A user interface for deaf-blind people (preliminary report)

Abstract

A user interface suitable for deaf-blind users is presented and justified. The interface is designed for small paperless Braille displays, large font visual displays, or other low-bandwidth displays. Some of the key properties of the interface are that it uses a hierarchical approach to structure both commands and data, has a small universal command set, and has pervasive editing capability. DBNet, a system employing the user interface, has been built and tested with deaf-blind users. DBNet will provide various communication services to the deaf-blind community including electronic news, mail, and bulletin boards.