Abstract

Abstract
User-generated content plays a key role in social networking, allowing a more active participation, socialisation, and collaboration among users. In particular, media content has been gaining a lot of ground, allowing users to express themselves through different types of formats such as images, GIFs and videos. The majority of this growing type of online visual content remains inaccessible to a part of the population, in particular for those who have a visual disability, despite available tools to mitigate this source of exclusion. We sought to understand how people are perceiving this type of online content in their networks and how support tools are being used. To do so, we conducted a user study, with 258 social network users through an online questionnaire, followed by interviews with 20 of them-7 blind users and 13 sighted users. Results show how the different approaches being employed by major platforms may not be sufficient to address this issue properly. Our findings reveal that users are not always aware of the possibility and the benefits of adopting accessible practices. From the general perspectives of end-users experiencing accessible practices, concerning barriers encountered, and motivational factors, we also discuss further approaches to create more user engagement and awareness. © 2022 Owner/Author.

Abstract

Abstract
The use of virtual reality technologies for data visualization and analysis has been an emerging topic of research in the past years. However, one type of data has been left neglected, the point cloud. While some strides have been made in the visualization and analysis of point clouds in immersive environments, these have yet to be used for direct manipulation interactions. It is hypothesized that as with other types of data, bringing direct interactions and 3D visualization to point clouds may increase the ease of performing basic handling tasks. An immersive application for virtual reality HMDs was developed in Unity to help research this hypothesis. It is capable of parsing classified point cloud files with extracted objects and representing them in a virtual environment. Several editing tools were also developed, designed with the HMD controllers in mind. The end result allows the user to perform basic transformative tasks to the point cloud with an ease of use and intuitive feeling unmatched by the traditional desktop-based tools.

Abstract

Abstract
Researchers have to ensure that their projects comply with Research Data Management (RDM) requirements. Consequently, the main funding agencies require Data Management Plans (DMPs) for grant applications. So, institutions are investing in RDM tools and implementing RDM workflows in order to support their researchers. In this context, we propose a collaborative DMP-building method that involves researchers, data stewards and other parties if required. This method was applied as part of an RDM workflow in research groups across several scientific domains. We describe it as a systematic approach and illustrate it through a set of case studies. We also address the DMP monitoring process during the life cycle of projects. The feedback from the researchers highlighted the advantages of creating DMPs and their growing need. So, there is motivation to improve the DMP support process according to the machine-actionable DMPs concept and to the best practices in each scientific community.