Introduction

This is a basic setup details + script to help in demoing the GPII using the equipment available in the IDRC offices. Typical scenarios for this are outside visitors to the IDRC.

Equipment

• Dell All-in-one demo machine with GpiiUserListener 1.2 and GPII Electron running (both located on the desktop of the machine). This machine is typically located in the lab, but can be moved as needed. This machine has a strip of velcro on the left-hand side that can be used to attach the NFC reader for a slightly neater look.

• For demos with large groups, this machine has an HDMI Out on the back, and can be projected onto the Collaboration Room screens.

• USB NFC reader (kept in the top locker, 2nd from right in the northern bank of lockers) and various USB tokens with GPII test user IDs valid for the LGS build. One of the readers has velcro backing that can be used to attach it to the all-in-one.

Reader + Tokens

Setup and Testing

• Connect the USB NFC reader
• Stop and then restart the listener and the GPII application (make sure you’re running the Electron version from the desktop) from their hidden icons on the right of the taskbar
• Point a Firefox browser to http://gpii.net; set the browser to full screen
• Tap each token (the timing can be a little tricky to get a full read) and make sure it turns on the corresponding preference
  
  • livia (blue ring) turns on the NVDA screen reader
  • elod (orange ring) turns on the Windows Magnifier
  • alice (clear card) turns on the Windows Onscreen Keyboard
  • elmer (white circular token) sets the screen resolution to 1024 x 768

Things That Can Go Wrong & How to Fix Them

Diagnostics and Troubleshooting

• Ensure both the listener and the GPII Electron application are running
• While it’s running, you can right-click the listener’s icon to launch diagnostic windows
• While it’s running, you can right-click the GPII icon to log in test users manually (this can help distinguish an issue with the GPII from one with the listener)
• Stopping and starting the listener and the GPII (with the NFC reader plugged in) is usually enough to fix issues

The listener diagnostic windows in a “healthy” state

Tokens Don’t Launch Preferences, But NFC Reader Beeps

• Assuming everything is running, this is typically caused by the reader being unplugged and plugged back in while the listener is running; restarting the listener will fix it.
• As mentioned, the token read process is not instant - generally you’ll want to hold the token in position until the AT launches / preference change occurs. Moving it away too quickly can result in the key-in not happening or keying in only as GUEST.

Basic Script

This can be adapted as needed, but hits the key points. It takes approximately 3 minutes to deliver, including interaction with the technology.

The Global Public Inclusive Infrastructure (GPII) is an international project to develop a set of technologies, protocols and standards that make it easier for information technology systems to adapt themselves to the preferences of an individual user rather than than requiring individual users to adapt to them. The IDRC works on the GPII as part of Raising the Floor, a consortium of academic, industry and non-governmental organizations and individuals working on projects related to one-size-fits-one digital inclusion.

The GPII allows automatic personalization of user interfaces and user context adaptation based on portable user preferences that can be stored both securely in the cloud or on a physical device such as a ring, smart card, or USB key. I have several such physical devices here, which use inexpensive near-field communication (NFC) technology to store a user’s preferences, and a GPII-enabled Windows 10 system.

If you’ve ever configured a computer system for a different screen resolution or larger text size, you know that this often requires you to navigate the particulars of the operating system or software. The GPII is building technology to make widely varying information technology systems - such as home computers, smart phones, ticket kiosks, electronic voting machines, public access library computers - capable of adapting on the fly to a user’s preferences by matching a user’s preference to its available solutions.

So if I needed an audio interface like a screen reader (tap in livia/blue ring), I tap in, and the computer adapts automatically. When I tap out (tap out), the system returns to the state it was in before. The same for technologies like a screen magnifier (tap in elod/orange ring, demonstrate magnifier, then tap out) or an onscreen keyboard (tap in alice/clear card, demonstrate onscreen keyboard, then tap out), or for a preference like a low screen resolution (tap in elmer/white circle). In each case, I don’t have to reconfigure the system to suit my needs - it adapts to them using GPII technology.

The purpose of the GPII is to ensure that everyone who faces accessibility barriers due to disability, literacy, digital literacy, or aging, regardless of economic resources, can access and use the Internet and all its information, communities, and services for education, employment, daily living, civic participation, health, and safety. For more information visit gpii.net.