BBC raw computers

Until last year I worked in BBC Factual and Learning as a Senior Content Producer for the Adult Learning team. One of my final projects was BBC raw computers; an interactive, immersive website aimed at complete computer beginners. It was an intensive two-year project for which we created interactive Flash videos with a presenter Tom teaching basic computer and internet skills.

As Senior Content Producer it was my responsibility to manage the project, including working closely with an independent production company RedNomad. In addition, due to having a teaching background, I took on the role of editor for scripts, wrote factsheets and managed user testing.

From the start of the project it was imperative that we put the user at the centre of the design process and brought in subject matter experts to provide critical reviews of scripts and factsheets.

raw computers is split into two main sections; Getting to know your computer and Introducing the internet which are then split into smaller sections, such as The mouse and Using email. Originally we had planned a separate section on health and safety, but I decided that as it should always be part of computer use, instead we covered key issues throughout raw computers.

In Computer basics we introduce the user to the computer's hardware and explain the importance of using equipment safely; adjusting seating and lighting appropriately, taking breaks and avoiding hazards. The presenter, Tom, explains this to the user on screen and there is also a factsheet they can print off and refer to, which I wrote.

In Registering on a website we explain about ensuring a website is secure and only providing the personal information users want to. We also cover security questions, usernames and passwords. With passwords we advise users to chose one that mixes letters and numbers, to use different passwords for different websites and to NEVER give your password out to anyone as no legitimate company will ever ask for it. There is also a Password checker game where you can test your password’s strength.

Screen shot from BBC raw computers

In Using email we advise users to treat attachments from unknown sources with caution and explaine how to manage and file emails in folders.

The website has a range of accessibility options; all audio has subtitles, text on screen can be changed to three text sizes and six colours are available and there are text versions of the content for those who didn't want to use, or have, video on their computer. Also, we wrote the script with our target audience in mind; sentences were short, words with few syllables - making the content accessible for a low literacy audience.

BBC raw computers ended up being a lot of hard work, but it’s something that I’m very proud of. I hope users and practitioners have found it a useful tool for learning about using computers and the internet.

Using video to connect with the world

One of the outcomes of being restricted with travel for the past few months has been an exploration of using technology to communicate with people. In the past I’ve always preferred meeting people face to face, but with a leg in plaster it hasn’t been feasible.

As previously blogged I used Skype when in hospital to chat to family and friends and since then my peer Kathy and I have used it to chat with each other about the ITQ course, as well as regular sessions with our tutor Di.

A few weeks ago I was due to attend a meeting with The Reading Agency via a conference call. At the last minute a hospital appointment was rescheduled, so I jokingly said to them that I’d send them a video with my thoughts – they took me up on the offer! To start with I regretted my brash offering as I had not previously used the video and record facility on my Mac, or even uploaded a video. It was a frantic morning of testing the video and sound and familiarising myself with iMovie before uploading the final product to YouTube. It’s my first video and as it’s on project management it’s not particularly exciting, but I think it’s a useful demonstration of how technology can reduce barriers for people. Without the video I wouldn’t have been able to contribute to the meeting and it meant, even though I couldn’t travel, I could still be there ‘in person’.



My colleagues fed back that my video was very well received! However, on reflection, next time I would improve how I’d framed myself in shot and also make a shorter video – less for the audience to sit through! I will also spend time familiarising myself with iMovie, how to edit and compression options for uploading videos to YouTube, as mine took ages to upload.

Being online 247

Though I may moan a bit about Mac hardware (obviously it's the machine's fault I can't always get it to work... not the operator's!), I am quite addicted to being online 247. My main partner in crime is my iPhone which I've owned for over a year so it's starting to look a bit sorry for myself.

My partner, family and friends make jokes about how I have to be constantly plugged in and to some extent they're right.. but I have been known to leave technology behind (occasionally, with some disgruntlement). Though, the internet has also been my salvation.

At the end of January I made the mistake of going ice-skating... a whole fifteen minutes in I fell over and fractured my tibia and fibula. The break is what Plymouthians would call 'a proper job'. Originally it had been expected I'd be in hospital for only a few days, before coming home with a cast and on crutches. But, what is known as 'Michelle luck' kicked in even more and I ended up being in hospital for four weeks, on a ward that was closed to visitors for three of those weeks. Life was not fun.

My salvation, and I really do mean this, was the internet on my iPhone and later on my Mac. Luckily, at the start of my stay, my mum had brought in my Mac with tv programmes and films loaded onto it (thanks awesome bro). As my hospital television did not work, it's all I had entertainment wise.

My iPhone was used by doctors to take photos of my leg (to see how the skin was progressing), people sent me pictures of the outside world, I emailed people tales of woe, updated the world on my progress via Facebook and received encouragement and support. And, I even made phonecalls. Luckily my iPhone contract had unlimited data (though recent news reports suggest this is all about to change), but frustratingly I could see numerous wireless networks no-one had the password to!

After two weeks - with no obvious 'escape' date scheduled, my mum posted me my broadband dongle. I loaded it up with credit and soon could chat with and see (hurrah!) friends and family via Skype, browse the web and generally keep in touch with the world.

I really believe that if I'd not had the internet the ordeal would have been far worse. Having technology and the internet to hand, be it accessed over 02's 3G network on my phone, or the Vodaphone's 2G network on my internet dongle, meant I could stay in touch with the people that mattered.

Online training - Apps and Benevolent Bill - part two

I rejoined the online training session to be introduced to the wonderful world of EduApps. Offered by JISC, these are a range of free software that can be used to support teachers and learners. A few caught my eye, particularly those for dyslexic learners and I was eager to learn more so watched their podcast and introduction video:



But, unfortunately the downloads are for Windows based PCs... not for a Mac :( I've added it to my ITQ TaDa list as after flicking through their AccessApps guide I'm eager to try them out once I'm back home, where I have a spare PC.

One interesting point they made was that for dyslexic people their colour preferences can change over time. I'd never heard of this before so it's useful to know, particularly when learners amend the settings on their computer, they'd need to be able to change them in the future.

For safety, Di recommended f.lux programme that adjusts the light on your computer's monitor depending on the time of day. This intrigues me, particularly as I get tired staring at a screen all day and it would reduce the glare. One to try when I get back to my flat.

Another website recommended was AbilityNet's My Computer My Way which shows users how they can change settings on their computer to make it easier to use. Great step-by-step walk-throughs on changing settings for vision, hearing, motor and cognitive skills for the Mac and PC.

The rest of the presentation was about the various units we have to complete for the module, including some suggested activities. I've decided I'm going to create my own activities with the aim of teaching myself more about the Mac operating system - though whilst always considering accessibility.

Online training - Apps and Benevolent Bill

I've just started watching my second online training session; Apps and Benevolent Bill originally held on 8th March. This session links to the User Fundamentals Unit and I'll be blogging my thoughts as I (belatedly) take part:

System preferences - Universal Access
On a Mac, under System Preferences there is a Universal Access button. It was interesting to look at this to enable me to amend the computer to suit my needs, but it will be also be useful for working with learners.

Helpfully, the font in this window was larger than standard size. A user can change options for Seeing, Hearing, Keyboard, Mouse and Trackpad. I read through the different options and decided to change 'For difficulties seeing the cursor, Cursor Size' and moved it to just above Normal as sometimes I lose the cursor on the screen!

Screen grab from a Mac of Universal Access with Cursor Size changed to greater than Normal

A learner I work with who is visually impaired would also find it helpful to change the size of her computer's cursor. As she uses a PC rather than a Mac I can refer to Jisc's Accessibility Features of Microsoft Windows^® to check how to change cursor settings on her computer.

In the Hearing section you can select to flash the screen when an alert sounds, this would be helpful for learners with hearing impairment (such as my uncle). Using sticky keys or repeated key strokes will be helpful for users who would take time to press key combinations or might accidentally hit a key more than once.

WebbIE
WebbIE is a web browser for blind and visually impaired people. I hadn't come across this browser before, it's useful to know about. It displays a page as a plain text output in a window allowing the user to explore a page, follow links and complete forms. However, what surprised me about this was their guide to alt tags, recommending that web developers shouldn't use them. For a visually impaired user the information is superfluous as they can't see the image. However, I'd argue that as a visual user I often hover my cursor over an image to get more information about it from the alt tag. It was an interesting view point I'd not thought of before.

Webbie can also be used by web developers to test the accessibility of their website. This is really helpful for me as I also develop websites for companies.

Finally, the site contains lots of links to other great websites and programmes, such as Easy YouTube and screen readers.

Web browser accessibility
I didn't realise that there are so many accessibility options for web browsers. Di linked to a great summary list on Wikipedia comparing common accessibility features of web browsers.

I've viewed as far as Slide 5, have to stop now and start from Slide 6 of the presentation later.

Comment: I've noticed when I save images and upload they're rather degraded which can make text difficult to read. At present I'm using Grab on the Mac to take screen grabs as a tiff and then exporting as jpgs using iPhoto. I'll have to investigate to improve quality of the image.

User fundamentals - accessibility on a Mac

Last November I needed to buy a new laptop and as my grandfather gave me his old iMac and I owned an iPhone the logical step was to purchase a MacBook Pro. Getting to grips with a new operating system has been quite challenging, particularly as I've only ever used a PC before.

Over the last ten years I've had a physical problem with my arms and hands which leads to discomfort if I repeatedly carry out the same action. Due to this I had taught myself to navigate through an operating system using only the keyboard, to rest my hands from using a mouse. However, I learnt this on a PC, now I have to get to grips with a Mac.

On a PC to get up to the menu bar in an application I would use keyboard shortcuts, but the same shortcuts don't work on a Mac. To find out which shortcuts I could use I visited the Apple website to read about how the Mac's operating system comes with a variety of assistive technologies. This gave a good overview, but I had to visit the Mac OS keyboard shortcuts page to get more specific information.

I tried some of the shortcuts, but frustratingly they didn't always work! I mentioned this to my tutor, Di Dawson, who helpfully found out that to get to get to the menu bar I needed to use the keys fn (function) + ctrl (control) + F2 (function 2). This is an extra key in comparison to on a PC and annoyingly I find it difficult to do with one hand.

Once I figured this out, I could then open and shut down my computer just using my keyboard. My peer, Kathy observed me opening and shutting down the computer and wrote a witness statement.

To close down applications I used cmd + Q or fn + ctrl + F2 to access the menu bar and then use the arrow keys to navigate around the menu, the enter key to select an action and then close the application. Finally I used fn + ctrl + F2 to access the Apple menu and then close the computer.

I'm disappointed that the Mac website doesn't provide all the information I need on keyboard shortcuts, I think the way forward is to ask other people for advice, such as using forums.

Update: I've just figured out how to reduce the number of keys I have to hit. I've changed a setting in System Preferences under Keyboard so that Function keys only work as standard function keys. For example, to access the menu bar is now only ctrl + F2 - which I can do with one hand, hurrah!

User fundamentals - Kathy - Witness testimony

For the ITQ we have to use a variety of assessment methods for our portfolio, two of which are witness testimony and observation. For the user fundamentals module I have observed Kathy using correct procedures to start and shutdown an IT system.

Kathy gave herself the additional challenge of operating her laptop without the use of a touchpad or mouse.

To shut down the laptop Kathy first ensured all Word documents on the screen were saved, using the shortcut keys Ctrl S to save documents. For any documents unnamed she was able to give the documents name and then using the tab and enter keys select folders to save them in. Once she had saved her Word documents she used Alt F4 to close Word. If Kathy had just shut down Word her documents might not have saved in the correct place on her computer and she might not have been able to easily find them again.

Next Kathy used Alt F4 to shut down Internet Explorer.

Finally she used the Windows key on the keyboard to bring up the Start menu and then used shift and tab to move to the shut-down button and hit enter to close down the laptop.

To restart her laptop Kathy turned on the power button and then entered her password and hit return.

I asked Kathy how she found the process and she believed it was good to experience how to operate a computer without using a mouse, as some of her students often have to do this.