Making Personal Computers Inclusive
From: The Hindu (India) - 04/10/2011
By: Paromita Pain 

Microsoft Research India's Indrani Medhi is developing a computer interface
that enables non-literate people to use computers. Medhi says computers must
be adapted because large parts of the global population are not able to use
them. Her research has led to the launch of the Text-Free User Interface (UI)
project, which seeks to develop guidelines for computer-human interfaces that
aid the illiterate and semi-literate in using the Internet to find jobs,
access information, and use mobile phone-based banking services. The
Text-Free UI makes use of audio prompts and symbols that are particular to
specific illiterate or poor communities. Video also is used to demonstrate
how applications work. For example, a person using the job search option
would see a domestic helper asking for and getting a job. Extensive tests
have been conducted on a research prototype and pilot projects have been
rolled out. 

Read the entire article at:
http://www.thehindu.com:80/sci-tech/gadgets/article1683233.ece

Links:
Text-Free UI
http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/people/indranim/text-freeui.pdf
http://tier.cs.berkeley.edu/docs/Medhi_and_Kuriyan_Final.pdf

Ethnography informs text-free UI for illiterate people
http://www.experientia.com/blog/ethnography-informs-text-free-ui-for-illiterate-people/

Indrani Medhi
http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/people/indranim/

Rewriting human-computer interaction handbook
http://www.ciol.com/News/News/News-Reports/Rewriting-human-computer-interaction-handbook/132727/0/