Building a User-Centric Web-Based Library Service

Building a user-centricweb-based library service

Michael Pawlus

Who are the users?• Attempts to profile library users has been like

trying to hit a moving target– Why?

• Academic libraries serve an increasingly diverse user base

• Users choose a search strategy, and a level of effort, based upon their situational needs, and they differentiated between quick and thorough searches (Connaway, Prabha, and Dickey 2006).

• Technology continues to change the needs and preferences of users.

Source: Connaway, L. & Dickey, T. (2010) The Digital Information Seeker: Report of the Findings from Selected OCLC, RIN, and JISC User Behaviour Projects

Who are the users?

• A snapshot:– Using search engines for an information search is the

first choice of 89% of all the college student respondents. (DeRosa, 2006)

– Students predominantly use keyword searches on a “mixture of tools usually including internet search engines, library catalogs and specialist databases” (Hampton-Reeves, et al., 2009)

– “The end user’s experience of the delivery of wanted items is as important, if not more important, than his or her discovery experience” (Calhoun, 2009)


Who is the user?

• A snapshot (continued):– Participants indicated a desire for more digitized

sources of all kinds, including digitization of older literature, sheet music, and art images (Dervin, et al., 2006)

– Fifty-nine percent of the researchers identified “refining down from a large list of results” as their most common search strategy (RIN, 2006)

– Thirty-six percent of survey respondents believed that “more links to online content/full text” was the “most helpful” change to identify a needed item in the catalog (Calhoun, 2009)


Who is the user?

• A common thread:– “There has been a sharp fall over the past five years

in the number of researchers who visit their institution’s library regularly”

• Convenience is a major factor in this choice. Location, opening hours, noise levels, etc. are aspects of convenience

– Empirical data supported “convenience” as the most important factor in choosing among information sources. Ninety-seven percent (n=143) of VRS users surveyed rated this feature as “very important” or “important,” with 74% (n=101) citing availability after hours (Radford, and Connaway 2008, p. 7).


Who is the user?

• A common thread:– Information seekers value familiarization, convenience, currency, and authority, and embody these values in their search strategies and behaviors; therefore, many information seekers, regardless of academic demographics tended to demonstrate a “heavy reliance on Google and other web information sources” (Prabha, et al., 2006).

– Convenience is a major factor in e-book usage. “Online access” was cited by 52% of survey respondents (N=11,763, n=6,169) as the most important advantage of e-books; “searchability” (13.2%, n=1,556) is the second most cited advantage of e-books compared to print books (JISC and UCL, 2009).


Library Anywhere

Library Every Way

The Library Anywhere, Every Way User Base

• Diverse in terms of comfort with technology, device ownership, and search strategies

• Each user has a diverse set of search strategies which are situation-dependent

• New technology causes a continued diversification of user preference

Library Anywhere

• Desktop Delivery/Remote AccessRendering the complete library experience on the user's

browser

– Discovery Layers• Allow the users to access all collections

– Virtual Bookshelf• Give the user a better chance at serendipitous

discovery

– Virtual Reference• Embed a librarian into the user's browsing

experience

Library Anywhere

• On the Internet:As users browse the Internet, they should be able to find

library resources

– COinS• Embedding bibliographic metadata into HTML

– Bookmarklets• JavaScript applications that allow users to discover

library resources through client-side modifications to a browser and as a result does not require server-side permissions

Library Anywhere

• On Mobile Devices:– By 2015, U.S. ownership of smart phones will be 162

million – 2/3 of all mobile handsets (Houghton-Jan, 2010)

– 58.4% of respondents who owned a web enabled handheld device indicated that they would use small screen devices, such as PDAs or web enabled cell phones to search a library OPAC. (Cummings, et al., 2010)

– Mobile sites need to be redesigned and repurposed sites, not just miniaturized or optimized versions of existing sites

Source: Cummings, et al. (2010) “The Use Of Handheld Mobile Devices: Their Impact And Implications For Library Services”. Library Hi Tech, 28 (1), 22-40.

Library Anywhere• In the Library:Through the use of mobile technology, augmented reality

browsers can expose hidden data layers based on geographic metadata

– Builds on the layers of Google Earth and geotagging services like foursquare

• Current projects include Layar and Wikitude

– Possible Uses:• Show computers that are currently available

(Oregon State University)• Create a Google Maps like cluster of search

results

Library Every Way• Enhanced browsability:

– Open source web technologies can be leveraged to increase the chance of serendipitous discovery

• jQuery Auto-complete can create suggestions that the user may not have considered

• Virtual Shelf can allow for increased browsability• Recommendations such as “People who borrowed

this item also borrowed...” can provide different avenues to resources

• Term suggestion, faceted search, click tracker• Clutter can be alleviated with collapsible menus

Library Every Way

• Customizable, Integrated Library:– According to a Tellabs survey conducted by The

Nielsen Company, two-thirds of mobile users around the globe are interested in “smart” services that would feed them information based on personal preferences, location, time of day and social setting.

– Using RSS Feeds and Twitter hashtags, users can pull out just the library content that they want.

– Allowing users to control what they see means that options are available for users but are out of their way when they are no longer needed.

Library Every Way• Discovery-to-Delivery

– Users not only want a discovery layer that makes it easy for them to find all relevant material, they also want to have quick, convenient access to that material.

– This may mean providing links to external content that is not in the University’s collection

• Coalitions can help provide more access to all students

– Also, provisions need to be taken to ensure that

back files of journals are kept even if a subscription is canceled

– Advocate for open access and against exclusive contracts

Getting It Done• A More Semantic Web

– Better metadata• Constantly improving shared XML Schemas• Creating an XSL Library for easier crosswalks

• Open Source Projects– Benefits from community development

• People to contact, good documentation

– Modular projects built on open standards means better integration with other applications

• Community Building– Sharing ideas with others

– Getting feedback from our users

Conclusion

• Users are placing increasing demands upon libraries

• Increased challenges means more opportunities.

• Librarian community is ready to answer the challenge

• Flexible, adaptable, innovative designs will keep libraries relevant for a long time to come.

Thank You!

Building a User-Centric Web-Based Library Service

Technology

Transcript of Building a User-Centric Web-Based Library Service