Final Press Release for CUU - Please Distribute

------- Forwarded Message



 ACM Conference on	
 Universal  Usability

		

 Hilton  Arlington VA
 November 16 and 17


Disadvantaged Computer Users from Four 
Continents Enrich International Conference 
on Universal Usability 

 
WHAT IF PARALYSIS prevents you from using a standard computer 
keyboard? Or, if access to the network you depend on is manipulated by 
others as a badge of power? 
These challenges and more have been faced by the 19 Fellows at the 
Conference on Universal Usability (CUU), being held next week (Nov. 16 
and 17) in Arlington, Virginia.
The CUU Fellows are specially invited, funded computer users from  
developing nations and minority groups. They represent everyone to whom 
computer technology is a necessary but frustrating part of life. They 
hail from Malaysia, Vietnam, Australia, Ireland, the U.K., Romania and 
the U.S. 
CUU Fellows bring a special perspective to the conference. They 
drive home the imperative for universal, usable computer and Internet 
access for everyone, everywhere. They will draft a program of actions 
to make universal access a reality, at a pre-conference workshop at the 
Arlington Hilton on Wednesday, Nov. 15. Their report will be presented 
to the conference assembled on Friday afternoon, Nov. 17.
Full details about CUU are available at http:// www.acm.org/ 
sigchi/cuu/.  
	 


International Conference Strives to Make 
Computers Usable and Available to All 
People, Everywhere
 


WHO OF US, no matter how technically gifted, has never had a 
problem accessing a service or understanding an interface? 
Not me. Not you. Not anyone.
Taking action to redress the escalating frustrations of computer 
users of all types is the focus of a major conference, being held next 
week in Arlington, Virginia.
The pervasiveness of problems with poorly designed computer systems 
is the focus of this event: the Conference on Universal Usability 
(CUU). The problems are so extensive and of such importance that the 
Association for Computing Machinery is being joined by 25 firms, 
professional societies, and government agencies in sponsoring the 
event. Included are leading high technology firms such as America 
Online, Intel, Oracle, Motorola and Sun Microsystems.
Next Thursday and Friday (Nov. 16 and 17), the combined resources 
of key players in the IT revolution will be concentrated at the Hilton 
Arlington & Towers, 950 N. Stafford St., Arlington VA (703-528-6000). 
For a summary description of the growing chasm separating those who 
have effective IT access from those who do not, visit 
http://www.acm.org/sigchi/cuu/proceedings/conf-welcome.html.  
	


 ACM Conference on	
 Universal  Usability

		

 Hilton  Arlington VA
 November 16 and 17

Reversing Failure, Alleviating Frustration: 
International Conference Takes Up the Cause
of Computing's Everyman

 

TOO OFTEN, computer system complexity, incompatible file formats, 
confusing interfaces, high cost, and especially inadequate attention to 
the needs of diverse groups lead to user frustration and failure.
Reversing failure and alleviating frustration are among the goals 
of the Conference on Universal Usability (CUU), taking place next week 
(Nov. 16 and 17) in Arlington, Virginia. This international conference 
will be opened by Thomas Kalil, Special Assistant to the President for 
Economic Policy -- a key player in past disability access efforts and 
currently the point man in U.S. efforts to narrow the Digital Divide 
between those who have access to computing and those who do not.
The more than 300 CUU attendees also will experience
?	A presentation describing universal access for any user, in many 
languages, on any computer platform
?	Poster papers depicting visual cues for the visually impaired, a 
sign language recognition system, a remittance service for blind 
user ATM operation, and a tool to evaluate universal web 
accessibility
Full details about CUU are available at http:// www.acm.org/ 
sigchi/cuu/.




 ACM Conference on	
 Universal  Usability

		

 Hilton  Arlington VA
 November 16 and 17


Universal Usability Conference Volunteers 
Build Web Resource to Empower Every 
Citizen in Cyberspace

 
THERE'S A TRITE saying in Western culture that "it ain't over till 
the fat lady sings". But in the case of a unique international meeting, 
the fat lady may never be finished singing -- and computer users 
everywhere will benefit.
That's because student volunteers at the Conference on Universal 
Usability (CUU) have constructed a special web site 
(universalusability.com). This site is dedicated to understanding how 
to design computer technology so that it is usable by everyone: users 
of all levels of expertise, cognitive ability, and physical ability, 
and users with economic and social constraints.
The site will be a primary resource for computer usability 
information, discussion and research long after the CUU conference is 
over. CUU is being held Nov. 16 and 17 in Arlington, Virginia.
The universal usability site includes a discussion forum and an 
information storehouse about user communities, tasks and activities, 
computer hardware and software, and social and organizational systems.
The student volunteers who built the site began their effort months 
before the conference itself, undertaking a daunting task for a group 
working asynchronously across time, language and cultural barriers. CUU 
funded their travel expenses, accommodations, meals and registration.

Received on Monday, 13 November 2000 04:14:24 UTC