• Journal of Information Technology Applications and Management
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.219-230
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• 2015

Recently, electronic-book (e-book) market is growing rapidly due to the evolution of information technology and e-book standard EPUB. Users can search e-book on-line and download easily to their e-book readers such as amazon's kindle or smartphones. On the other hand, there is lack of e-book contents for the reading disabled people because of high cost of making e-book accessibility for the reading disabled people. If we can translate EPUB specified e-book contents to the alternative e-book contents suitable for the reading disabled people, then there are many advantages to acquire various types and large volumes of e-book contents for the reading disabled people. This paper suggests a new electronic publishing ecosystem for the reading disabled people using e-book translation method. It also suggests a promotion strategy of e-book market for the reading disabled people.

• Journal of Information Management
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.187-212
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• 2012

The reading culture promotion for the disabled is a key task of library which minimizes the level of information poverty, and improves the living standards of the people. In order to address the promotional methods, this study adopts a frame from a reading culture promotion policy, and analyzes national and international library services for the disabled. In results, the current library services for the disabled are mainly based on 'building appropriate reading environments' and guaranteeing 'equal reading opportunities'. However, campaigns or tasks targeting the disabled which makes reading a way of life are insufficient. This study, therefore, suggests 'reading education', 'reading therapy', 'user-oriented program development' to make reading a way of life. Library promoting strategies can also be useful in campaign of reading activities for the disabled.

• Journal of Korea Multimedia Society
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.100-107
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• 2013

As the eBook market grows fast recently, various eBook viewer solutions such as hardware viewers and software readers came out to the market. We can, however, hardly find mobile eBook interfaces for the reading disabled people who have difficulties in reading for their visual impairment or learning disabilities, or dyslexia. An eBook viewer interfaces for the reading disabled people should be carefully and distinctively designed because the reading disabled people cannot use normal versions of eBook viewer. In this paper, we suggest a eBook viewer interface model to make the reading disabled people read eBooks easily. Depending on the type of the reading disabled people: the full blind, the almost blind, the just learning disabled, our model provides an adaptive interface to make them read eBooks effectively. In addition, unlike the existing simple audio books, we also support annotation systems to make the reading disabled people interact with eBook viewer. To show the effectiveness of our model, we implemented an eBook viewer prototype on an android-based mobile device. We are sure that our model and implementation can make the reading disabled people, who is 10% of all the domestic people, read eBooks effectively.

• Journal of Korea Multimedia Society
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.510-519
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• 2013

In this paper, we propose a voice-annotation browsing system that make the reading-disabled people to be able to find and play the existing voice-annotations. The proposed system consists of 4 steps: input, ranking & recommendation, search, and output. For the reading-disabled people depending only on the auditory sense, all steps can accept voice commands. To evaluate the effectiveness of our system, we design and implement an android-based mobile e-book application supporting the voice-annotation browsing ability. The implemented system is tested by a number of blind-folded users. As a result, we can see almost all the reading-disabled people can successfully and easily reach the existing voice-annotations they want to find.

• Journal of Digital Contents Society
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.253-262
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• 2011

IT skills might be just a product for people without disabilities; however it can be "another sense" that is able to give the disabled the same social abilities as non-disabled people. Library services are necessary to help disabled people have access to information. The effectiveness of the library services for the disabled depends on the level and the size of library. If 10% of the total domestic population couldn't participate in their social activities, it must be a huge individual at the same time national loss. This paper will look into supporting technologies and services for the reading disabled through literature researches and visiting domestic and international libraries. Based on this analysis, this paper suggests development plans for enhancing domestic situation. We are sure that our suggestions can contribute to give a long-term service development strategy for improving the reading disabled people's information accessibility.

• Journal of Digital Contents Society
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.329-337
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• 2011

Digital talking book has been developed to enhance reading experiences for reading-disabled people. In the existing digital talking book, however, annotations can be created only through the screen interfaces. Screen annotation interfaces is of no use for reading-disabled people because they need reader's eyesight. In this paper, we suggest a voice annotation technique can create notes and highlights at any playing time by using hearing sense and voice command. We design a location determination technique that pinpoints where a voice annotation should be placed in the playing sentences. To verify the effectiveness of our voice annotation technique, we implement a prototype in an android platform. We can find out by the black-blindfolded users testing that our system can perfectly locate the exact position that a voice annotation should be placed into.

• Journal of the HCI Society of Korea
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.57-64
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• 2012

Digital talking books have been developed to enhance reading experiences for reading-disabled people. In the existing digital talking books, however, it is difficult to read special contents such as math expressions, images, etc. In this paper, we define reading rules for Contents MathML. Based on this rules, we implemented a program for reading the mathematical contents of Contents MathML, using XSLT. We conducted a confirm test to prove the accuracy of the program, and an usability test to measure understanding of reading text of math expressions.

• Journal of Digital Contents Society
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.291-298
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• 2011

The DAISY, an international digital talking book standard, has been established to help reading-disabled people read books normally. As many societies' interests in reading-disabled people are arising, reading environment for them is also getting improved by supplying alternative books. In the digital world, however, there is still lack of e-book playing software for them. In this paper, we design and partially implement an android smartphone e-book viewer. By analyzing the features and relations of DAISY3 files, we can find several important design points to properly implement DAISY3 viewer. We are sure, when using our results, that various DAISY3-compliant e-book viewers can be implemented easily and quickly.

• Journal of the Korean BIBLIA Society for library and Information Science
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.131-148
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• 2010

This study aimed to develop an operating manual on the voluntary activity to the library services with disabled people in the public libraries. Various domestic and overseas manuals on the voluntary activity to the library services with disabled people were analyzed. From the survey and expert interviews, five types of most frequently asked library services with disabled people, face-to-face reading, word input services, services to off-library users, mobility aids services and assistance of engineering devices were extraced. Five specific areas on the voluntary activity were chosen in terms of activity area, barrier type, specific activity field, activity purpose and checklist. Finally, contents of the operating manual was applied to the area of face-to-face reading.

• Journal of Korean Library and Information Science Society
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• v.53 no.2
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• pp.1-23
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• 2022

Access to knowledge and information is a universal human right. However, even after the Marrakesh Treaty was adopted on June 27, 2013, only 1-7% of standard printed materials are accessible to people with reading disabilities, including the visually impaired, and library services are very weak. As a result, the book famine of people with reading disabilities continues. This study, focusing on such severe access gaps and inequalities, analyzes Learning Ally and Bookshare in the US, the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) in the UK, Bibliothèque Numérique Francophone Accessible (BNFA) in France, and SAPIE in Japan, which are considered private organizations leading library services for the disabled in major developed countries. And based on the derived implications and the Marrakesh Treaty, a strategic plan was proposed to strengthen the services of the disabled in domestic libraries. It is urgent to enact the 'Act to Resolve Reading Barriers', amend the provisions related to the Copyright Act that restrict library services, strengthen the organizational capacity of the National Library for the Disabled, raise the service index for the disabled in library evaluation, and establish a library cooperation system centered on regional representative libraries and expand services, etc.