When just Ok, is not Ok

Abstract

Internet sites expose their content primarily in a textual form. Accessibility solutions that use avatars to translate from Portuguese into sign language aim to reduce accessibility barriers for deaf people who are literate only in Libras or have Portuguese as a second language. This research aimed to identify whether the VLibras tool, widely adopted in governmental websites, is an effective accessibility solution in dynamic translation into sign language. It was an applied qualitative and exploratory research involving a bibliographic survey and support from expert interpreters. An experimental study was carried out through sequential chronological cuts, where prescriptive and semantic analyzes were applied. Evidence was found that there is no translation for Libras in the dynamic translation process carried out by the VLibras avatar, but only a transposition of part of the Libras lexicon into the Portuguese morphosyntactic structure. Difficulties of simultaneous translation in large and more complex texts were noticed, resulting in excessive pauses and dactylology for words that have a sign registered in the Libras basic dictionary. Using HCI concepts to evaluate the dynamic translation to Libras by VLibras avatar expands the existing theoretical discussion. It also contributes to minimizing communication problems caused by the discrepancy between the original message and the automatic translation, practical applicability of this study.

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