Business Library Web Sites Revisited: An Updated Review of the Organization and Content of Academic Business Library Web Sites

This article updates the findings from a study by Hal Kirkwood in 2000 of the organization and content of academic business library Web sites. The authors examined 75 sites, focusing on five general aspects of the sites: organization, terminology, instructional elements, integration of resources across formats, and annotations. Results of the study show that business library Websites have dramatically improved in the 7 years since the original study.     

Academic Library Web Sites and Distance Education

Abstract

This study focuses on college and university library services provided to distance education students and a content analysis of library Web sites. The Web sites chosen were categorized by the amount of distance education the institution offered to students. Results indicated that the size of the institution had the strongest correlation to library services offered to distance education students (Spearman's rho of .618), not the degree to which distance education is provided (rho of .076). This study suggests that just because an institution offers distance learning courses does not necessarily mean that its library offers a full range of Web services to meet distance learner needs, and it brings into question whether some institutions have been too quick to provide distance education services without properly addressing student library needs.     

Toward a Usable Academic Library Web Site: A Case Study of Tried and Tested Usability Practices

Usability testing is an important element when designing useful, usable academic library Web sites. Since 2001, members of the Florida International University Libraries Web team have worked toward establishing a process that identifies user needs through usability testing. Starting with the libraries’ first Web site redesign project in 2001, the team has taken an active part in improving Web site user experience. After engaging in multiple redesign efforts, the Web team has developed a process that supports awareness of user experience through continual usability testing and feedback gathering. This article presents strategies and practices to measure Web site user experience, including classic usability testing methods (e.g., card sorting activities, focus groups, and task-based user testing), as well as the team's latest effort to assess Web site analytics and content to identify Web site usage patterns and areas of concern. A history of the Florida International University Libraries’ Web site redesign process is presented to illustrate lessons learned and best practices to facilitate future redesign and testing efforts. Taking a longitudinal look at usability testing at one institution, the study aims to inform the development of an effective strategy for user research and content management.     

Work of the Web Weavers: Web Development in Academic Libraries

Although the library's Web site has become a standard tool for seeking information and conducting research in academic institutions, there are a variety of ways libraries approach the often challenging—and sometimes daunting—process of Web site development and maintenance. Three librarians at Western Michigan University explored issues related to this topic by conducting a Web-based survey, which was sent to two librarians—Web services and reference/public services—at 149 academic institutions. Survey findings are discussed, including references to Web departments and committees, priority setting, Web authoring, soliciting input, outsourcing, content management systems, redesigns, and user involvement. The participants’ insights regarding the greatest challenges and what seems to be working or not working well are also outlined, in addition to the authors’ suggestions for future research in this area.     

A Use of Space: The Unintended Messages of Academic Library Web Sites

Academic library home pages are not only access points to the resources and services of a library, they are virtual representations of the library itself. The content placed on the page, where it is placed, and the amount of space allotted are all choices that send a message about the character of the library, the resources a user should start with, and the library's attitude toward its users. This study explores the messages being sent by the content selection and design of the home pages of 49 of the 50 largest academic libraries in the United States. By looking at the area allocated to different content types and the number and location of different content types, the researchers discovered that design elements and promotion/public relations receive a large amount of page space. The researchers also identified the prominently positioned multi-search box as the apparent de facto standard access point to library resources. Many sites are clearly designed to direct users to specific, presumably important resources. Other sites are more obscure in their site structure and design, increasing the options and visual clutter for users without providing much guidance.     

Law Library Faculty Services Web Sites: Effectively Communicating Services Provided for Faculty

This article contains the results of an empirical analysis and review of 199 American Bar Association-accredited law school library Web pages to identify the law library services for faculty that are advertised or promoted on law library Web sites. The analysis ranked the Web sites based on how thoroughly a law library communicates, or promotes on its Web site, the services it offers to faculty. The analysis also identified the percentage of law libraries advertising specific services for faculty, such as those related to library staffing, publishing support, teaching support, and research services. Suggestions are included for the promotion of the law library to faculty, including services some libraries are uniquely offering.     

Designing Search: Effective Search Interfaces for Academic Library Web Sites

ABSTRACT

Academic libraries customize, support, and provide access to myriad information systems, each with complex graphical user interfaces. The number of possible information entry points on an academic library Web site is both daunting to the end-user and consistently challenging to library Web site designers. Faced with the challenges inherent in designing online search interfaces and the ever-growing amount of resources available online, Virginia Commonwealth University Libraries sought to explore how to build effective search interfaces that, at the same time, support a wide variety of computer users and provide comprehensive access to assorted collections of electronic resources. Over a nine-month period, the libraries designed, implemented, and tracked the usage of two different search interfaces on their home page. Each interface allowed users to choose between four different search targets. In this case study, the authors discuss the complexities of designing search interfaces, outline findings from the nine-month study, evaluate the effectiveness of the two interface designs, and talk about future research in these areas.     

The Researcher's Journey: Scholarly Navigation of an Academic Library Web Site

A qualitative study of the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library's Web site identified the ways in which students and faculty of the University of Montana used the site for research purposes. This study employed open-ended interview questions and observations to spontaneously capture a user's experience in researching topics in which they specialized. Four thematic recommendations emerged from nine study participants: increase the readability and consistency of the library's Web site, provide research guidance and ease of navigation, offer task-based services that maximize technology, and enable customization. The study led to Web site modifications and a formalized process by which the library will approach subsequent Web site design.     

Meeting Reference Responsibilities Through Library Web Sites

Summary

Among the many ways the World Wide Web has changed libraries are the additional tools gained by librarians and library users for answering reference questions. In addition to the growing number of licensed resources providing the full text of articles from newspapers, magazines, academic journals, and reference works are the millions of free Web sites offering an incredible variety of information about everything. Locating the most useful of these sites and organizing them into categories on library Web sites can be enormously beneficial both to patrons and libraries. After deciding to make their sites reference portals, librarians must make a number of important decisions.     

The North Carolina State University Libraries Search Experience: Usability Testing Tabbed Search Interfaces for Academic Libraries

Creating a learnable, effective, and user-friendly library Web site hinges on providing easy access to search. Designing a search interface for academic libraries can be particularly challenging given the complexity and range of searchable library collections, such as bibliographic databases, electronic journals, and article search silos. Library Web designers must decide whether to present users with a single search interface—one that searches across content silos by default—or to offer an interface that exposes the various silos available. Designers must also contend with the user's entire search experience and determine how search should appear on the library home page as well as in global navigation systems. In the spring of 2010, the North Carolina State University Libraries sought to answer search design questions for an upcoming Web site design effort. The Libraries evaluated two different search interfaces to determine whether a tabbed search approach with options to pre-select silos is an effective design for end users. Findings show that a tabbed search interface is an effective design device for presenting multiple silos. This study outlines the methods the North Carolina State University Libraries used to conduct usability testing as well as observations, findings, and recommendations about effective design of search on academic library Web sites.     

Tutorials on Google Analytics: How to Craft a Web Analytics Report for a Library Web Site

Libraries, along with other information service institutions, have entered a digital era in which resources are presented electronically through various digital platforms. The library Web site functions as the main source of information to patrons as well as a community outreach tool. Many library services now either succeed or fail based on how well users interact with the institution's Web site. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of library services, it thus becomes important for libraries to measure the performance of library Web sites. Web analytics is the ideal tool to answer questions regarding the evaluation of Web site performance. However, Web analytics can be hard to understand for those who do not have the time to familiarize themselves with all the terms and data. Writing a thorough Web analytics report can help make Web analytics easier to digest for administrators or Web site stakeholders.

This tutorial provides step-by-step instructions on how to craft a Web analytics report. It provides suggestions on visualizing statistics, interpreting data, and customizing the report based on a real experience. The tutorial is facilitated with customized figures, charts, and tables from a real Web analytics report on the Texas Tech University Libraries Web site and concludes with recommendations on presenting the report to the administration and stakeholders.     

Pakistani University Library Web Sites: Features,Contents, and Maintenance Issues

ABSTRACT

This study explores the current status and features of Pakistan's academic library Web sites. A checklist describing features and content was prepared based on a review of the literature related to academic libraries’ Web sites. Then, all 85 library Web sites of Pakistani universities and degree-awarding institutions recognized by the Higher Education Commission (HEC) of Pakistan were surveyed and analyzed using the checklist. Interviews with library professionals were conducted to learn more about the problems and issues with building and maintaining library Web sites. Results indicate that Pakistani academic library Web sites have effective features such as contrasting color schemes, easily readable text, minimal use of horizontal scrolling, and English-language text. Staff information, OPACs, and navigation features are also widely found on the Web sites. Features found less frequently include the use of Web 2.0 technologies, Web site aid tools, information about library buildings, and general library information. By offering information about the status of Pakistani academic library Web sites, the study can serve as a foundation for discussion between libraries and other parts of the university, as well as a benchmark for evaluating the progress of academic library Web sites in Pakistan     

Working Without a Crystal Ball: Predicting Web Trends for Web Services Librarians

ABSTRACT

User-centered design is a principle stating that electronic resources, like library Web sites, should be built around the needs of the users. This article interviews Web developers of library and non-library-related Web sites, determining how they assess user needs and how they decide to adapt certain technologies for users. According to the panel, to understand these issues, Web services librarians should (a) give patrons a way to provide feedback on library sites; (b) observe and contemplate technology in a group setting; (c) only adapt technology that addresses a specific patron need; and (d) consider the library Web site as a part of the library, not a replacement for it.     

学术网站评价方法述评

综述了当前常用的网站评价方法，包括ROBOT法、人工评价法和实时软件测试法等客观评价法，网址评价法、形式评价法和稳定性评价法等的网站性能主观评价法以及网站内容的主观评价法。     

Semantic Web Identity of Academic Libraries

Semantic Web Identity (SWI) is proposed as the condition in which search engines recognize the existence and nature of entities. The display of a Knowledge Graph Card in Google search results is an indicator of SWI, as it demonstrates that Google has gathered verifiable facts about the entity. Such recognition is likely to improve the accuracy and relevancy of Google's referrals to that entity. This article summarizes part of the research conducted for a recent doctoral dissertation, showing that SWI is poor for ARL libraries. The study hypothesizes that the failure to populate records in appropriate Linked Open Data and proprietary Semantic Web knowledge bases contributes to poor SWI.     

Promoting and Teaching Information Literacy on the Internet: Surveying the Web Sites of 264 Academic Libraries in North America

A survey was conducted between July and November 2012 to determine how academic libraries in the United States and Canada marketed and delivered information literacy on the Web. A random sample of 264 institutions was taken from Peterson's Four-Year Colleges 2012, and the authors checked each Web site of the academic libraries of the institutions in the sample for instruction-related activities. Only 65 percent of the libraries in the sample advertised library instruction as a service on the Web, while 64 percent of the libraries boasted research guides and tutorials. Sixteen percent of the libraries provided direct links to ACRL's Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education, and 24 percent made an effort to explain and define the term “information literacy” to their users. The authors hope the findings can help determine how academic libraries are currently using the Internet to increase information literacy on the Web and set a new platform for better strategies for advocating information literacy.     

Commuter Students and the Academic Library: A Mixed-Method Study of Space

Abstract

This study discusses the library space assessment of the Stark Campus Library of Kent State University. The commuter student experience is underrepresented in the literature, which often focuses on residential campuses. A mixed-method research approach is used to understand commuter students’ experiences and preferences of an academic library. Researchers used photo-elicitation interviews, hourly floor sweeps, and unobtrusive observation to gather data on student use of the library. The study shares its findings on students study habits and how their commute affects time spent on-campus.     

Boot Camps for Graduate Student Success: A Collaborative Initiative

Although graduate students are interested in learning data, grant, literature research, presentation, scholarly communication, and writing and publishing skills – topics not typically taught within their curriculum – scheduling conflicts during the academic year often prevent them from attending workshops that teach these skills. This article describes a grant-funded initiative where multiple campus units collaborated to provide themed boot camps outside of the fall and spring semesters. It also offers recommendations for adapting such a program at other institutions for lower cost, which administrators and practitioners in higher education, especially in academic libraries, may be particularly interested in.