user-friendly internet information system
network for elderly persons and people with special needs
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user-friendly internet information system network for elderly persons and people with special needs concept / project draft for the
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Administrative Overview
Part A
Type of Action: Thematic Network Proposal
Acronym: NoN
Proposal Full Name: NetofNeeds - Internet Information Platform for elderly and people with special needs
Proposal abstract:
Currently we face a rapid increase in the number of Internet users in European countries and world wide, and therefore more and more information and services are accessible via the Internet. Unfortunately the two questions "Who could mostly benefit from the services?" and "In which way different users (including the ones with special needs) are able to access specific services?" are often not taken into account.
"NetofNeeds" will perform the necessary preparatory work for the establishment and technological implementation of a European-wide uniform information-network for citizens with special needs, including elderly and disabled, which will be a user-friendly and cost-effective information platform, and therefore supports independent living. The issues usability and acceptability of the Internet, including the security and privacy of information and the socio-economic as well as ethical aspects will be addressed in this network.
Keywords: usability for all, disability, elderly
Proposal Summary:
Objectives:
The overall objective of the Thematic Network "NetofNeeds" is to perform the necessary preparatory work for the establishment and technological implementation of a European-wide uniform information network for citizens with special needs, including elderly and disabled. This work will consist of evaluation and selection of results from other projects and existing resources as well as identifying additional research where needed. This planned user-friendly and cost-effective Internet information and service system is to support independent living. In particular the issues usability and acceptability of the Internet, including the security and privacy of information and the socio-economic as well as ethical aspects will be addressed in "NetofNeeds".
Description of the work:
The thematic network "NetofNeeds" will perform the necessary preparatory work for the establishment and technological implementation of an Internet information platform for elderly and people with special needs.
In the first step, the consortium will carefully identify the target groups of the intended information and services Internet platform "NetofNeeds"; i.e. identifying the persons, who shall benefit from "NetofNeeds" and who shall have access to the information and services. It will be distinguished between the end users itself (elderly and people with disabilities) and their supporters being a target group as well.
In the second phase, the information and services needed by the previously defined target groups of elderly people and people with disabilities (with the aim to increase the quality of independent living) and their supporters have to be surveyed, listed, ranked and clustered.
Based on the integration of existing results of a variety of finished and running projects (on national and European level) and based on the results of the first step "Design for All" Criteria for the envisioned inclusive Internet platform will be outlined. One subtask therefore is to identify relevant projects. Based on that a vision of how devices (for public use and for private households) and interfaces might look like so that the specified target groups will be able to use it in daily life will be worked out.
Based on the results taken from the second phase the consortium will evaluate the availability of these clearly defined information and services to build up and manage a uniform Pan-European Internet platform. After that, technological aspects, like the country-independent representation of data, the hardware needed to access the network and the update mechanisms to hold the contents up to date will be discussed and evaluated.
Finally, possible and realistic economic models for the envisioned "NetofNeeds" will be discussed and set up.
© Willibald KREMSER 2.2.th february
2003