Abstract
Abstract: :
Purpose: Attempts to develop visually accessible Web browsing solutions for users with low vision confront several difficult issues: high magnification requirements of most users with low vision; highly variable text typography including text sizes, colors and contrasts of Web content; embedding of important text messages within Web images; and need for visually accessible browser controls. These issues all conspire to place significant demands on screen and client window spatial resources, and introduce new problems in navigation for both sequential and nonsequential reading tasks. Methods: I have developed a browser prototype that addresses these issues, providing of the current Web page both a global view that can be explored and that allows appreciation of page layout, and a focal view of text for reading. Results: The method allocates screen resources in a more efficient way for users with low vision, in that a) only the small portion of text being read is magnified, colored and typographically formatted to meet the user's reading requirements, while the rest of the display can be used to guide searching and skimming of text, and b) browser functionality shares screen space for functions that are never used jointly. Conclusions: Sensible allocation of screen and client window real estate, in combination with a simple user interface, is a promising way to enhance accessibility of the Web for users with low vision.
Keywords: low vision • reading • aging: visual performance