are assessed for the level of service they
will require, and then introduced to the types of technologies that will
be of assistance to them. The technologies include screen readers and
magnifiers, portable note taking devices, and closed circuit television.
The ATRC also includes a service to assist in workplace
training/retraining.
An especially helpful page on the ATRC web site is the technical
glossary, which features links to pages that explain adaptive
technologies and provide links to product distributors (University of
Toronto, n.d. b). Products include haptic devices, which provide tactile
sensation as feedback (as in the case of a computer mouse that allows
you to ‘feel’ the output on a computer screen), refreshable Braille
displays that turn lines of text from a computer monitor into Braille,
and special accessibility functions for Linux users. It even includes
extreme examples like neural interface devices. This technology, though
still in development, promises to be extremely helpful to people with
multiple disabilities. It turns the electric signals generated by the
human body into signals that can be interpreted by computers. For
example, a small probe surgically implanted into the brain or body of an
individual can translate eye movements or brain waves into digital
signals, which can then be read by special software and used to
manipulate a computer or electronic device (University of Toronto, n.d.
c).
The ATRC presents an incredible breadth of products, but in addition it
also includes information on how to access funding for these aids. The
problem of cost is a common theme in the scholarship on this topic;
adaptive technology can be prohibitively expensive and, according to a
number of the previously cited reports and articles, this presents a
very real and quantifiable barrier to access.
Conclusion
Barriers to access of information continue to exist for people with
visual impairments, but recent scholarship indicates that a number of
these barriers have been identified, and potential solutions suggested.
Organizations such as the CNIB, the University of Toronto’s Adaptive
Technology Research Centre, the CLA and libraries across Canada are
creating policies, advocating and providing adaptive technologies to
bridge the gap in access and services to people with visual impairments.
From new technologies such as DAISY books, to products that adapt
existing information packages into appropriate formats such as screen
readers, to libraries that cater to the needs of print disabled users,
the visually impaired community has the potential to access information
with increasing ease. It is hoped that the recommendations of the CLA,
LAC and CNIB will increase accessibility, both through an increase in
materials and technologies to service visually impaired clients, and
through increases in funding for their production and dissemination.
Appendix A: technical glossary
The following material is taken from the excellent technical glossary
provided by the University of Toronto’s Adaptive Technology Resources
Centre (see Reference list). I have only included a selection of
adaptive technologies that relate specifically to visual impairments.
Alternative Keyboards: Alternative keyboard layouts and other
enhancements allow people who experience difficulty with conventional
keyboard designs to use computers. The products available range from keyguards that prevent accidental key activation, to alternative
keyboards with differing layouts, sizes, etc. for people who have
specific needs, to alternative input systems which require other
means/methods of getting information into a computer.
Braille Embosser and Text to Braille Conversion: A Braille Embosser is a
hardware device for "printing" a hard copy of a text document in
Braille. A Braille translation software program is required to translate
the text from the computer into Braille. Most Braille translation
software programs can translate material into several grades or versions
of Braille. There is also a new Music Braille software program as well
as scanning software to scan Braille into a computer and have it
displayed or translated into text.
Closed Circuit Television (CCTV): A Closed Circuit TeleVision (CCTV) is
a video magnification system consisting of a video screen interfaced
with a video camera. Video magnification is achieved in two ways - the
electronic conversion from the small camera imager to the larger display
screen and the optical effect of the cameras zoom lens. The stand
mounted CCTVs can be configured with either television receivers, video
monitors, or computer monitors. The CCTV system provides high contrast,
inverse video display, gray scale, false colours, natural colours,
and/or control of contrast level and brightness.
Haptic Devices: The word "haptic" means "of or relating to or proceeding
from the sense of touch" (http://www.dict.org). A haptic interface is a
device which allows a user to interact with a computer by receiving
tactile feed back. This feedback is achieved by applying a degree of
opposing force to the user along the x, y, and z axes. These devices can
be used by people with disabilities or people who learn best through
tactile or kinesthetic experiences. The use of haptic devices that once
were cost prohibitive but now are incorporated into mainstream devices
such as the iFeel Mouse and the IFeel Mouseman, promote inclusion and
acceptance of "adaptive" technology into the "daily computer experience"
of people with and without disabilities.
Optical Character Recognition (OCR): Optical character recognition (OCR)
is the process of converting an image of text, such as a scanned paper
document or electronic fax file, into computer-editable text. The text
in an image is not editable: the letters are made of tiny dots (pixels)
that together form a picture of text. During OCR, the software analyzes
an image and converts the pictures of the characters to editable text
based on the patterns of the pixels in the image. After OCR, you can
export the converted text and use it with a variety of word-processing,
page layout and spreadsheet applications. OCR also enables screen
readers and refreshable braille displays to read the text contained in
images.
Refreshable Braille Displays: Refreshable Braille Displays are
electronic devices that are used to read text that a computer sends to
the monitor. The device is connected to the computer by a serial cable
and produces Braille output on the Braille display. Refreshable Braille
displays only read one line of text at a time. These displays generally
include directional keys which allow the user to navigate through a
document. Larger displays (80 cells) also include a cursor routing
function. Each cell contains eight small pins, allowing eight dot
computer Braille rather than the six dot Braille we are used to seeing.
Screen Magnifiers: Screen magnification software are used by people with
visual disabilities to access information on a computers screen. The
software enlarges the information on the screen by pre-determined
incremental factor [for example, 1x magnification, 2x magnification, 3x
magnification, etc,]. Magnification programs run simultaneously and
seamlessly with the computer's operating system and applications. Most
screen magnification software has the flexibility to magnify the full
screen, parts of the screen or provide a magnifying glass view of the
area around the cursor or pointer. These programs also often allow for
inverted colours, enhanced pointer viewing and tracking options.
Screen Readers and Talking Browsers: A Screen Reader is the commonly
used name for Voice Output Technology used. Screen readers are used to
replace the visual display traditionally viewed on a monitor for those
with visual disabilities. Hardware and software produce synthesized
voice output for text displayed on the computer screen, as well as for
keystrokes entered on the keyboard. Talking browsers use the same
technology as screen reading software, but the reading functions are
limited to Internet use.
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