Developing Applications for Autistic Users: Towards an Autistic User Model

With the advent of new consumer electronics, such as laptops and tablets with touch capabilities, there are more ways to improve the quality of life of users with special needs. Persons that suffer from autism can have a spectrum of impairments that make every case unique, although specialized software can help with some aspects, certain design decisions can affect the usability and effectiveness of the software. User models can help by determining the characteristics of the user and how they affect the design of the software. In this article we present a work in progress of the development of an Autistic User Model and some case studies using said model, making the development of the applications easier for the developers.