accessibility

sensory experiences of demos | video figure | presentation | pdf | conference faq

Sensory Experiences of Demos

Please see the page on sensory experiences of demos.

Making Video Figures Accessible

We strongly encourage authors to make their videos (teaser, presentation) accessible by adding text captions to transcribe the audio (to make videos accessible to people who are deaf or hard of hearing) and audio narration to describe the presented visuals (to make videos accessible to people who are blind or low vision). Authors can refer to the guidelines of video captions and descriptions for more information.

Making Presentations Accessible

We strongly encourage authors to make their (live, recorded) presentations accessible to diverse audiences. For instance, designing slides with high contrast texts or describing slides thoroughly (to make presentations accessible to people who are blind or low vision). We also encourage authors to release their accessible slides (by following the above process on making PDF accessible). Authors can refer to the Accessible Presentation Guide where Kyle Rector has prepared a wonderful and concise guide (along with a video) about how to make your presentation accessible.

Making PDFs accessible

We strongly encourage you to add accessibility to the PDF using Acrobat Pro DC and the steps below. If you do not have access to Acrobat Pro, and you need assistance with accessibility, please contact the UIST 2022 Accessibility Chairs at accessibility2022@uist.org.

'Undo' is not well supported in Acrobat Pro, so save often!

1. Set tab order. Setting the tab order is necessary so that a keyboard user can use the tab key to navigate through the document.
• Select the Page Thumbnails icon on the left to show thumbnail images for each page (or, in the 'View' menu, select 'Show/Hide > Navigation Panes > Page Thumbnails').

• Select all pages with Control-A (Windows) or Command-A (Mac).
• Right-click and select 'Page Properties'.
• In the popup window, select 'Use Document Structure' on the 'Tab Order' tab.
• Click ‘OK’.
2. Open the accessibility tools.
• From the View menu, select Tools > Accessibility.
• The accessibility tools panel opens on the right of the screen.

3. Add document tags. The PDF file must be "tagged" with metadata about the document structure and text. For a small minority of pdfs, adding tags may cause visual elements to move or disappear.
• Save the document in case adding tags introduces visual issues.
• Select 'Autotag Document' from the accessibility tools panel.
• An 'Add Tags Report' will appear on the left when tagging has been completed.
• Important: Visually scan the entire paper to make sure the visual appearance has not changed. If items have moved or disappeared, stop here and contact the accessibility chairs for help.
4. Check tagging.
• Select 'Reading order' from the accessibility tools panel.
• The Reading Order panel appears, and the paper is visually marked up to show the content detected on each page and the order it will be read.

• Skim through the pages of the paper.
  • Make sure the reading order of the text is correct. If it’s not, you can use the reading order tool to identify the text, and the order panel to reorder the items on each page.
  • Mark the paper title as 'Heading 1', main headings as 'Heading 2', second level headings as 'Heading 3', and so on.
  • Make sure all the figures have been marked as figures. If the caption is not included in the figure, drag over the figure and the caption and use the 'Figure/Caption' option in the 'Reading Order' panel. If the marked figure includes non-figure content, as in the example above, select the extra content and mark it as text/formula/table/etc using the options on the 'Reading Order' panel. In the example above, after marking the text in this way, the border of the figure is updated.Updated page markup for figure differs from the previous screenshot in that the text below the figure is no longer within the figure's border.
  • The border of the figure may appear larger than the figure itself. This is fine so long as the other items on the page are marked appropriately, as with the second column of text in the example.
• Make sure all tables are identified as tables. See Step 7 below for more details on proper table markup.

• Close the 'Reading Order' panel.
5. Add figure descriptions (alternative text) to all figures. The alt-text should contain the equivalent information to the image itself, so that the content is accessible to readers and reviewers who cannot see the image. It should not be the same as captions, which provide additional information to the image but do not supplement it.
• Select "Set Alternate Text" from the accessibility tools panel. This option will walk you through each image detected in the paper and ask you to provide alternative text.

• If the highlighted figure is actually a running header or footer, or anything else that isn’t an actual figure, glyph or meaningful image in the paper, click the 'Decorative figure' checkbox. CHECK THE CONTENT DID NOT DISAPPEAR!
• If the highlighted figure is a real figure, copy the description from your source into the 'Alternate text' field. See the SIGACCESS Guide to Describing Figures for details on how to write good figure descriptions.
• After working through all the figures, select 'Save & Close'.
6. Mark up tables. For every table in the paper, follow these steps:
• Right-click on the table and select 'Table Editor' from the context menu. If there is no 'Table Editor' option, then open up the 'Reading Order' accessibility tool. Make sure the table is marked up as a table, then select the table and choose 'Table Editor' in the 'Reading Order' tool.
• If you see the message 'Unknown table structure encountered', then your table has not been properly tagged. This happens most often for tables without visible lines separating the cells, or more complex tables.

• Fixing table tagging takes time and a willingness to dig into the tag structure, where there is no way to undo mistakes. The tagging can be manually corrected by using the 'Reading Order' tool to mark up each individual cell, then using the Tags panel to build these table cells into a properly structured table. Refer to Adobe's guidance on table repair for more information.
• If the table is properly tagged, make sure that the header cells are marked as 'TH' and the data cells are marked as 'TD'. The type of a cell can be changed by editing the properties for that cell, available in the context menu. If the cell is a header cell, indicate the scope – whether it is a header for the row, column, or both.

7. Set title and language. Select File > Properties from the menu. Select the Description tab. Fill the Title field with the document title. Next, select the Initial View tab. In the Show dropdown, select Document Title. Next, select the Advanced tab. In the Reading Options section, select English from the Language dropdown menu.
8. Check accessibility. Run the accessibility checker to see if there are further accessibility issues in your document. Select 'Full Check' from the accessibility tools panel. The checker produces a report that provides help with fixing many accessibility problems. Saving the PDF in Acrobat should save the relevant accessibility data by default. No extra steps are necessary.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I communicate accessibility needs to conference organizers?

The accessibility chairs for UIST2022 are Amanda Swearngin, Venkatesh Potluri and Yi-Hao Peng. When you are registering for the conference, you will find a question labeled "We would like to make your UIST attendance as accessible as possible. If you would like to request any accessibility accommodations for an accessible UIST 2022 attendance, please specify them here. Example requests could include, but are not limited to: a sighted guide to navigate the conference venue, captioning and ASL interpreters. The accessibility chairs or the relevant organizing committee may reach out to you for additional clarification. Please reach out to the accessibility chairs Amanda Swearngin, Venkatesh Potluri and Yi-Hao peng at accessibility2022@uist.org. if you have any questions." Please indicate your accessibility needs during registration and the conference organizers will make best efforts to meet them. Some requests may take time to arrange for so please request for accessibility accommodations as early as possible, no later than the early registration deadline.

Who do I ask if my question is not answered here?

If you have questions that are not answered on the website, or if you have suggestions for questions to be added to this list, please reach out to the accessibility chairs Amanda Swearngin, Venkatesh Potluri and Yi-Hao Peng at accessibility2022@uist.org

What is the PCA (personal care attendant) policy?

When you register yourself, you can also register children and/or a caregiver (for yourself or for the child).

• Children ($10) — If you intend to bring your children to any of the conference events, they have to be formally registered so that they are covered by the ACM insurance. Registered children are welcome to attend any UIST event, including the Demo Reception and the Conference Banquet. No drink tickets will be included with child registration. Please note that no childcare service will be offered at UIST 2022.
• Care Givers ($50) — This registration category is for people providing care to the conference attendees with impairments or to the children of conference attendees. It grants the person access to all events (including the Demo Reception) except the Banquet. No drink tickets will be included with the caregiver registration. If you would like your caregiver to attend the Banquet, you will be able to purchase an additional Banquet ticket when you register your caregiver.

What are the taxi and public transport options for getting to the conference venue?

There are a few options for getting to the conference venue from the nearest airport to bend in Redmond, OR. Within Bend, Cascades East Transit is the local bus system. See here for a map of the routes within Bend. All CET buses are wheelchair & ADA accessible and have lifts. For additional accessibility information on the CET bus route, see here. Redmond airport is the closest commercial airport to Bend, however, Portland and Eugene are also potential options (see more). From the airport in Redmond, Modus Transportation provides an accessible shuttle from the airport to locations in the Bend area. There is also a route from the Redmond airport entirely reachable by bus:

• Google Maps
• Cobreeze Shuttle
• Shuttle Oregon, call to see about accessible transportation options.

If taking a train is an option for you, you may also Amtrak (Hawthorne Station) - can take the local bus (#4) to Riverhouse at the Deschutes.

Who can I ask about accessibility in Bend, Oregon?

Please reach out to the local arrangement chair Cindy Grimm at local2022@uist.org or the accessibility chairs at accessibility2022@uist.org

Can a student volunteer assist me during the conference?

Student volunteers will be available to assist attendees with disabilities with navigation, meal service, or other accessibility needs. If you will need volunteer assistance at the conference, please indicate this on your conference registration form.

Attendees who require personal care assistance should bring their own assistant. Personal care assistants should register as a Care Giver (see “What is the PCA (personal care attendant) policy?” above).

Will the conference be accessible by wheelchair or power scooter?

All areas of the venue relevant to the conference are accessible by wheelchair. The bathrooms are on the same floor as the conference rooms. There’s an elevator down to the exhibit hall of the conference.

For the overall layout of conference space, please see this map of the property layout for Riverhouse at the Deschutes and this map for the layout of the conference spaces.

What are the restroom facilities like?

Attendees will have access to all of the bathrooms in the convention area. There are 3 standalone gender neutral restrooms, one upstairs, and two downstairs. There are also 2 sets of mens / womens restrooms both with ADA accessible stalls.

What are the arrangements for presenters with accessibility needs?

Specifics about the accessibility of the presentation setup will be updated shortly. UIST strives to make the conference accessible to everybody, including presenters. Please indicate your accessibility needs at the time of registration. Please reach out to the accessibility chairs Amanda Swearngin, Venkatesh Potluri and Yi-Hao Peng at accessibility2022@uist.org if you have additional questions.

Will speakers and audience members asking questions be using a microphone?

Yes, speakers and audience members will ask questions using a microphone. Attendees with questions will be requested to use a microphone so that their question is more easily heard. Student volunteers will bring the microphone around to those who need it. Please raise your hand to alert a student volunteer.

What food service will be provided?

Food, when available through a conference event, will be served buffet style. All food items in the menu will be labeled as gluten free, vegan, and with other potential allergens as appropriate. Please check with the local staff if you are unsure if a particular food may contain ingredients that you may be allergic to. We are unable to provide any information on food at social events organized by conference attendees. Please indicate on your registration form if you have any specific dietary needs.

What will the menu be? Will dietary cards be able to be provided?

All food items will be labeled with potential allergens. Please check with a local staff member or a conference organizer if you are unsure if a particular food item may contain ingredients that may be allergic to you.

Can the conference accommodate special dietary needs?

The menu will be buffet style, and will include vegan, vegetarian, and gluten free options which will each be labeled with potential allergens. We will be unable to provide specialized mean options beyond those provided in the buffet options.

Will there be loud music, strobe lighting, spotlights, or other strong sensory experiences?

We are working on collecting this information for the demo sessions. We will update the attendees with this information before the demo session. Attendees may scan a QR code to visit a website with collected sensory information for selected demos.

Will there be a designated quiet space at the conference?

Yes, the conference room Cascade across from the main ballrooms is allocated as a quiet space. Please contact Amanda, Yi-Hao, or Venkatesh at accessibility2022@uist.org or ask any student volunteer if you need help locating the room.

What if I have a medical emergency or health problem during the conference?

In case of emergency call 911 for an ambulance. St Charles hospital (https://www.stcharleshealthcare.org/) in Bend is 2.8 miles from the conference. If you require non-urgent medical care, please contact Amanda, Yi-Hao, or Venkatesh at accessibility2022@uist.org or ask any student volunteer. They will help you with locating information about local doctors, specialists, chiropractors, etc. For non-resident attendees, buying travel insurance that covers medical expenses is strongly recommended as fees for emergency treatment can be very high.

Will talks be pre-recorded?

No, talks will not be pre-recorded. Talks will be livestreamed (with captions) and then high quality versions (with captions) will be posted to the SIGCHI YouTube channel after the conference.

Will I have to provide proof of vaccination for COVID 19?

All in-person attendees to the conference are required to be vaccinated to attend the conference. While no proof of vaccination will be required, you will need to indicate that you are vaccinated. Please check the vaccinations info on the for attendees page of the conference website.

Will the conference hotel have accessible rooms?

Yes. The Conference hotel will have accessible rooms. Please indicate this when reserving your accommodation with the hotel. The rooms that are closest/easiest to get to the conference venue are in the Sage building. It’s a roll through the parking lot, up a ramp, across the street, then into the venue.

Will I have to travel to different places outside of the conference venue to attend conference events?

There will be one event held at Sunriver, and a shuttle bus will be provided to travel to that event. Please indicate in your registration or contact the accessibility chairs at accessibility2022@uist.org if you require accessible ride accommodations. Some informal social events may also be organized outside the venue. More details to be added later.

I want to organize a social event after a conference day. What can I do to make this as accessible as possible?

When organizing a social event, please consider the following:

• Find a venue that has seating available to attendees and is wheelchair accessible.
• Consider whether your selected venue can accommodate a variety of diets, as some participants may have dietary restrictions.
• Try to ensure that non-alcoholic beverages are available.
• Consider holding the event in a less noisy / crowded environment.
• Check in with the attendees beforehand to see if there is anything they need to make their attendance as accessible as possible.

Will there be a shuttle from the hotel to the conference center?

There is no hotel shuttle to the conference venue. The conference venue is in the same complex as the conference hotel.

Where will be the area for guide dogs to get water and relieve themselves?

Yes, there are many grassy areas outside the conference venue for guide dogs, including the Cascade garden area. There is also a pet area on the west side of the Redfox building. Sawyer Park nearby to Riverhouse at the Deschutes is dog friendly park, and Pine Nursery dog park in Bend is also leash fre e.

Accessibility Chairs

Questions? Contact: accessibility2022@uist.org