Web pages such as news and shopping sites often use modular layouts. When used effectively this practice allows authors to present clearly large amounts of information in a single page. However, while sighted people can visually parse and understand these complex layouts in seconds, current assistive technologies such as screen readers cannot. This puts visually impaired users at a great disadvantage. In order to design better assistive technologies, we conducted a study of how people interpret modular layouts of news and shopping Web pages. The study revealed that when the layout complexity increases, the interpretation process gets longer and the reading gets more varied. Also, before looking at the main content, users first frame the Web page by looking for familiar structural elements that can be used as references and entry points. These elements include navigational bars, search boxes, and ads. This implies that assistive technologies can reduce the time required to frame the pages if they help users identify reference points and entry points.

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Health care practitioners rely on access to relevant and up-to-date medical information in order to effectively treat their patients. One efficient, low-cost avenue for such information is online collections, but certain regions lack the information and communication technologies (ICT) necessary for widespread and reliable access to online resources. The characteristics of existing ICT infrastructure in many developing countries are not well understood. This research synthesis focuses on Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), an area with low levels of ICT infrastructure. It presents a synthesis of statistical analyses and a review across disciplines of information published on the state of ICT and health information access in SSA. An overview of the existing knowledge allowed us to identify the salient features of this particular ICT environment, and informed the development of a survey for SSA healthcare professionals. The synthesis and preliminary results from our survey suggest that Internet connectivity remains highly unreliable in Sub-Saharan Africa and that mobile devices provide the most reliable technology for health care providers to carry out their work.

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Digital libraries must support assistive technologies that allow people with disabilities such as blindness to use, navigate and understand their documents. Increasingly, many documents are Web-based and present their contents using complex layouts. However, approaches that translate two-dimensional layouts to one-dimensional speech produce a very different user experience and loss of information. To address this issue, we conducted a study of how blind people navigate and interpret layouts of news and shopping Web pages using current assistive technology. The study revealed that blind people do not parse Web pages fully during their first visit, and that they can miss important parts. The study also provided insights for improving assistive technologies.