Usability & the Connecticut State Library Web Site

Stephanie Willen Brown Electronic Resources Librarian

University of Connecticutstephanie.brown@uconn.edu

860.486.4855

Act Like a User: Find an Obituary

Uncle Joe died in the 1950’s. I want to see his obituary!

What’s the first thing you see?How would you go about getting

Uncle Joe’s obituary?

Site 1Site 2Site 3

http://www.nh.gov/nhsl/

http://www.lib.az.us/

http://www.library.ca.gov/

TodayDefine UX, usability

Why do they matter?Discuss elements of UX as they affect

web sitesUConn’s usability test

Assessment TestResults

BreakReview state library web sites

Complete common scenariosAssess based on new knowledge

Why Should We Care About UX?

“Your web site is the embodiment of your library ... For customers to feel they have a good relationship with your library, they must first feel they have a good relationship with the web site — and that begins with the user experience.”

Paraphrased from Garrett, J.J. “Customer Loyalty and the Elements of User Experience”

The Elements of User Experience

Peter Morville, Ambient Findability

What is Usability?

Usability … assesses how easy user interfaces are to use. The word “usability” also refers to

methods for improving ease-of-use during the design process.

Jakob Nielsen, Usability 101

Components of Good DesignLearnabilityEfficiencyMemorabilityError recoverySatisfaction

How to Achieve Good Design

Think like a

user

Consistent

design

Tweak text

Thinking Like a User“… let’s acknowledge the vital importance of empathy for the user. Only by understanding and caring about the perspective of the individual can we design useful, usable solutions.”

Peter Morville, Ambient Findability

ConsistencyConsistency

Color, graphicsColor, graphics

Orientation & Orientation & navigationnavigation

LanguageLanguage

Above the Fold

Pretty! Functional?

Reading Online: ProustFor a long time I used to go to bed early. Sometimes, when I had put out my candle, my eyes would close so quickly that I had not even time to say "I'm going to sleep." And half an hour later the thought that it was time to go to sleep would awaken me; I would try to put away the book which, I imagined, was still in my hands, and to blow out the light; I had been thinking all the time, while I was asleep, of what I had just been reading, but my thoughts had run into a channel of their own, until I myself seemed actually to have become the subject of my book: a church, a quartet, the rivalry between Francois I and Charles V. This impression would persist for some moments after I was awake; it did not disturb my mind, but it lay like scales upon my eyes and prevented them from registering the fact that the candle was no longer burning. Then it would begin to seem unintelligible, as the thoughts of a former existence must be to a reincarnate spirit; the subject of my book would separate itself from me, leaving me free to choose whether I would form part of it or no; and at the same time my sight would return and I would be astonished to find myself in a state of darkness, pleasant and restful enough for the eyes, and even more, perhaps, for my mind, to which it appeared incomprehensible, without a cause, a matter dark indeed.

Swann’s Way / Marcel Proust

Text-heavy Home Page

TypeBooks | Journals | Reports | Videos | Web Sites

SciencesBiology | Chemistry | Microbiology | Physics | Zoology

Which is Easiest to Understand?

BiologyBooksChemistryJournalsMicrobiologyPhysicsReportsVideosWeb SitesZoology

Type Sciences• Books • Biology• Journals • Chemistry• Reports • Microbiology• Videos • Physics• Web Sites • Zoology

Arguably …

Why?Content arranged logically, with clear headings &

bulletsAlphabetical within groupsContent goes down, as it does in traditional printWords are “chunked” into pieces for easy scanning

Type Sciences• Books • Biology• Journals • Chemistry• Reports • Microbiology• Videos • Physics• Web Sites • Zoology

Satisfaction??

http://www.nysl.nysed.gov/mssc/posters.htm

Jargon to Library Users“ERIC, I think it’s

some kind of journal … some kind of citation.”

Reference Shelf “[It’s] very general. You don’t know what to expect as it could be anything.”

Jargon for TravelersYou need the cheapest round-trip

ticket from Boston to London.You go to These are your options – which is

right? Flights & Prices Fares 3 Best Itineraries

How Identify Site Problems?Objectively evaluate siteFocus group of

Current / typical usersNon-users!

Surveys of Current / typical usersNon-users!

Usability studies

Usability TestingDefine usersCreate tasks to mimic what users would realistically do on site

Do usability testing early & often3-5 users highlights 85% of errorsBetter to test several small groups

than 10-15 at onceNote errors, redesign and retest

Facilitator

Participant @ computer

Note-taker 2

Note-taker 1

Suggested Usability Setup

Read to the “Tester”

UConn’s Database Locator

UConn’s Redesign GoalsDatabase usage statistics outweighs f2f

library-user contact in 2006:f2f contact with patrons: 55,629Database sessions: 470,327

UConn Libraries Plan 2010 “Scholar’s Portal:“Provide immediate, unmediated, and

comprehensive access to digitized research and scholarly collections worldwide.”

Peter Morville: Make Things Findable

Usage Log AnalysisMarch - May 2006, UConn patrons …Used the subject

browse 18,000 times.

Performed a keyword search 15,800 times; and

Clicked on Databases by Title 6,600 times;

Query Log AnalysisDatabases

america history and lifelexus nexusinfotrack

Subjects educationpharmacy medicine anthropologyu

Topicshamlet insaneadopted children of same sex

couples“why doesn’t the us have a

eurpean-style welfate state?”

Usability Testing: 3 RoundsWho?

3 undergraduates, 1 grad, 1 faculty in each

Storrs & regional campusesWhat?

First tested old systemMajor redesignTested redesignTweaked designTested again

Usability TasksFind a business database Your professor said “use a database

named ERIC”Find articles about diabetes for your

nursing classFind a newspaper article

from the day you were born… plus 5 more …

• Subject browse: ~ 18,000; • Keyword search 15,800; and • Databases by Title: 6,600

Browse by Topic Business

Find a Database Named ERIC

Diabetes Article, I

diabetes

Diabetes Article, II

Focus Groups vs. Usability Testing In response to question “Rate this site, 1-5 s”Testers rated to

In response to question “would you recommend this to a friend?” Testers said yes

What We DidDesigned for “lowest common denominator”

Inserted “affordances” for advanced users which are…

Harmless to users unfamiliar with siteRemoved search boxCreated topical arrangement that students

would expect (UConn major)Limited to 5 databases per page (Best Bets)

Sorted by relevance: 1st database would be good enough in most cases

Offered more databases if they clicked on “more”

Best bets marked on the longer database pageShortened written descriptions

http://rdl.lib.uconn.edu/bySubject.php

Best Bets in Library Science

UConn’s Database Descriptions, IABI/Inform Global ABI/Inform Global Full-text articles from 1800 journals covering business, finance, management and related functional areas. ABI/INFORM Global indexes a total of 2700 major publications. Subject coverage includes: business and management, including all functional areas.

Database Description, Essential InfoABI/Inform Global ABI/Inform Global Full-text articles from 1800 journals covering business, finance, managementand related functional areas. ABI/INFORM Global indexes a total of 2700 major publications. Subject coverage includes: Business and management, including all

functional areas.

UConn’s Database Description, II

ABI/INFORM GlobalArticles in business, finance, management, accounting, advertising, banking, insurance, marketing, public administration, real estate, and telecommunications. 1991-current (fulltext); 1971-current (index & abstracts).

Final Round of Testing

Tech NotesRDL is public view of data elements

from “home-grown” electronic resource management system (ERM)

ERM written inPHPMySQL Some javascript

Ajax

UConn Redesign TeamStephanie Willen Brown, electronic resource

librarian & liaison to Communication SciencesSusanna Cowan, undergraduate education &

outreach librarian Kate Fuller, reference collection maintenance

coordinator and / administrative assistant Jill Livingston, reference librarian/liaison to the

school of allied health Tom Wood, applications developerCo-authors: “Making Unmediated Access to E-

Resources a Reality: Creating a Usable ERM Interface,” Reference and User Services Quarterly, Summer 2009

Break

@ CSLib.org

Visits to Conn. State Library, 2008 ytd

2008 ytd visits to Conn State Library

38,169

702,809

0

100,000

200,000

300,000

400,000

500,000

600,000

700,000

800,000

in-person contact online visits

Most Popular Queries CSLib.orgConn* 56,000Librar*  52,300Statute* 13,000Histor* 9,800Newspaper*  7,800

Law* or legisl* 7,700

Genealog* 3,200

Obit* 2,152Blind 2,008Archiv* 1,700Felon* 1,600

Most Visited Pages1. index.htm 235,244 (main page)2. psaindex.htm 70,832

(Public & Special Acts & General Statutes of Connecticut)

3. handg.htm54,522 (History and Genealogy)4. publicrecords49,175 (Public Records Administrator)5. nickname.htm 48,568

(A Listing Of Some 18th and 19th Century American Nicknames)

6. law.htm 46,436 (Connecticut Law and Legislation)

7. faq.htm42,566 (CSL Research Resources)8. history.htm33,845 (Connecticut History)9. jobs.htm26,919 (State Library Job Openings)10.finespenalt.htm 26,043

(State Of Connecticut Table On Fines And Penalties)

3 Scenarios; Volunteers RequestedScenarios; 2-minute limit

Find library services for the blind in Michigan

Find Pennsylvania statutesFind records retention & disposal

guidelines in MaineVolunteers attempt to perform taskAudience

Note the first thing you seeNote problems encountered

by volunteer

Library Services for the Blind

Find Pennsylvania Statutes

Record Retention & Disposal

Discuss Testing ProcessDiscuss

Scenario completionProcess of usability testing?

Value of process to …Site designersContent providersObservers

Group Assessment of More SitesLet’s look at more state library sites.

Based on what we’ve discussed today What do you like & whyWhat don’t you like & why

Assessment criteria?

Patron hat Librarian hat

http://www.library.state.ak.us/

http://libraries.vermont.gov/

http://www.aclin.org/

http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/library/home.html

http://winslo.state.oh.us/

Pretty But Not Functional

http://www.lva.lib.va.us/

http://www.kdla.ky.gov/

For More InformationRecommended articles about usability testing

http://gslis.simmons.edu/mw/browns/UsabilityLinks to state library sites discussed here

http://gslis.simmons.edu/mw/browns/State_libraries

Link to presentation on SlideSharehttp://tinyurl.com/cslib-usability-Dec08

Keep in touch!Stephanie Willen Brown stephanie.brown@uconn.eduIM: CogSciLibrarian