Content simplification demo

[Clark, Colin]

Hi,

James, Antranig, Michelle and I are experimenting with a demonstration of content simplification using UI Options and Infusion. Our initial idea, which we'd like to use as a practical starting point for examining the issue in more depth, is to provide a "simplicity spectrum slider" in UI Options. This slider will enable users to dynamically adjust the degree of distraction reduction in the user interface, media, content sections, etc. For our first iteration, the page's layout will be preserved, but users will be able to "turn off" distractions based on their personal needs.

James has started some really nice wireframes here:

http://wiki.fluidproject.org/display/fluid/Content+simplification+conceptualization

Michelle, Antranig and I are going to dive in and start implementing this as a demo we can showcase during presentations about Floe and the GPII over the next little while. Here are some of our to dos:

 * Look into new HTML5 semantics and see if there is a clear match with importance hierarchy
 * Investigate strategies for automatic dimming of sections using CSS3
 * Implement a static HTML page based on the wireframes
 * Build multiple stylesheets within three categories:
     1. The page's default look and feel
     2. Some basic, out of the box "dimmer" styles
     3. Page-specific refinements to #2

Since we don't want to get in the way of the impending Infusion 1.4 release, we'll fork UI Options work on this feature independently from the rest of the release.

This really is just the tip of a very interesting iceberg, which we'll continue to explore as we dive deeper into the process of user interface personalization. I can imagine that, for example, we should be able to use this same importance hierarchy with the Renderer to produce simplified versions of a full HTML page tailored specifically for mobile, etc.

Colin

---
Colin Clark
Lead Software Architect,
Inclusive Design Research Centre, OCAD University
http://inclusivedesign.ca