Using UX research to improveour discovery interface

Tim Graves, Systems LibrarianSuzanne Tatham, Academic Services Manager

What we did and how

•UX research – collaborative project between the University of Sussex Library and Semantico, digital publishing company •Set up working group – representation from across the Library•Implementation of new interface – Primo upgrade

http://www.slideshare.net/UKSG/uksg-conference-2016-breakout-session-search-and-discovery-defining-user-behaviour-suzanne-tatham-and-andrea-fallas

User testing

•1st round – exploratory interviews• understanding of search behaviours• task-based approach

•2nd round - Paper usability testing• lean approach• forces participants to break down their interactions

https://youtu.be/adyli4xnPMk

Semantico - UX design team, www.semantico.com

Cluttered interface

“I don’t know why I don’t use Library Search for articles ... I think it stresses me out”

(Maria, 3rd year Psychology student)

Rick Poynor, 2012 Used bookstore, Nice, France. http://designobserver.com/article.php?id=35748

Underused functionality

• Search scopes• Header links

Signing-in“You’re usually signed in because you have to be signed in to

perform a search – don’t you? I don’t know, maybe you don’t.”(Lenart, 3rd yr UG)

“I can’t remember what I do to sign in”(Hannah, 2nd yr UG)

“I always forget to sign in”(Tom, 1st yr UG)

Items level tabs

Icons

• Star icon – connotations of rating not saving• Book jackets identified as very important• Item type icons - greyed out so not noticed• Icons fairly indistinguishable – not aiding

item type recognition

Can you identify these icons?

?

? ??

??

Answers:

Book

Legal doc Conference proceedingJournal

ReviewArticle

Facets/filters

• Left-hand filters – minimal use – some filtering by book item type and by author

• Creation date not used but when prompted, thought to be useful

• Confusion around selection/deselection process in ‘More options’

Prototype design

Semantico - UX design team, www.semantico.com

Semantico - UX design team, www.semantico.com

Conclusions drawn from UX results

Keep it simpleImagery mattersMost used functionality → prime positionUnderused functionality → hidden or removedFocus on purpose of a discovery tool → avoid duplication/replication

Get it right for the novice = get it right for the researcher

August 2016 - from first contact to launch

• Advance planning of other Library Systems projects

• Gathering priorities from the UX project

• Small, cross-library working group

• Basecamp site with Ex Libris for the implementation

How far did Ex Libris coincide with the Sussex UX findings?

Rendering on mobile devices

Integrated item level information

Improved sign-in

Less cluttered results page

(Some) Improvement with iconography

• Pin better than the star• Item level icons bring useful functionality to the fore

Further changes based on UX findings

Facets moved from right to left

Facets reordered based on user testing

Item type gets top billing

Removed underused functionality

Icons• Give a visual identity without giving too much prominence

ar

rticle ook

ournal

Resist the temptation to fill up space just because it is there

Feedback so far

• Soothing lack of complaint• Mobile rendering great for teaching

Conclusion

http://www.sussex.ac.uk/library/search