Archived Call for Participation

This is an archival copy of the CUU 200 Call for Participation, kept for historical reasons only.

Sections of this page: Topics, Presentation Formats, Submissions.

We invite submissions (due May 1, 2000) for the first ACM Conference on Universal Usability, to be held in Washington, DC, November 16 - 17, 2000. We seek work in any area whose aim is to enable the widest range of users to successfully use technology for information, communications, entertainment, education, e-commerce, civic systems, and government services.

Challenges include the diversity of users (experts & novices, old & young, educated & illiterate, disabled, forgotten, those in ill health, etc.); the wide range of technology (e.g.; 100 to 1 ratios in processor and network speeds), and the gap between what users know and what they need to know. We are interested in research, new systems and technologies, empirical evaluations of systems, policy suggestions, and systems that support community activities. A diverse set of participants is expected including technologists, policy makers, advocates, users, and researchers.

Topics

Specific topics include (but are not limited to) the following.

Solutions to address the politics, policies, and economics of universal usability and evaluations of those solutions:

• New pricing schemes and new services (911, first aid, voting, etc.)
• Methods of measuring intellectual capital and the value of diverse access
• Ethical considerations and design trade-offs involved with universal usability
• Methods for helping communities with special needs articulate and share those needs and/or create their own solutions

Solutions to accommodate variations in hardware, software, and network access as well as empirical evaluations of these systems:

• Middleware translation systems to support various display and input devices among versions and formats
• Designs for modular software and hardware components that interconnect reliably
• Standards and protocols that address these variations

Proposed solutions to accommodate users who differ in attributes such as skill, knowledge, age, gender, disabilities, literacies, languages, cultures, and income and evaluations of such solutions:

• Methods for users to adapt and personalize systems according to their expertise, reading level, learning style, etc
• Methods to accommodate environmental and social variations
• Software management tools to support multiple versions in multiple languages
• Improved customer service, on-line help, and on-line training

Solution processes for better understanding users, contexts, and tasks:

• Ethnographic observations to capture diversity
• Participatory design
• Social impact statements
• Usability tests with stratified user groups
• Ensuring diversity in heuristic evaluations
• Globalization and localization processes
• Lifecycle design issues or methods for addressing universal usability

Presentation Formats

Just as there are a broad range of possible approaches to universal usability, we also seek contributions in a variety of presentation formats including formal papers, panels, and poster sessions.

1) Papers. We solicit original, concise, and insightful papers of work based on providing real solutions, partial solutions, or lessons learned from failures which can be of benefit to the field. Papers should include a description of the context of use, the user(s) involved in the solution, a description of the attempted solution, a description of the impact, and lessons learned. Papers should be at most 8 ACM conference pages (about 4000 words).

2) Panels. Proposals for panels that synthesize and orient work in the area, especially across disciplinary boundaries, are encouraged. Panel proposals should define an issue, list proposed panel members, their backgrounds, and their basic positions. Panel proposals should be two pages long. Panels should provide for interaction among members and with the audience and should not consist of a series of independent mini-papers.

3) Posters. In some cases, a more appropriate means of describing your work may be in an informal, interactive setting. Proposals for Interactive Posters should include a two page description of the work and one page that shows the general outline of the poster.

Submissions

All accepted submissions will be included in a (paper) proceedings as well as presented at the conference. In addition, selected papers will be considered for special issues of The Information Society (social aspects) and Interacting with Computers (design oriented).

Please send 5 copies of your full papers, panel proposals, and poster descriptions to us by May 1, 2000 at:

Jean Scholtz
DARPA/ITO
3701 Fairfax Dr.
Arlington, VA 22203-1714 USA
jscholtz@darpa.mil
Tel: (01)-703-696-4469

Include a cover letter indicating the primary contact person for the submission (including name, affiliation, address, phone number, fax number, and e-mail address). All submissions should follow the CHI Conference Publications Format.