usability Archives - What Does This Mean to Me, Laura?

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usability

The “3-click rule” has been hogwash since it’s inception

I could go on for a while about how the "rules" of web design have changed in twenty years, but one "rule" that has somehow persisted, despite real data now being available, is that of "Users won't go more than…

usability

What if your library’s website solved problems?

Go look at your library’s website. Now, go look at the website of the library nearest yours. Now go look at some big city’s website. Heck, go look at most websites I’ve done. And, while you’re looking, pretend that you’re…

websites

What’s still missing from Ohio public library websites?

Recently, at my place of work, we decided to do a broad survey of Ohio’s public library websites for some basic functionality and features. We wanted to get an idea of just how many websites still had major problems (or…

usability

Make your website’s search less painful for your users

If your library’s website doesn’t have a search field at all, this post isn’t for you. Your site has way bigger issues to contend with. (But, feel free to use this post to guide the creation of a search function.…

What can you learn from looking at other websites?

3 things you can learn from other websites

Let’s start with defining “other” here: I mean sites that aren’t library websites. If you do nothing else, I want you to get out of the habit at looking at other library sites for inspiration. No, really, I mean it.…

Stop putting out the “welcome mat”

The temptation is overwhelming. After all, libraries are friendly places, right? We wouldn’t want our patrons to think they weren’t welcome. It’s so nice and friendly to put a big “Welcome to our library website!” heading at the top of…

Polar bears, Che Guevara and porn

(Eric Jordan did an update to his first “Webmaster” vignette, and I’m posting it here for collective enjoyment. Thanks, Eric!) Web Master 1.1 (I had enough fun with the first one, I decided to upgrade!) The Programmer approached the Web…

Why web standards matter and why your library (really) has to care

It’s pretty easy to explain to people why their web sites need certain kinds of standards; take, for example, Section 508, which is essentially the ADA for web sites. Section 508 says that any organization receiving federal funds (hmm…bailout companies,…

The sins of library web sites

Ah, Twitter is a wonderful thing. I asked members of the Twitterverse to catalog the problems of library web sites, and my followers (as friends on Twitter are called) did not disappoint. I got responses not only from both library…

[GUEST POST] Is your library search bar friendly?

Don Yarman is the Deputy Director of Delaware County Public Library. Probably by now, you’re using a web browser that has a search box in the upper right-hand corner. Do you use it? You should; it’s handy and it’s awesome.…