Anywhere, anytime (+anyone) access to the next-generation WWW

With inereasing power, miniaturization, and thin-client/NetPC structures, people will soon be able to access the full network environment wherever they are. Information access points/appliances will be built into the walls, incorporated into our working environments, carried and even worn by us, and used as an integral part of most of our daily activities. At the same time, as the Internet and information technologies are being woven into the fabric of education, business, and daily life, greater attention is being focused on whether the ordinary person, including those with disabilities, will be able to access and use these systems. It is interesting that these two seemingly different objectives have similar solutions. If we design systems which are truly ubiquitous and nomadic; that we can use whether we are walking down the hall, driving the car, sitting at our workstation, or sitting in a meeting; that we can use when we're under stress or distracted; and that make it easy for us to locate and use new services — we will have created systems which are accessible to almost anyone with a physical or sensory disability. We will also have gone a long way to creating systems that are usable by a large percentage of the population who currently find systems aversive or difficult to learn. In addition, strategies and ideas developed for people with disabilities can provide valuable techniques and insights into creating devices for all nomadic computer users.