This usability testing project was conducted to elicit an understanding of our community use of the library website. The researchers wanted to know how our users are interacting with the library website and the ease of obtaining relevant information from the website. The methodology deployed was computer user testing where participants are made to answer several questions and executing the actions on the library website. Their actions are recorded via Techsmith Camtasia software for later analysis by the researchers.

1. Library Website Usability Test
Project (2012)
Presented by Rindra Ramli and Duaa Bukhari, KAUST
@ 6th AASRC 2013 International Conference June,
Istanbul, Turkey

2. Goals
Understand how our users are using our
library website to search for library
collec5ons namely: print and electronic.

3. Methodology
Tools:
• Techsmith Camtasia
• Usability Ques5onnaires: Sample Template can be
downloaded from usability.gov
• MacBook
2 Interviewers:
• 1 Observer
• 1 Note-taker
Venue: Library

4. Benchmarked Library Websites

5. Test Objectives
• Determine issues when searching for
library collec5ons
• Iden5fy any website design flaw
• Iden5fy user interface issues
• Iden5fy content areas
inconsistencies / deficiencies

6. Participants
Worked with Subject Specialists to ask
for par5cipants.
Emailed, Phone or informal chat
invita5ons were deployed
Managed to get 6 par5cipants: Mixture
of Masters/PhD students, faculty
members as well as Post Doc
Researchers

7. Questionnaires
• Scenario 1: Searching for print book 5tle
• Scenario 2: Locate online renewal informa5on
• Scenario 3: Locate Subject Specialist Informa5on: Contact
informa5on
• Scenario 4: Log onto library personal account
• Scenario 5: Locate LibGuide – Search Skills
• Scenario 6: Find ar5cles on “Water desalina5on”
• Scenario 7: Locate library opening hours informa5on
• Scenario 8: Search for an electronic journal 5tle
“Genomics Proteomics and Bioinforma5cs”
• Scenario 9: Download specific electronic journal ar5cle
• Scenario 10: Locate a database 5tle
• Scenario 11: Locate an ebook 5tle: Catalysis
• Scenario 12: Locate link: Endnote

8. Findings: Raw Data

9. Findings: Primary Issues
Uncompleted tasks:
• Find renewal informa5on
• Download specific electronic journal ar5cle
• Find LibGuide – Search skills

10. Findings: Secondary Issues
Completed BUT with some difficulty:
• Loca5ng for an electronic journal publica5on 5tle
• Find Subject Specialist Informa5on
• Find ar5cles on specific topic: Example:
“water desalina5on”

11. Findings: Feedback / Comments
• Clean cucer on the library website
• Find library contact informa5on easily
• Organiza5on of informa5on, need more op5on for search,
right column not useful; tabs drop down menu
• Too many distrac5ons: right and lef column should be
removed
• Lots of resources available but not clear
• Not made aware of these resources

12. Fixing the “little things”
Short Term
• Deploy small tweaks to the library website
• Take something away – Rocket Surgery made easy, Krug
Long Term
• Conduct an informa5on architecture study
• Study on library website’s layout / arrangement

13. Take-aways
• Form ad-hoc teams to promote / market the library’s
website
• Conduct focus study on library users
• Conduct card sor5ng tes5ng to get an overview of how our
users ‘organize’ informa5on
• Review the library website every 6 months
• Create a content inventory of the library website