Ageing icons

Older people often have trouble using computers. Researchers at Reading University have shown that such individuals could make better use of them if the icons, links and menu headings automatically grew bigger as the cursor moved towards them.

The researchers said that so-called 'expanding targets' of this kind, which grow to twice their original size and provide a much larger area to click on, could deliver a 50 per cent reduction in the number of mistakes older people make when using a computer mouse to 'point and click', and reduce the time that older people take to select a target by 13 per cent.

Although the potential advantages of expanding targets are well known, the study was the most comprehensive to date to focus specifically on their benefits for older people.

The research was undertaken as part of the SPARC (Strategic Promotion of Ageing Research Capacity) initiative, which is supported by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC).