An accessible media player as a user agent for the web

Abstract

This paper presents webLection,a tool that aims at increasing the uptake of the Web by a variety of potential users. With WebLection Web content is locally rendered into standard audio formats, and, ultimately, manipulated just like music employing the playing list behaviour as an intuitive interaction metaphor. Although webLection originates from research for blind Web users, significant benefits emerge for other types users too, including Web developers, since it can be used, on the one hand, to easily transform and make Web content available through its audio equivalent, and on the other hand to inspect the accessibility and usability of Web pages for users of screen readers. © 2008 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.