Introducing Suma: an open-source tablet application for library assessment. Assessment Forum, ALA 2011

Introducing Suma:An open source, staff-facing tablet application for library assessment
Joyce Chapman
North Carolina State University Libraries
ALA, Assessment Forum
June 24, 2011
1

Problem statement
We are always trying track more data about how patrons are using our spaces and services in order to better understand our users and in turn, to better serve their needs.
2

Why do we care?
With data about use/activity patterns in different library spaces we can
Improve staffing models
Make informed purchasing decisions
Optimize space for patron needs (quiet study, collaborative areas)
Take an evidence-based approach to planning future services and spaces
3

Where it gets tricky
Many libraries perform manual counts of patron activities (headcounts, group study, laptop use) for assessment purposes
The process involves tedious collection mechanisms, lots of paperwork, and much room for error
There is no coordinated effort to help departments analyze their data
4

Our solution
An open source tablet and web-based application to aid library staff in gathering, storing, exporting, analyzing, and visualizing data about patron activities across spaces/activities/time and around events
5

Example use case
6

Add image of the current practice

Problems of current practice
Inconsistent data
Decentralized data storage
Uncontrolled vocabularies
No dedicated staff to help with data analysis
=
High barriers to analysis and data reuse in the current system
8

SumaA pocket data analyst for every librarian

Tablet-based data collection tool
10

What is the system?
11

Count via “thumb thump”
12

Data collection tool demo
13

Browser-based data dashboard
“Chart wizard” will lead staff through a series of choices to produce charts comparing different aspects of data
Charts can be exported for print or web
Data in charts can be downloaded as delimited/Excel files

What kinds of data analysis?
Compare an activity across multiple spaces
Compare multiple activities in one space
Analyze trends over…
Fiscal years
Academic semesters
Weeks of the semester
Days of the week
Hours of the day
Analyze aggregate ratios
20

Timeline
Private beta testing release
Summer 2011. We are looking for enthusiastic and involved testers, who want to try out the data collection client and provide detailed feedback.
Open beta testing release
Late fall 2011
Incremental updates
Through 2012, adding visualization capabilities, events, etc.

Suma project team
Jason Casden (project lead)
Joyce Chapman
Eric McEachern
Rusty Earl
Rob Rucker
Hill Taylor
36

Thanks!
Contact
Joyce Chapman – joyce_chapman@ncsu.edu
More info
http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/dli/projects/spaceassesstool
https://github.com/cazzerson/Suma
37

Introducing Suma: an open-source tablet application for library assessment. Assessment Forum, ALA 2011

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Introducing Suma: an open-source tablet application for library assessment. Assessment Forum, ALA 2011 — Presentation Transcript