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Helping older adults locate 'lost' cursors using FieldMouse

Published: 25 October 2010 Publication History

Abstract

This paper describes how a standard optical mouse was augmented by the addition of a touch sensor inside the body of the mouse. When the mouse is released and subsequently touched it generates a Windows message which can then be used to execute an action. Three techniques were developed using the augmented mouse (nicknamed 'FieldMouse') to help older adult computer users find the mouse cursor when it has become 'lost': placing the mouse cursor at the center of the screen; wiggling the mouse cursor from side to side; displaying a flashing red ring around the mouse cursor. The techniques were compared in a pilot study to see which one was the most effective, and this would then be used in a later study to compare techniques of finding the mouse cursor. Following the pilot, the technique of centering the mouse cursor was chosen for the later study since it was the quickest to find the mouse cursor, without needing to search the entire screen.

References

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Ball, K.K., Beard, B.L., Roenker, D.L., Miller, R.L. and Griggs, D.S. 1988. Age and Visual Search: expanding the useful field of view. J. Opt. Soc. Am, Vol 5, No 12.
[2]
Hinckley, K and Sinclair, M. 1999. Touch-sensing input devices. SIGCHI conference on Human Factors in Computer Systems. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, pp223--230.
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Owsley, C., Ball, K. and Keeton, D.M. 1994. Relationship Between Visual Sensitivity and Target Localisation in Older Adults. Vision Res. Vol 35. No. 4, pp 579--587.
[4]
Paradise, J., Trewin, S. and Keates, S. 2005. Using Pointing Devices: Difficulties Encountered and Strategies Employed. 3rd International Conference on Universal Access and Human-Computer Interaction. Las Vegas.
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Plude, D.J. and Hoyer, W.J. 1986. Age and the Selectivity of Visual Information Processing. Journal of Psychology and Aging. Vol 1, Number 1, pp 4--10.
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Rogers (2000) Attention and Aging. In Park, D and Schwarz, N (eds) Cognitive Aging, A Primer. Psychology Press.
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Vigouroux, N., P. Rumeau, et al. (2009). Studying Point-Select-Drag Interaction Techniques for Older People with Cognitive Impairment. Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Universal Access in HCI.

Cited By

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  • (2018)Find the ‘Lost’ Cursor: A Comparative Experiment of Visually Enhanced Cursor TechniquesIntelligent Computing Theories and Application10.1007/978-3-319-95933-7_11(85-92)Online publication date: 6-Jul-2018
  • (2011)Cursor relocation techniques to help older adults find 'lost' cursorsProceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems10.1145/1978942.1979068(863-866)Online publication date: 7-May-2011

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    cover image ACM Conferences
    ASSETS '10: Proceedings of the 12th international ACM SIGACCESS conference on Computers and accessibility
    October 2010
    346 pages
    ISBN:9781605588810
    DOI:10.1145/1878803

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    Association for Computing Machinery

    New York, NY, United States

    Publication History

    Published: 25 October 2010

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    Author Tags

    1. computer mouse
    2. losing mouse cursor
    3. touch sensor

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    View all
    • (2018)Find the ‘Lost’ Cursor: A Comparative Experiment of Visually Enhanced Cursor TechniquesIntelligent Computing Theories and Application10.1007/978-3-319-95933-7_11(85-92)Online publication date: 6-Jul-2018
    • (2011)Cursor relocation techniques to help older adults find 'lost' cursorsProceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems10.1145/1978942.1979068(863-866)Online publication date: 7-May-2011

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