VOA慢速英语:A Better Computer Mouse Cursor for the Disabled

Using a computer mouse or trackball can be a little tricky. You choose the object you want and move it to where you want it, only to have it end up in a different position. This happens to all of us sometimes, and we think little of it. But for people who have a difficult time controlling their movements, this little navigational issue can be a really big problem.
使用电脑鼠标或轨迹球(另一种类型的鼠标)可能有点棘手。你选定一个对象，并想移动到自己期望的地方，结果却是到了一个不同的位置。这种情况对我们所有人来说时有发生，而我们却几乎没有去思考过。但是对于那些控制自己行动有困难的人来说，这个导航的小问题却是一个大麻烦。

Now, researchers at the University of Washington have developed new cursors that make activating objects easier for people with motor disabilities. Jacob Wobbrock is an assistant professor at the University of Washington. He leads the AIM Research Group that developed the cursors.
现在，华盛顿大学的研究人员研发了一种新的光标，这将让存在运动障碍的人更容易激活对象。Jacob Wobbrock是华盛顿大学的助理教授。他领导的AIM研究小组发明了这种光标。

Professor Wobbrock says mouse cursor operations are complex processes that assume things about computer users.
Wobbrock教授称，鼠标光标的操作是非常复杂的过程，它假定了用户的具体情况。

JACOB WOBBROCK: “For many people who have poor dexterity, the inability to control their fingers well, maybe pain in their wrists or hand, maybe arthritis - those assumptions of the average user, they don’t hold.”
Wobbrock：“对于一些灵巧性较差，无法控制自己的手指，手腕或手掌痛，或者关节炎的人来说，对普通用户的假定前提并不成立。”

The AIM Research Group has developed two cursors. One is called the Pointing Magnifier. Professor Wobbrock says it uses a large circular cursor instead of the traditional arrow pointer.
AIM研究小组已经开发了两种光标。一种叫做指针放大器。Wobbrock教授表示，这种指针使用比较大的圆形光标来代替传统的箭头形状指针。

JACOB WOBBROCK: “And they can make that circle as big as they like.  So, if their motor impairments are fairly severe, they can make that circle large.
Jacob Wobbrock：“并且他们可以让这个圆圈随心所欲的变大。所以，如果他们的运动障碍相当严重的话，他们可以把这个圆圈调大一些。”

When the circle is positioned over the target, everything in the circle appears larger, almost filling the whole screen. This makes it easier for the user to click on the object.
当这个圆圈被放置在目标上时，圆圈内的所有内容都会被放大，几乎能够填满整个屏幕。这让用户更容易点到相关对象。

JACOB WOBBROCK: “At this point the user sees the regular point cursor now, the little arrow, inside that exploded magnified view. And with that they can move and click on the target they want or they can begin to drag the target they want.
Jacob Wobbrock：“此时，用户看到的光标就是分解放大的圆圈内的普通的小箭头指针。这样,他们就可以通过这个指针来移动,点击或者拖动他们想要的目标。”

The AIM Research Group’s Pointing Magnifier software can be downloaded free from the University of Washington website. AIM is short for Accessible, Interactive and Mobile. Professor Wobbrock says the group’s main goal is to make information and computer systems more available and easier to use. And he says AIM’s work is not just for people with disabilities.
AIM研究小组的指针放大器软件可以在华盛顿大学的网站上免费下载。AIM是Accessible, Interactive and Mobile的缩写。Wobbrock教授称，该小组的主要目标是让信息和电脑系统更加容易获得，更容易使用。他表示，AIM的工作不只是为残疾人服务。

JACOB WOBBROCK: “Some of our projects have looked at what we call situational impairments, which are challenges to accessibility that are caused more by the situation or context that the computer user is in instead of maybe as we usually think of accessibility as having to do with someone’s own physical or cognitive state.”
Jacob Wobbrock：“我们的一些项目正在审视情景障碍。情景障碍所指的是由用户所处的位置或背景造成的困难，而不是我们通常所想的一定是由用户自己的身体或认知状况所造成的。”

Professor Wobbrock says an example of this might be using a small mobile device while walking.
Wobbrock教授称，这其中一个例子就是步行的时候使用较小的移动设备。