Improve the usability of
Pratt Library (ConnectNY)
Usability Testing Project
Client
My Role
Team member
Time
Hao Ni, Hannah Bauer, Wajih Shafiq
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Planned and conducted 2 usability testing
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Analyzed and discussed results and recommendations
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Wrote the report and presented to our client
Pratt Library (ConnectNY)
5 weeks
Introduction
Overview
The Pratt Institute Libraries in collaboration with the ConnectNY consortium of libraries provides an extremely useful service to the students and alumni of Pratt Institute as well as the general public. The website also serves as the starting point for directing students towards ConnectNY if any particular resource is not part of Pratt’s collection.
Goal
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Test the user flow of searching for books on the online Pratt Libraries catalogue.
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In particular, the client would like to learn whether student who don’t know about the interlibrary loan service of ConnectNY can learn about it on the website and then proceed to request a loan on ConnectNY if required.
Methodology
Process Overview
Prapare
Collect Data
Analyze
Communicate
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Set goals
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Develop the tasks
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Recruit participants
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prepare materials
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Moderate the tests
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List the findings
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Analyse usability data
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Identify usability issues
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Make recommendations
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Write report
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Present to the client
User Profile
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Pratt students
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Both Graduate or Undergraduate students
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Students who don’t know about the ConnectNY service
Tasks
1. You want to search the Pratt library catalogue for a particular book. Where would you go to search only for books?
2. You need to borrow the hardcopy version of the book Antisocial Media by Siva Vaidhyanathan. What is this book’s call number? Is it currently available at the Pratt Libraries?
3. You are looking for the book called “Love's executioner and other tales of psychotherapy”.. You want the most recently published version of the book. Where is this book available?
4. Cara Robertson published a book in 2019. You don’t remember the title of the book. How will you find it? Where is it available?
Remote Moderated Usability Testing
While Remote Testing
Findings and thoughts
Post-Test Questionnaire
Result & Recommendation
Result 1: No clear distinctions between Pratt Catalog website and other Pratt Library portals
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Participants didn't understand what the Pratt Catalog website is. 5 of them never searched from Pratt Catalog.
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Once the participants went into the catalog itself there are not any clear headings or labels which gave the necessary feedback or introduction to what the catalog represents.
Almost everyone search from here
A new website for users
Recommendation 1: Add labels to Pratt Catalog sections and headings to the Pratt Catalog website
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Add a simple heading on the Pratt Libraries website to direct users to search from Pratt Catelogs.
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Add a heading on the Pratt Catalog Website which explains that the user is browsing the Pratt Catalog section of the Pratt Libraries ecosystem.
Add a heading to direct users
Let users know this section belongs to Pratt Catalog
Result 2: Important messages go unnoticed
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None of our participants recognized the long message under which states "Your search query has been changed ... Sorted by relevance."
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None of our participants used buttons "Modify Search" and "Search ConnectNY" above the search bar.
No one noticed
No one read this message
Recommendation 2: Add labels to Pratt Catalog sections and headings to the Pratt Catalog website
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Make the message clearer to the users.
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Create a pop-up message for ConnectNY that tells the user what it is.
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Move "Sort by Relevance" closer to what it controls.
Tell users what happened and guide them to search ConnectNY
Explanation of ConnetNY
Closer to what it controls
Result 3: No clear guidance when users feel they are lost
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Although there’s a message which states “No matches found; nearby Titles are:”, 5 of the participants felt frustrated and didn’t know what to do next
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3 of the participants noticed “Your entry Love’s Executioner and Other Tales of Psychotherapy would be here - Search as Words - Search ConnetNY” after scrolling through the results that were shown on the page.
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Only 1 of the participants noticed the buttons above the search bar
What should users do next?
Hard to notice
Almost no one noticed
Recommendation 3: Movement of Button & ConnectNY link
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Move the link from within the search results to under the search bar so that users would know what to do next when they can't find the results.
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Remove the buttons above the search bar. Move the “Nearby Titles” message and “Extended Display” button down to the list of results so that users can realize quickly about their meaning.
The same pattern with the last page. (Tell users what happened and guide them to search ConnectNY)
Closer to what it controls
What I Learned
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Prepare all the materials well before the real test including writing everything you are going to say and thinking of the possible situations and corresponding measures.
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Do pilot tests before the real test which can help find the missing points.
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Never assume the performance of users. Someone may complete the task without any difficulty. Someone may got stuck at the first step.