An Open Source / Freeware Assistive Technology Software Inventory

Abstract

Assistive Technology (AT) software market is expensive, and related products are hard to find, especially for non-English speaking users. Open Source and free AT software partially solve the cost problem, and online inventories facilitate the search for the appropriate product. Even so, users don’t have all the information gathered and systematically organized in one place. Furthermore, free software often needs to be tested and reviewed by computer and AT experts in order to detect and point out reliability, installation, and compatibility issues. We propose a methodology for creating web-based free AT software inventories, which will make the search and selection of such products straightforward. The methodology is based on the systematic organization and consistency of the information available for each product, and its effective presentation; the goal for the users is to be able to quickly find, compare and understand the functionality and features of each product. We have applied this methodology to create the Open Source / Freeware AT software inventory http://access.uoa.gr/fs.