Exploring the Value of Disability-Related Simulators

Presenter: John Toles

Center for Inclusive Design & Innovation

• Center for Inclusive Design & Innovation (CIDI) provides practical solutions for challenges faced daily by individuals with disabilities.

• We focus on solutions that offer utility, usability, and durability.

• CIDI offers services including disability compliance consultation, braille, captioning, accessible digital content, and assistive technology.

Across the Street, and Around the Globe

• Georgia Tech

• University System of Georgia (USG)

• Higher Ed institutions Across the Country

• State and Federal Governments

• National and International Non-Profits and For Profits

Braille Services

• Braille Transcription

• Embossing

• Tactile Graphics

• Braille Library

E-text Services

E-text Services produce and provide high-quality e-text in formats including:

• PDF

• DOC

• PPT

• DAISY

• EPUB

• HTML

Tools for Life

• The Certified Assistive Technology Teamconducts on-site or remote assessments and offers demonstrations, training, and assistive technology for learning, work, and daily living.

• The AT team hosts Georgia’s Assistive Technology Act program, Tools for Life.

Digital Accessibility and UX Testing

• Digital Accessibility Compliance

Testing (manual and automated)

• Technical assistance

• Accessibility Training (onsite and

remote)

• Usability Testing by people with

disabilities for people with disabilities

Accessibility Research• Our research initiatives include students with

disabilities who are traditionally underrepresented in higher education.

• Disability spans across all age, gender, ethnic, racial, cultural, and socio-economic boundaries.

• CIDI also studies how corporate, government, and non-profit organizations support customers and employees with disabilities.

What are Disability Simulators?

Disability simulators apply various visual filters, text replacements, and images to content in order to provide examples of how people with disabilities experience the content. They are often available as browser extensions but can also be stand-alone applications.

• Browser extensions affect more content by interacting with CSS

• Stand-alone app affect less content on your device but can apply effects to multiple applications

Uses and Short Comings

Simulators are useful for:

• Understanding the experience of navigating the web with a disability

• Building empathy in people with limited experience with people with disabilities

• Illustrating the issue to others

Short comings of simulators:

• Do not accurately represent all disabilities

• Do not replace thorough testing of a website

• Can cover up accessibility issues by focusing on problems created by the simulator

Example Simulators

Top Results from Google:

• Funkify Disability Simulator

• Silktide Website Accessibility Simulator

• MetaMatrix AB Web Disability Simulator (website is in Swedish)

Open Source App:

• Color Oracle

Funkify

Available at https://www.funkify.org/simulators

• Offers a variety of conditions: dyslexia, cognition, motor, and vision related disabilities

• Available as a browser extension for chrome

• Requires an account with limited trial

Includes personas to identify the various conditions that are simulated.

Silktide

Available at https://silktide.com/resources/toolbar

• Focuses on screen reader related disabilities

• Available as a browser extension for chrome

• Available for free with no sign-up

Announces alternative image and element text the same way a screen reader does.

MetaMatrix AB

Available at https://www.metamatrix.se/aktuellt/web-disability-simulator-utmaning-att-surfa/

• Similar features to the others

• Includes some disability education and links to resources

• Also available for free with no sign-up

Website is in Swedish but translates well and the text included in the extension is in English.

Color Oracle

Available at https://colororacle.org/index.html

• Applies to the entire screen

• Sits on top of other programs

• Available for free

Only applies to color perception disabilities.

Simulator Demo

Summary

What simulators do well:

• Provides a quick way to represent an actual website through the perspective of a person with a disability

• Increases awareness for less visible disabilities and conditions often not considered disabilities

• Helps you illustrate the experience for stakeholders and decision makers

What they are not useful for:

• Testing web accessibility

• Testing accessibility during the design process

Simulators that focus on particular disabilities are useful for accomplishing specific tasks like testing and design.

Questions?