WYSIWYG editors for entering math in documents have existed for over 20 years. A few of these are... more WYSIWYG editors for entering math in documents have existed for over 20 years. A few of these are accessible, but almost all are geared towards entering a single expression, not to the process of solving a math problem. The Benetech math editor introduces two simple and unique ideas that are very useful in the middle and high school settings for solving math problems. The first idea allows a student to cross out or cancel subexpressions; the second allows them to annotate their work so the teacher or other reviewer knows the student’s reasoning.
WYSIWYG mathematical editors have existed for several decades. Recent editors have mostly been we... more WYSIWYG mathematical editors have existed for several decades. Recent editors have mostly been web-based. These editors often provide buttons or palettes containing hundreds of symbols used in mathematics. People who use screen readers and switch devices are restricted to semi-linear access of the buttons and must wade through a large number of buttons to find the right symbol to insert if the symbol is not present on the keyboard. This paper presents data gleaned from textbooks that shows that if the subject area is known, the number of buttons needed for special symbols is small so usability can be greatly improved.
Several systems have been developed that allow mathematical expressions to be spoken and navigate... more Several systems have been developed that allow mathematical expressions to be spoken and navigated. This paper describes studies involving the latest revision of the most widely used system: MathPlayer 4. This version includes features to allow navigation of mathematical expressions. Students with blindness or low vision used NVDA + MathPlayer to read Microsoft Word documents with math problems in them. The results were compared with the same students reading similar documents using their favorite modality (braille or large print). The results showed that speech augmented with navigation resulted in similar comprehension rates compared to when students used their preferred modality. This is an important finding because electronic documents are often available in situations where braille or large print documents are not.
MathPlayer has been re-architected so that any assistive technology (AT) can use it to read math ... more MathPlayer has been re-architected so that any assistive technology (AT) can use it to read math in any browser or other application. This new version enhances many of MathPlayer's existing features and adds unique navigation capabilities and braille math code support.
This thesis discusses the design and implementation of natural user interfaces for Computer Algeb... more This thesis discusses the design and implementation of natural user interfaces for Computer Algebra Systems. Such an interface must not only display expressions generated by the Computer Algebra Systems. Such an interface must not only display expressions generated by the Computer Algebra System in standard mathematical notation, but also must allow easy manipulation and entry of expressions in that notation. The user interface should also assist in the understanding of large expressions that are generated by Computer Algebra Systems and should be able to accommodate new notational forms. Building a good user interface requires many tradeoffs. As such, there may be no "best" solution for any individual subtask. This thesis discusses many of the tradeoffs involved and develops algorithms for displaying, entering, and selecting from expressions. Two new algorithms for incremental parsing of input are presented. Either algorithm can be coupled with the incremental reformatting and screen update algorithm developed in this thesis to produce an interface capable of correctly updating and displaying changes to relatively large expressions in real-time. Moreover, algorithms that exploit locality for the selection of subexpressions are also given. These selection algorithms are also capable of providing real-time feedback as to what is being selected. Because Computer Algebra Systems generate large expressions, efficiency in both time and space are important. Data is presented that shows that using directed acyclic graphs as the fundamental underlying data structure instead of trees significantly decreases time and space usage. The ability to display large expressions efficiently must be coupled with the ability to manipulate them into understandable forms. This thesis discusses three such techniques: elision, renaming of subexpressions, and line breaking. Two new algorithms are given for incrementally reformatting expressions in the presence of line breaks. This thesis introduces the idea of translations. Translations convert between the form used by a Computer Algebra System and the mathematical notation displayed on the screen. Translations increase the portability of the interface and allow it to communicate with different Computer Algebra Systems during a single session. Translations can be grouped together to form notation libraries which can be used to eliminate some of the ambiguity inherent in mathematical notation.
MathPlayer is a plug-in to Microsoft Internet Explorer (IE) and Adobe Acrobat/Reader that renders... more MathPlayer is a plug-in to Microsoft Internet Explorer (IE) and Adobe Acrobat/Reader that renders MathML visually and converts it to textual speech strings. The version under development has a unique architecture that allows multiple styles of speech, easy internationalization/localization, and the generation of a user interface that allows user customization of the words spoken based upon external rule files. It includes many other accessibility features such as individual magnification of expressions, synchronized highlighting of text and speech, and conversion to Braille math codes.
Ivfathematica’s user interface has been significantly enhanced in Mathematical Version 3. This pa... more Ivfathematica’s user interface has been significantly enhanced in Mathematical Version 3. This paper focuses on the new mathematical typesetting capabilities in the user interface, with the aim of discussing not only what they are, but also the rationale behind the design and also how the capabilities can be used.
MathPlayer is a plug-in to Microsoft's Internet Explorer (IE) that renders MathML[11] visuall... more MathPlayer is a plug-in to Microsoft's Internet Explorer (IE) that renders MathML[11] visually. It also contains a number of features that make mathematical expressions accessible to people with print-disabilities. MathPlayer integrates with many screen readers including JAWS and Window-Eyes. MathPlayer also works with a number of TextHELP!'s learning disabilities products.
WYSIWYG editors for entering math in documents have existed for over 20 years. A few of these are... more WYSIWYG editors for entering math in documents have existed for over 20 years. A few of these are accessible, but almost all are geared towards entering a single expression, not to the process of solving a math problem. The Benetech math editor introduces two simple and unique ideas that are very useful in the middle and high school settings for solving math problems. The first idea allows a student to cross out or cancel subexpressions; the second allows them to annotate their work so the teacher or other reviewer knows the student’s reasoning.
WYSIWYG mathematical editors have existed for several decades. Recent editors have mostly been we... more WYSIWYG mathematical editors have existed for several decades. Recent editors have mostly been web-based. These editors often provide buttons or palettes containing hundreds of symbols used in mathematics. People who use screen readers and switch devices are restricted to semi-linear access of the buttons and must wade through a large number of buttons to find the right symbol to insert if the symbol is not present on the keyboard. This paper presents data gleaned from textbooks that shows that if the subject area is known, the number of buttons needed for special symbols is small so usability can be greatly improved.
Several systems have been developed that allow mathematical expressions to be spoken and navigate... more Several systems have been developed that allow mathematical expressions to be spoken and navigated. This paper describes studies involving the latest revision of the most widely used system: MathPlayer 4. This version includes features to allow navigation of mathematical expressions. Students with blindness or low vision used NVDA + MathPlayer to read Microsoft Word documents with math problems in them. The results were compared with the same students reading similar documents using their favorite modality (braille or large print). The results showed that speech augmented with navigation resulted in similar comprehension rates compared to when students used their preferred modality. This is an important finding because electronic documents are often available in situations where braille or large print documents are not.
MathPlayer has been re-architected so that any assistive technology (AT) can use it to read math ... more MathPlayer has been re-architected so that any assistive technology (AT) can use it to read math in any browser or other application. This new version enhances many of MathPlayer's existing features and adds unique navigation capabilities and braille math code support.
This thesis discusses the design and implementation of natural user interfaces for Computer Algeb... more This thesis discusses the design and implementation of natural user interfaces for Computer Algebra Systems. Such an interface must not only display expressions generated by the Computer Algebra Systems. Such an interface must not only display expressions generated by the Computer Algebra System in standard mathematical notation, but also must allow easy manipulation and entry of expressions in that notation. The user interface should also assist in the understanding of large expressions that are generated by Computer Algebra Systems and should be able to accommodate new notational forms. Building a good user interface requires many tradeoffs. As such, there may be no "best" solution for any individual subtask. This thesis discusses many of the tradeoffs involved and develops algorithms for displaying, entering, and selecting from expressions. Two new algorithms for incremental parsing of input are presented. Either algorithm can be coupled with the incremental reformatting and screen update algorithm developed in this thesis to produce an interface capable of correctly updating and displaying changes to relatively large expressions in real-time. Moreover, algorithms that exploit locality for the selection of subexpressions are also given. These selection algorithms are also capable of providing real-time feedback as to what is being selected. Because Computer Algebra Systems generate large expressions, efficiency in both time and space are important. Data is presented that shows that using directed acyclic graphs as the fundamental underlying data structure instead of trees significantly decreases time and space usage. The ability to display large expressions efficiently must be coupled with the ability to manipulate them into understandable forms. This thesis discusses three such techniques: elision, renaming of subexpressions, and line breaking. Two new algorithms are given for incrementally reformatting expressions in the presence of line breaks. This thesis introduces the idea of translations. Translations convert between the form used by a Computer Algebra System and the mathematical notation displayed on the screen. Translations increase the portability of the interface and allow it to communicate with different Computer Algebra Systems during a single session. Translations can be grouped together to form notation libraries which can be used to eliminate some of the ambiguity inherent in mathematical notation.
MathPlayer is a plug-in to Microsoft Internet Explorer (IE) and Adobe Acrobat/Reader that renders... more MathPlayer is a plug-in to Microsoft Internet Explorer (IE) and Adobe Acrobat/Reader that renders MathML visually and converts it to textual speech strings. The version under development has a unique architecture that allows multiple styles of speech, easy internationalization/localization, and the generation of a user interface that allows user customization of the words spoken based upon external rule files. It includes many other accessibility features such as individual magnification of expressions, synchronized highlighting of text and speech, and conversion to Braille math codes.
Ivfathematica’s user interface has been significantly enhanced in Mathematical Version 3. This pa... more Ivfathematica’s user interface has been significantly enhanced in Mathematical Version 3. This paper focuses on the new mathematical typesetting capabilities in the user interface, with the aim of discussing not only what they are, but also the rationale behind the design and also how the capabilities can be used.
MathPlayer is a plug-in to Microsoft's Internet Explorer (IE) that renders MathML[11] visuall... more MathPlayer is a plug-in to Microsoft's Internet Explorer (IE) that renders MathML[11] visually. It also contains a number of features that make mathematical expressions accessible to people with print-disabilities. MathPlayer integrates with many screen readers including JAWS and Window-Eyes. MathPlayer also works with a number of TextHELP!'s learning disabilities products.
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