Rebecca Beasley
As a public library, the Williamsburg Regional Library website serves as the online portal to the electronic information resources, held collections, services, and programs that serve the individuals residing in Williamsburg, James City County and Upper York County, Virginia. This site is intended to inform library users and other interested individuals about happenings at the two WRL branches, as well as provide access to the collections and related borrowing services (e.g., renewing or reserving library materials, etc.) in the combined library catalog database. This site is aimed toward a variety of users; it offers information resources to in-library and at-home users; specific programming and related information for children, teens and adults; general library information; and access to the library catalog and user's library accounts. As a Williamsburg resident who has used this site to find programming information, to access my library account and as a regular visitor to both branches of WRL, I feel that I represent a typical WRL website user; I chose this familiar site for my analysis to require me to examine and explore it in a new way.
Considering the types of activities that a library user would commonly perform on a public library website, I decided to use the library catalog to analyze the process of searching for the works of a specific author, locating a desired title by this author, and placing a notification request for the item when it is returned to the library by the current borrower. While this task is not representative of the entire WRL site (it is limited to the library catalog--a separate, commercial library system database (Dynix)), it is representative of arguably the most commonly used feature of the WRL website--the library's catalog.
While performing my cognitive walkthrough, I envisioned a user like myself, a "typical" user--an adult WRL card-holder, who is relatively familiar with the library branches and the library collections and has used the library's website and catalog, and most likely other library and non-library websites and catalogs, on more than one occasion. (Essentially, a user who is familiar enough with visiting and searching within websites in general, that barring any unusual or egregious usability flaws, is able to accomplish what they aim to.) I chose to consider the likely actions of "typical" users in an attempt to make the analysis of my cognitive walkthrough more realistic, however, these users relative comfort level and determination to find what they want precludes the identification of some more glaring usability flaws--these users would be familiar enough with common usability constraints (e.g., a 'fake' button that is not activated by the Enter key) to successfully work around them in most instances. Considering "typical" users while performing a cognitive walkthrough of a specific process can enable the testers or webmasters to focus on fixing or re-conceptualizing the difficult spots that are most likely to impede the progress of the majority of the sites users.
In order to search for a book by a particular author and place a notification request for that item, a user would need to engage in the following series of actions:
The interface of the WRL website is primarily text-based although graphics, including photographs are interspersed throughout the site; the site has 7 primary menus (linking users to the Catalog, Information Resources, Youth Services, information on various Library Services, a Library calendar and Programs, links to information on additional Library Information (some of which are duplicated on the Services page), and a Site Map) and most of these pages contain additional menus. There is a Search feature for the site, available from the home page but existing on the Site Map (however, it is worth noting that when I entered the example search terms provided above the Search box, my first hit was to a link that returned me to the Search page!)
The Catalog (which is 'Powered by Dynix' and appears to have been minimally customized by WRL) is also a text-based interface. The Welcome page defaults to a Basic Search box in the center and presents users with 8 tabular menus across the top of the page and 3 additional links "Login to your library account", "My Book List", and "Help" (all of which consistently appear throughout the Catalog pages.) The first 3 of the 8 tabular menus direct users to additional menus of catalog-specific functions and options (e.g., Home, More Searches, and My Account), while the remaining tab menus link back to the WRL site (e.g., Info Sources, Database Search, Suggest a Book, Due Date Reminders, and Contact Us) .
On the WRL homepage, the Catalog link is the most likely first-encountered click-able text on the page (it is located on the upper left portion of the page, a very logical and visible placement for Westerners accustomed to reading from the top-bottom, and left-right on a page); "typical" users would have no difficulty seeing the Catalog link and should have no confusion about where it will take them. Users wanting to search the Catalog will most likely choose this link, but they could also choose the links (immediately to the right of Catalog), labeled Renew or Reserve and end up at the same default Search screen in the Library Catalog. There is no feedback given to users indicating that they are leaving the site and entering the Catalog, but the Catalog has a slightly different look and design (as its a separate database), the page loads quickly, and the URL for the page changes immediately from http://www.wrl.org/ to http://catalog.wrl.org/ which indicates that the Catalog page is loading. (Overall, this is a success story for my "typical" user!)
This default Catalog screen has the instructions above the Search boxes (in very small type): Select a search index, enter a search word or phrase, then click GO arrow. The left box, adjacent to the Search: contains the default phrase "GENERAL WORDS...", with a familiar blue down arrow indicating a drop-down list of choices. Typical users, especially one that knows she would like to view the books of a particular author, would click on the down arrow and most likely select the "AUTHOR'S NAME (last, first)" option. (If she couldn't remember the author's first name, she may choose "AUTHOR'S NAME contains..." as an alternative.) The user will not receive any feedback at this point because this action is not fully completed.
To continue the Search, the right box requires the user to input their search terms, as indicated by the blank box. Since my user knows the name of the author she would like to search for, and the list item she has just selected informs her to use (last, first) or 'contains...' she would logically type the author's name into the blank box (e.g., vowell, sara) and feel confident and assured that she was using the Search as it was intended to be used. Since the search has not yet been executed, my user still has no feedback on her success. (Another success story!)
In order to execute her Search, my "typical" user would click on the arrow icon knowing that this was an appropriate means of sending the information she completed in Step 2--she has encountered similar icons in similar instances on websites before. She would receive feedback that her Search was successful when she arrived at the appropriate Search Results page (see Step 4). (Again, a success!)
The Browsing Search Results list defaults to 15 hits, with "Vowell, Sarah, 1969-" listed third; looking across the Search Results table, the user will see that there are 5 titles associated with this author. A "typical" user could logically think to click on the Author, Vowell, Sarah, 1969- which becomes underlined and presents the tool tip "View more information" when rolled over by the mouse (and if selected takes the user exactly where she wants to go), or the "5" under Titles, which also becomes underlined when rolled over, but is unfortunately not a hyperlink. A "typical" user that attempted to click on "5" first would most likely click on Vowell, Sarah, 1969- next, but this deceptive false link could render this action a failure--the user attempted a logical action to achieve an expected result, she thought she knew the correct way to do it, but she may not understand why it didn't work and the lack of feedback, or site activity, would indicate that she was unsuccessful (and a lack of feedback doesn't really constitute feedback at all.) (As previously stated, possibly a failure.)
The Search Results, ("5 matched Vowell, Sarah, 1969-") display in reverse chronological order and the brief records for the first 3 results (Assassination Vacation, Assassination Vacation [sound recording], Assassination Vacation [text (large print)]) display on the screen, but to view results 4-5, a user would need to scroll down by dragging the right-side scroll bar down, by using the down arrow key, or by using a mouse wheel. A "typical" user would not have any difficulty in scrolling through this page, even though there are no explicit instructions on how to do so; scrolling (by whichever personally preferable means) is a commonly required action in browsing websites, and is used in several Microsoft products (e.g., Word, Excel) so it is reasonable to assume that the vast majority of users, and certainly my "typical" user would recognize that they need to scroll and have no difficulty doing so and would receive immediate feedback when the page moved up as they scrolled down. (A definite success!)
The brief record for Take the cannolli... presents a good deal of information about this book (and the user is made aware that it is a book by the bright pink book graphic next to the "Format: Book" field). The user can see the title, author, publication information, call number, number of Available Copies, number of Requests, and a graphical icon of the book jacket. If my user chooses either of these links to direct her to the Item Information for this book, she will do so with no difficulty or confusion and will receive an immediate indication of her success.
However, in addition to the hyperlinked title and book jacket, this record presents several additional options for the user: the user can choose to click on "View Details" (which takes them to the "Item Information" screen), or can click an "Add to my list" button (which changes the button color from gray to dark green and the message to "Remove"), or a "Request Item" button (which takes a user to the "Access Your Library Account" page, and is discussed in Step 7). At least two of these options could be uniquely problematic for a user: the "View Details" link is easy to miss in its position in the far, upper right side of the brief record box, and it exists in the same tiny type size (and becomes underlined when rolled over) as the call number, which looks like a link, but isn't--so the user is faced with two similarly sized options that conform to a standard convention (a link becomes underlined when rolled over) but only the "View Details" option is a true hyperlink. If a user had attempted to click on the fake call number 'link' (which is placed to be more immediately noticeable) and failed before even noticing the "View Details" link, the knowledge that they have just gained (e.g., links that look like this don't work) would preclude their even attempting to click on the "View Details" link.
The "Add to my list" button is unnecessarily vague; when clicked the button adds the title to a collective list ("My Book List"--the link for which happens to exist in the previously-described small type, at the very upper right corner of the entire catalog site) that will allow a user to save or email their selected records, but the function of this option is not immediately obvious or intuitive with the phrasing of the button. (A detailed explanation of the function and functionality of both of these features (Adding an Item to My List, Viewing My List) is available to a user if they sequentially click on the "My Book List" icon, then the "Help" icon--which is unlikely to be performed by a casual, or even a "typical" user of this database.) (Good possibility of failure.)
Viewing the Item Information record, our "typical" user would easily notice the "Request Item" button and seeing that the current Status of this title is 'Checked out' with a Due Date of 06/27/06, it is reasonable to assume that she would hit the "Request Item" button to request this title. Her feedback consists of her delivery to the "Access Your Library Account" screen. (Success!)
This screen is fairly straight-forward: the Access Your Library Account page lists instructions ("Sign in or create a new account online. To protect your privacy, click the LOGOUT icon when finished") above an empty box adjacent to Barcode: . A "typical" user will have no difficulty understanding what action is being expected of them, but they may experience some difficulty in actually entering their barcode; in order to Access Your Library Account, a user must enter their 14-digit barcode as a single string (with no spaces) even though the barcode on their card is printed as x_xxxx_xxxxx_xxxx. There are no instructions or examples demonstrating to a user how to enter their barcode and although "typical" users would most likely try again if they receive the "Login failed. Please check your barcode and try again" error message", other less experienced, or first-time users of the Catalog may give up or need to call a library branch for clarification or assistance.
A "typical" user, after figuring out how to enter their barcode correctly, will have no difficulty understanding that they are then required to click the Access Your Library Account button (as opposed to the button on the right labeled, "SIGN UP FOR NEW CARD HERE"); this is an intuitive and fairly well-explained next step, both by the phrasing on the button itself and the "Sign in..." instructions at the top of the screen. (Overall, possibility of failure does exist.)
The Request Confirmation screen presents the user with several different pieces of information: the title and author of the requested item; the user's "hold queue position"; the notification method (e.g., mail, email, or phone) that will be used to contact the user when the item is available; which library branch to pick up the item once notified; and, an automatically generated expiration date for the request (strangely, exactly 23 months in the future.) At the bottom of the screen, the user has 3 options in the form of buttons: "Request", "Cancel", or "Cancel and Logout".
These options seem fairly straight-forward, but the title of this screen is confusing (Request Confirmation) and I suspect many users, including my "typical" user, may stop to wonder if they are in the act of placing the request for the title they want, or if they are confirming a request for a title that was completed by engaging in the previous steps (e.g., clicking on "Request Item" button in the record for the book and then logging into their library account.) If a user incorrectly but quite logically believes that this screen is confirming their already completed request, the will likely be confused by the "Request", "Cancel", or "Cancel and Logout" buttons presented; if they chose to select "Cancel" or "Cancel and Logout" they will be returned to the Item Information screen fully believing that their request was properly completed and that they will be notified to retrieve their item sometime in the future. (Potential for failure.)
The Your request has been successfully placed screen verifies for the user that their request has been placed and restates the additional information they were presented with on the previous confirmation screen (author, title, hold queue position, notification method, pick-up location, and request expiration date. The user is presented with 2 buttons at the bottom of the screen: "Return to Searching" and "Logout and Return" and since this screen serves as definitive proof that their previous efforts toward requesting the book have been successful, either option chosen by the user could have equally desirous and effective outcomes (although, when contemplating the "Logout and Return" button, a user could potentially wonder, 'Return to where?') If a user wanted to continue searching the Catalog, she would logically select the "Return to Searching" but if her needs had been met and she no longer needed to perform any additional functions in the Catalog or the WRL site, she would probably be more likely to close her browser window than to select the "Logout and Return" option. (Good likelihood of success!)
The four steps in this Book Search and Request task that had the greatest potential to impact a "typical" users' success (Steps 4, 6, 8, & 9) each contained separate elements that could lead to user failure. In Step 4, the '5' listed under the Titles associated with Author, Sarah Vowell, looked like and acted like a hyperlink, but failed to 'go anywhere' when clicked on. In Step 6, vague descriptions on some buttons ("Add to my list"), the obscure placement of others ("View Details"), coupled with the user's possible trepidation based on previous encounters with similar looking links that weren't live (like the "5" in Step 4) all contribute to the user's frustration, confusion, and/or anticipated failure. Step 8 failed to explain to users how to enter their barcode properly, and Step 9 used confusing terminology (Request Confirmation) that could potentially allow the user to believe they have requested a book when they have not, a false assumption which would negate the user's entire reason for visiting the site to begin with (and cause even greater frustration in the future, when they are never notified about the book they 'requested'!) Each of these failures involves a lack of clear information provided to the user or a faulty assumption on the part of the site/database designer as to how the presented information will be interpreted or used.
These recommendations would help to diminish potential user failures and increase overall usability:
Of these recommendations, correcting the usability flaws in steps 8 & 9 would be the most significant; the failures associated with these particular steps affects the ability of many users to access their accounts successfully or to effectively utilize a fundamental library service. Because the Catalog is a commercial library database purchased by WRL, I recognize that the library's ability to implement or even influence changes is limited to a great extent--I do hope that WRL is taking full advantage of the customization and modification options offered by Dynix that would increase usability and the overall comprehensiveness of their Catalog database.
Completing this cognitive walkthrough was a very enlightening and challenging exercise. What I presumed would be a straight-forward analysis of a series of actions that a "typical" user might perform to complete a common library task, revealed unexpected complexities and a mixture of successes and possible failures for my user (and myself). I do believe that a "typical" user could successfully complete this Book Search and Request task, but she would be required to recall and apply previously gained conventional web/database knowledge and skills to get through all of the steps (something she would most likely do completely subconsciously), and she would need to remain patient, diligent and determined to successfully finish. Public libraries aim to meet the information needs of a wide variety of users; they want to be inviting and exciting public spaces. Public library websites and online catalogs must share these aims and wants, to do so effectively, they must be usable for visitors that defy the categorization of "typical."