subscription resource usabiltity

[Liz Linton]

Hi Martin:

The forum I'm planning is on electronic subscription site usability -
not web usability, which is a larger issue. 

As a library, we pay a lot to access these subscription resources, and
often, the interfaces are so $%&* bad that I'm embarrased to offer the
thing to our patrons. For example, one resource we subscribe to,
everytime you click on the "Library" section of the databsae you get a
message saying you have to subscribe to get into that area - but we
*are* subscribed and the company tells me that I'm supposed to instruct
our patrons just to "just ignore that" and click forward. 

This is a usability problem in a subscription resource. 

The sellers of the subscription resource expect me (and all other
subscribing librarians) to explain the glitches and false error messages
to our users. Since we are paying to use these services, I find that
attitude unacceptable.

Please let me know if this doesn't make sense to you. I'm eager to
define the problem in clear terms.

Liz Linton
Electronic Resources Librarian
Sweet Briar College


Martin Courtois wrote:
> I think it's great to start of forum on web usability, but I'm not sure I
> understand the tie-in with electronic subscription resources.  Aren't
> these two separate issues?