Two steps forward, three steps back

[Nina Davis-Millis]

There have been a number of postings that alluded to using what we know 
about searching behavior to inform our design decisions -- in this case 
specifically with regard to our OPACs but presumably also in terms of all 
our searchable interfaces.

I thought many of you would be interested in a big usability test we did 
here at the MIT Libraries in 2002.  We call it, remarkably enough, The Big 
Test because it sought to find out how our users interact with our 
information environment as a whole, not just how people search each 
individual component of that environment.  We found the results of this 
test extremely useful and continue to use what we learned from it.

http://macfadden.mit.edu:9500/webgroup/usability2002/big-test/index.html


Nina Davis-Millis
Head, Systems and Technology Services
MIT Libraries
77 Mass. Ave., Room E25-131
Cambridge, MA  02139

ninadm at mit.edu
617-253-5652