05 Sep 06 Usability Study Updates – May 2006
May 2006
Six proposals were received and are being reviewed by the Web Editorial Board and the Website Advisory Committee A decision is expected by June 16th.
05 Sep 06 Usability Study Updates – June/July 2006
June/July 2006
An agreement was signed with UserWorks of Silver Spring, MD, and the project is underway. Groups of stakeholders are being interviewed in late July and early August. Other activities include an online survey, focus group inverviews, heuristic analysis, and web log and problem report analysis. The final product will be a report of recommendations on how to improve the overall usability of our website. The final report is expected around the middle of October.
05 Sep 06 Usability Study Updates – August 2006
August 2006
Stakeholder interviews have taken place and an online survey is about to go live. Approximately 55 members and staff were interviewed in 16 groups during July and August. A requirements report is being developed, which will help us determine benchmarks for the actual usability test. UserWorks will now embark on an analysis of web logs and help desk requests.
07 Jul 06 Usability Study – Background
At its March 8th meeting, the Web Editorial Board heard from Michelle Frisque and Stephanie Orphan, both of whom had overseen some usability testing for their websites (LITA and ACRL, respectively). WEB members were briefed on types of usability testing and the benefits usability testing provides in redesigning and maintaining the utility of websites. The group was also briefed on the concept and practices of user-centered design, which calls for continual testing and improvement of websites. The group agreed this is the approach ALA needs to take.
At their March 15th meeting, the group decided to proceed with commissioning a usability study of the ALA website. Rob Carlson is drafting the RFP that will be floated in April. The plan calls for the usability study to be done by August. It will lead to redesign recommendations that will be implemented as resources become available.
