The interfaces we've come to depend on for mobile UX (onscreen keyboards, pinch and zoom, speech recognition, etc.) have come directly from technology meant to make connecting even possible for people with disabilities. By learning the background behind these tools, we can make products more usable to everyone.

1. Wanted: Mobile Dev with 40 Years Experience
Proven expert at human factors, interactive design, and
technologies that don’t yet exist. Experience in branding & mind-
reading a plus. Apply today at any startup or consulting firm.
Matt May (@mattmay), 07.07.2012
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2. 2

3. Gregg

4. The last 40 years
• 1971: Trace R&D Center founded
– Focus on augmentative communication
• 1980s – 90s: Desktop OS/software
accessibility
• 1990s – present: Web and mobile
accessibility

5. Augmentative
Communication

7. From the people
who brought you…
who brought you…
• Pinch/zoom
• Onscreen keyboards
• Text-to-speech
• Voice recognition
• OCR
• High contrast
• Find as you type
• Camera tracking (Kinect)

8. • First mainstream use of
pinch/zoom
• First free built-in screen reader
• Supports braille displays
• Closed captioning
• TTY support
• Hearing aid compatibility
• AssistiveTouch

9. Aren’t humans interesting?
• Traditional concepts of disability
– Blindness (.5%)
– Deafness (.1% deaf in both ears)
– Colorblindness (1-12% depending on
race/gender)
• Things that are left out or minimized
– Low vision (10 for every 1 who’s blind)
– Poor hearing (90 for every 1 who’s deaf)
– Limited mobility (36.5 million in the US)
– Limited capacity to read (25-50% of US adults) 9

10. Situational
disability
disability

11. Type n Walk app
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12. Mobile problems
are user problems
are user problems
• Low vision
• Poor hearing
• Limited mobility
• Limited capacity to read text
• Limited capacity to type

13. What we’ve learned
• Start early
• Focus on the people
• Build on what works
• Anticipate breakpoints
– not just the media-query kind

14. Accessibility problems Usability problems

15. Problems mobile users Problems people with disabilities
can have can have
Problems you’re
totally screwed
if you don’t solve

16. Pleasant
Inconvenient
Frustrating
Limiting
Exclusionary
Discriminatory

17. Gregg

18. How can I do this...
• In other languages
– And from right to left
• Securely
– Client, server, protocol…
– Preserving user privacy
• For the greatest possible audience
– With various physical capabilities
– In various environments

19. How can I do this?

20. How can I do this well?
• By not repeating the same mistakes
• By remembering:
– That your users are human
– That you can’t anticipate all their problems
• but you can try

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22. “The universal design concept increases the
supply of usable housing by including
universal features in as many houses as
possible, and allows people to remain in
their homes as long as they like.”
– Ron Mace
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23. Seven Principles of
Universal Design
Universal Design
• Equitable use
• Flexibility in use
• Simple and intuitive
• Perceptible information
• Tolerance for error
• Low physical effort
• Size and space for approach and use
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24. Principle 1: Equitable use
The design is useful and marketable to people with
diverse abilities.
• Provide the same means of use for all users:
identical whenever possible; equivalent when not.
• Avoid segregating or stigmatizing any users.
• Provisions for privacy, security, and safety should
be equally available to all users.
• Make the design appealing to all users.
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25. Principle 2: Flexibility in use
The design accommodates a wide range of
individual preferences and abilities.
• Provide choice in methods of use.
• Accommodate right- or left-handed access
and use.
• Facilitate the user's accuracy and precision.
• Provide adaptability to the user's pace.
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26. Principle 3:
Simple and intuitive use
Simple and intuitive use
Use of the design is easy to understand, regardless of
the user's experience, knowledge, language skills, or
current concentration level.
• Eliminate unnecessary complexity.
• Be consistent with user expectations and intuition.
• Accommodate a wide range of literacy and language
skills.
• Arrange information consistent with its importance.
• Provide effective prompting and feedback during and
after task completion.
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27. Principle 4:
Perceptible information
Perceptible information
Communicate effectively to the user, regardless of ambient
conditions or the user's sensory abilities.
•Use different modes (pictorial, verbal, tactile) for redundant
presentation of essential information.Provide adequate contrast
between essential information and its surroundings.Maximize
"legibility" of essential information.Differentiate elements in
ways that can be described (i.e., make it easy to give
instructions or directions).Provide compatibility with a variety of
techniques or devices used by people with sensory limitations.
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28. Principle 5:
Tolerance for error
Tolerance for error
Minimize hazards and adverse consequences
of accidental or unintended actions.
•Minimize hazards and errors: most used
elements, most accessible; hazardous
elements eliminated, isolated, or shielded.
•Provide warnings of hazards and errors.
•Provide fail safe features.
•Discourage unconscious action in tasks that
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29. Principle 6:
Low physical effort
Low physical effort
The design can be used efficiently and
comfortably and with a minimum of fatigue.
•Allow user to maintain a neutral body
position.
•Use reasonable operating forces.
•Minimize repetitive actions.
•Minimize sustained physical effort.
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30. Principle 7: Size and space for
approach and use
Appropriate size and space is provided for approach, reach,
manipulation, and use regardless of user’s body size,
posture, or mobility.
• Provide a clear line of sight to important elements for any
seated or standing user.
• Make reach to all components comfortable for any seated
or standing user.
• Accommodate variations in hand and grip size.
• Provide adequate space for the use of assistive devices or
personal assistance.
• Provide adequate space for click/tap targets.
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31. Going native
• Your stuff isn’t getting any better
• OS controls may improve
• Choose OS native controls where possible

32. Photo: Jeremy Keith (cc-by)

33. Designing for devices
• 1995: 640×480, 800×600, 1024×768
• 1999: HTML for computers, WML for phones
• 2002: @media: screen, handheld, tv...
• 2007: Desktop, iPhone
• 2010: Desktop, iPhone, iPad
• 2011: RWD, “breakpoints”
• 2012: Vendor prefixes, 2× images...

34. Designing for humans
• Don’t assume you know the user
– Allow desktop experiences on mobile
– Provide common URLs for all users
• Don’t limit the user unnecessarily
• Keep your markup clean
– Including framework code

35. Demo: Adobe Shadow

36. The new professionalism
Engineers have vitalized and turned to practical use the
principles of science and the means of technology.
Were it not for this heritage, my efforts would be feeble.
Obligation of the Engineer
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37. Thanks!
@mattmay
mattmay@gmail.com
mattmay@adobe.com
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