Independent living of older adults is one of the main challenges linked to the ageing population. Especially those living with diseases like COPD, MCI or frailty, need more Powered by Editorial Manager® and ProduXion Manager® from Aries Systems Corporation support in everyday life and this is by itself a big societal challenge with impact in multiple sectors. In this paper we present eWALL, an innovative open-source eHealth platform that aims to address these challenges by means of an advanced cloud-based infrastructure. eWALL is designed in an innovative manner and achieved technical breakthroughs in eHealth platforms, while prioritizing user and market needs that are often abandoned and are the major reason for technically sound solutions that fail. We consider this as an opportunity and we aim to change the eHealth systems' experience for older adults and break the barriers for the penetration of ICT solutions.

Recent product releases such as Apple's Siri and Google's Voice Search have strongly emphasized the use of voice as a modern interaction modality. Seniors, in particular, might appreciate an alternative to small mobile phone keypads, touchpads and computer mice. This paper presents initial explorations of how elderly people would interact with language-technology-driven interfaces, how these interactions measure up against traditional physical interaction channels, and what features they may require to satisfy the needs of this very specific user group.

This paper presents an explorative study investigating the applicability of speech-only interaction in the everyday life of elderly people. For the purpose of this study we connected an iPhone 4s including the Siri application with a Bluetooth enabled headset. By pressing the Siri activation button on the iPhone the participants were able to directly access the iPhone services via voice without using a graphical user-interface (GUI). The aim of this study was to investigate the usability, user experience and acceptance of speech-only interaction by elderly users. The results indicate a high potential of speech-only interaction for elderly users not only in indoor but also in outdoor environments. The participants showed an overall positive attitude and high acceptance of speech interaction. They particularly appreciated the simplicity of this form of interaction and indicated to use speech-only interaction in their everyday life.

This paper presents the results of an online survey conducted in Austria that aimed at investigating the application of usercentered design (UCD) methods in projects developing technologies that support older adults in their everyday lives. We explored which methods are known to teams, which methods have been applied in projects developing active and assisted living (AAL) technologies and the perceived suitability of these methods. The questionnaire considered methods for three different phases within the development process: gathering information about needs, communicating these needs to the developers and evaluating systems. Furthermore, we explored which stakeholders are included in gathering information about needs and in evaluating systems. The results show that more general methods that are not specific to UCD, such as interviews and questionnaires, are widely used. Older users were included in most projects, particularly for the evaluation. There was, however, an indication that the information about the needs collected may not be successfully communicated to the developers. Overall, the results support the need to spread information about the breadth of methods available and their suitability to people involved in developing these types of technologies.

Access to this document was granted through an Emerald subscription provided by emerald-srm:374558 [] For AuthorsIf you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. AbstractPurpose -The purpose of this paper is to discuss the issue of tailored text input methods for visually impaired and blind users that are needed on touchscreen devices to support their accessibility. Previous approaches still have issues related to the necessity of searching for characters, slow entry speeds or cumbersome handling. Design/methodology/approach -The authors developed a new Braille-based text input method named EdgeBraille, which allows entering six-point Braille characters by swiping one finger along the edges of the touchscreen in an arbitrary sequence. The approach was compared with the current standard method of a talking keyboard, first in a short-term lab study (14 participants) and then during two weeks of daily training (seven participants). Findings -Overall EdgeBraille was perceived well by the users and possesses favourable handling characteristics. In terms of user performance (words per minute and error rate) the authors found no significant differences between the two methods. However, based on the evaluation results and the feedback of the participants the authors identified possibilities for improvement in terms of a smaller EdgeBraille version allowing the entry of eight-point Braille characters, and conducted a proof-of-concept study (seven participants). Originality/value -In the paper the authors comprehensively reflect on advantages and disadvantages of Braille-based methods in general and EdgeBraille in particular. The authors argue why and how Braille-based methods should serve as complement to current text input paradigms based on talking keyboard and indicate future directions of research.