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Posts tagged with usability testing

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Frequency of Library Search Use chart
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  • Ben Howell
  • Robyn Ness
What We Learned from the 2022 Library Search Benchmarking Survey
The U-M Library UX + Design Team conducted a benchmark survey in late 2022 aiming to understand people’s experience with Library Search. Objectives included measuring user satisfaction, identifying audience needs, and comparing results with Harvard University’s survey using the same methodology. Survey findings guided the development of the Library Search Product Statement as well as user centered improvements such as implementing LibKey Direct-to-PDF API, and refining catalog results filters.
Tiny Studies
Screen shot for home page of the Reptile and Amphibian Audio Files collection.
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  • Emma Brown
User Research: Interface for Audio and Moving Image Digital Collections
For the past year, U-M Library Digital Collections have been undergoing some big design changes. This blog post tells the story of launching and evaluating the usability of collections containing a new type of media: audio and moving images (AMI). In a research study consisting of a heuristic evaluation and 50 usability tests with a diverse group of users, the team uncovered over 20 mostly minor usability issues, recommended improvements to the interface that will be implemented in 2024 and beyond, and learned a lot about the complexity of library products along the way.
Tiny Studies
The collection home page for Artists’ Books image collection, featuring a banner image from a book in this collection, Heaven on Earth by Paul Johnson.
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  • Robyn Ness
Iterative User Research for U-M Library’s Image Digital Collections Interface
User research is best performed as an iterative process, where each round of testing provides valuable insights to lead to the next stage of development. The recent uplift on the University of Michigan Library’s Image Digital Collections offers a prime example of iterative user research, as it included testing phases for early mockups, plug-in image viewers, and an interactive coded version of the site. By continuously testing, we were able to identify potential issues early and to refine the site to better meet user needs.
Tiny Studies
Image of mockup of library website header navigation bar
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  • Ellen Mary Schlegelmilch
User Research Insights: Universal Header
U-M Library’s universal header is the light gray bar at the top of the library website and Library Search that aims to help people recognize that they’re on a U-M Library website, and links to our different sites and services through the “Explore” menu. In the fall of 2020, the Design System Team conducted remote usability testing that helped us to understand people’s experiences and identify opportunities for improvement.
Tiny Studies