Gimme from Scottsdale Public Library

Jan 26, ’12 2:53 PM

Gimme is a interesting discovery tool from Scottsdale Public Library. It has a fantastic visual design and it easy to use. Yes!

I can understand why they turned this into a web app but I’d also like to see something like this integrated into a main library site. Speaking of taking library users to perhaps disparate places, clicking “more…” on the staff reviews whisks users to the library’s reviews on Goodreads. I’d rather see an accordion function expand the rest of the review, keeping people on Gimme.

If you click through, be sure to resize your browser (or visit it on a mobile device and a desktop). This is the first responsive library related website I’ve come across. Really nice.

Perhaps they intended this to be used mainly on mobile devices. Clicking the “Reserve” button takes users to the mobile version of their catalog. Or maybe they just think the mobile version is better than their normal catalog and want to send users there.

With a little iteration this could go from great to really really great.

Top job, Scottsdale Public Library!

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Useful / Usable / Desirable

Jan 26, ’12 7:00 AM

Here’s a slide from a presentation that Amanda and I gave yesterday.

Something to aim for!

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Bold Colors on the Gothenburg Library Website

Jan 25, ’12 6:00 AM


Stadsbiblioteket Göteborg website

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Gothenburg Library Style

Jan 24, ’12 6:00 AM

The public library in Gothenburg, Sweden takes Sartorialist-esque style photos of people in the library. The photos are on their Facebook page.

Thanks, Donna!

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Nice Zoning Signs from the University of Houston Libraries

Jan 23, ’12 6:00 AM

There’s a lot to like about these signs:
1. Consistent use of a highly legible typeface.
2. Attractive visual design.
3. Clear, polite writing.

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Five Laws Cover

Jan 20, ’12 6:00 AM

I noticed this cover of “Five Laws” on the Otlet’s Shelf example. I’ve never read the book (gasp!) so I don’t know if the design is meaningful or just random. Is there a theme of three or thirds?

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Otlet’s Shelf Tumblr Theme

Jan 19, ’12 6:00 AM

Otlet’s Shelf is a Tumblr theme and a bookmarklet for Amazon.com.
Together, they make it easy to collect and publish a list of your favorite books.

How about a repurposing for libraries?

via Nate Hill

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Library User Experience Grab Bag!

Jan 18, ’12 7:00 AM

There’s been a ton of great stuff about library website user experience recently.

Usability Testing

Stephen Francoeur reports about usability testing his library’s site, complete with some lessons learned. Don’t miss note taking form and testing protocol.

Stephen linked to Matthew Reidsrow’s report of a Krug-esque testing routine at Grand Valley State University Libraries. He shares all sorts of useful documents at the end of his post. Bonus: don’t miss his post on using jQuery for making their link resolver usable. Aces! GVSU’s monthly testing has paid off. Check out their site:

Personas & User Research

HathiTrust gives some information about how they used past research to create persona documents. They’ve also posted the documents.

The Vancouver Public Library is documenting a large co-cocreation process called Free-For-All. They’re soliciting community input about the following topics:

  • Public places and learning spaces
  • Future directions of library collections including digital formats
  • The role of the library supporting children and families
  • The role and purpose of public programming and training

New Library User Experience Email List

Sign up for the Library UX list here.

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Canada Water Library in London

Jan 18, ’12 6:00 AM

A new library at the edge of a public plaza – complete with tube stop – that hosts a farmers market and other community events.

Here’s a review of the building from the Guardian. It has some typical libraries = book talk but also some higher level sentiments:

And not, according to its architect, Piers Gough, for whom “books haven’t gone away. Libraries still hold these magic realms of invention, realms of ideas. They’re places where you’re not told what to think; they’re also places where you can stay and stop and spend as long as you like.”

More from the BBC: ‘Super library’ in Southwark opens its doors

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Whimsy on Salt Lake City Library’s Website

Jan 17, ’12 12:56 PM

I’m not a huge fan of the whole kitten thing but thought this was a nice touch on the Salt Lake City Library’s site.

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