Overview of the GUIB project

Blind people have already learned to use speech technology and tactile displays to access computer systems. Acceptance of this technology has allowed blind people to integrate more easily into society. Recently, however, the increasing use of graphical user interfaces based on WIMPs (windows, icons, menus, and pointing devices) has posed new problems for them. It is necessary to develop solutions that are offered not only at an affordable price but that are usable by a blind person with reasonable speed and a modest level of extra training. Two types of activities are necessary in order to preserve and hopefully increase the present autonomy of blind people in tasks connected with computer usage: a short term activity aimed toward preserving their capabilities to carry out the current computer-based tasks (mainly dealing with text processing) in a graphical environment, and a long term activity aimed toward facilitating access to graphical information, which is becoming predominant in the majority of new applications. The author provides an overview of the GUIB project