Library web site design

1
Library web site design

• Stephen Pinfield Mike Gardner
• http//www.nottingham.ac.uk/uazmjg/web/emalink.ht
  ml

2
Good ideas

• Have a small number of distinct options on the
  homepage
• Use where you are navigation
• Use CSS
• Store metadata which can be used to generate a
  site index
• Have multiple routes to the information available
• Generate some information dynamically - this can
  be done easily using MySQL and PHP
• Devolve editing of content out to staff on the
  ground using DreamWeaver and web forms
• Develop a subject view rather than one based on
  format
• Roll your own PDFs
• CMS
• Use web forms for feedback

3
Have a small number of distinct options on the
homepage

• Too much choice is bad!
• http//www.nottingham.ac.uk/library/
• http//www.bris.ac.uk/is/
• http//www.nottingham.ac.uk/isd/

4
Use where you are navigation

• Puts page in context
• Stops users feeling lost (breadcrumbs trail)
• Easy route back to main sections of site
• Yahoo
• Macromedia
• Bristol library

5
Use CSS

• Doesnt work with all browsers
• Not all features supported by mainstream
  browsers (IE 4 NS 4)
• But is a great help in
• ensuring consistency across site
• future proofing site-wide style changes

6
Store metadata which can be used to generate a
site index

• Meta data data about data hidden within web
  page
• Contact us
• ltmeta name"index" content"Contact us"gt
• ltmeta name"indexalso" content"Feedback"gt
• ltmeta name"keywords" content"contact feedback
  enquiries email telephone"gt
• ltmeta name"description" content"Contact the
  Library Ask us about services resources or the
  web pages. Telephone numbers and email addresses
  for all enquiries.gt
• Site index - perl script to harvest index terms
  and build site index

7
Have multiple routes to the information available

• Users may not understand your hierarchy
• Browse. Search. Site index / map.
• Subject / Alphabetical lists
• http//www.nottingham.ac.uk/library/resources/

8
Generate some information dynamically - this can
be done easily using MySQL and PHP

• Static is easy for a few pages but doesnt scale
• Dynamic / database backed
• scales well
• different views of same data (subject /
  alphabetical / search)
• easy to devolve editing (web based forms to
  update database)
• easy to separate style from content
• PHP server side scripting language, tags
  embedded in HTML, databases queries, calculations
  more...
• MySQL relational database
• Open source, free, tutorials / help on web
• Subject resources / ejournals / electronic short
  loan

9
Devolve editing of content out to staff on the
ground using DreamWeaver and web forms

• Devolved editing
• empower staff to update their own content
• no complicated management chain (author gt ... gt
  web editor)
• remove the webmaster bottleneck
• DreamWeaver visual HTML editor
• templates CSS to ensure consistency of style
• screenshot
• Web forms to update dynamic content (databases)
• separate content from style
• can build extra services (eg link checking new
  content)
• example

10
Develop a subject view rather than one based on
format

• Students know what subject they are studying
• Web v CD-ROM is mostly irrelevant - users just
  want to access the information
• http//www.nottingham.ac.uk/library/resources/

11
Roll your own PDFs

• Print from any application gt PS gt PDF
• Any member of staff can produce handouts and also
  publish them to your web site
• PostScript printer driver for windows from Adobe
  (free)
• Ghostscript (free) will convert PS gt PDF
• Acrobat Distiller will convert PS gt PDF
• http//puamg2.nottingham.ac.uk/mjg/pdf/pdfmaker.p
  hp3

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Content Management Systems

• Self-service authoring for non-technical content
  providers
• Workflow management submit, review, approve,
  archive
• Flexible output write once, publish many times
  (separate style from content)
• Content Management Systems Workshop

13
Use web forms for feedback

• More information
• Better quality information
• No more its broken messages (whats broken?)
• Networked CD-ROMs http//www.nottingham.ac.uk/libr
  ary/cdrom/nwfeedback.html