Usability in the Library: Resources

Usability Websites

• User's Lib Blog - using usability, accessibility, functionality, & aesthetics towards a more usable library
• A List Apart - usability, web design, coding, etc.
• John Kupersmith's Library Terms That Users Understand
• Jakob Nielsen's Use It
• Steve Krug's Advanced Common Sense
• Keith Instone's (stale) Usable Web
• UPA: Usability Professionals' Association - About the profession, guidelines and methods, resources, etc.
• Usability.gov Step-by-Step Usability Guide (Usability basics, guidelines, methods, templates & examples)
• P.F. Anderson's Web Accessibility for Health Websites
• MaxDesign Web Standards Checklist (Covers quality of code, accessibility, usability, and site management)

Other Library Usability Sites (with case studies)

• California Digital Library New Frontiers in the Digital Library: Social and Ecological Diversity of the American West
• Iowa State University e-Library Usability Testing
• NCSU Usability Research
• OCLC Usability Testing
• University of Washington UW Libraries Usability
• West Texas A & M University Usability Testing

Articles

• OCLC (2006). College Students’ Perceptions of Libraries and Information Resources. Web link to pdf
• Bertot, J. C., Snead, J. T., Jaeger, P. T., & McClure, C. R. (2006). Functionality, usability, and accessibility. Performance Measurement and Metrics, 7 (1), 17. Find in a Library with WorldCat
• Chowdhury, S., Landoni, M., & Gibb, F. (2006). Usability and impact of digital libraries: A review. Online Information Review, 30 (6), 656. Find in a Library with WorldCat
• Kani-Zabihi, E., Ghinea, G., & Chen, S. Y. (2006). Digital libraries: What do users want? Online Information Review, 30(4), 395. Find in a Library with WorldCat
• Koohang, A., & Ondracek, J. (2005). Users' views about the usability of digital libraries. [Electronic version]. British Journal of Educational Technology, 36 (3), 407-423. Find in a Library with WorldCat
• Tolliver, R. L., Carter, D. S., Chapman, S. E., Edwards, P. M., et al. (2005). Website redesign and testing with a usability consultant: Lessons learned. OCLC Systems and Services, 21(3), 156. Find in a Library with WorldCat

Books

• Beyer, H., & Holtzblatt, K. (1998). Contextual design : Defining customer-centered systems. San Francisco, Calif. : Morgan Kaufmann Publishers. Find in a Library with WorldCat
• Brinck, T., Gergle, D., & Wood, S. D. (2002). Usability for the web : Designing web sites that work. San Francisco : Morgan Kaufmann Publishers. Find in a Library with WorldCat
• Garrett, J. J. (2003). The elements of user experience : User-centered design for the web. New York, NY : Indianapolis, Ind. : American Institute of Graphic Arts ; New Riders. Find in a Library with WorldCat
• Hackos, J. T., & Redish, J. (1998). User and task analysis for interface design. New York : Wiley. Find in a Library with WorldCat
• Head, A. J. (1999). Design wise : A guide for evaluating the interface design of information resources. Medford, N.J. : CyberAge Books. Find in a Library with WorldCat
• Krug, S. (2006). Don't Make Me Think. Berkeley, CA : New Riders Pub. Find in a Library with WorldCat
• Kuniavsky, M. (2003). Observing the user experience : A practitioner's guide to user research. San Francisco, CA : Morgan Kaufmann Publishers. Find in a Library with WorldCat
• Lidwell, W. (2003). Universal Principles of Design: 100 Ways to Enhance Usability, Influence Perception, Increase Appeal, Make Better Design Decisions, and Teach through Design. Gloucester, MA : Rockport Publishers, Inc. Find in a Library with WorldCat
• Nielsen, J. (2000). Designing web usability. Indianapolis, Ind. : New Riders. Find in a Library with WorldCat
• Nielsen, J., & Loranger, H. (2006). Prioritizing web usability. Find in a Library with WorldCat
• Norman, D. A. (1990). The design of everyday things. New York : Doubleday. Find in a Library with WorldCat
• Rubin, J. (1994). Handbook of usability testing : How to plan, design, and conduct effective tests. New York : Wiley. Find in a Library with WorldCat
• Schaffer, E., & Safari Books Online. (2004). Institutionalization of usability a step-by-step guide. Boston, Mass. : Addison-Wesley. Find in a Library with WorldCat

Podcasts

• UXpod - User Experience Podcast: User Experience Discussions with Gerry Gaffney website | Go To iTunes
• Design Critique: Products for People (with Tim and Tom) website | Go To iTunes
• UIE Brain Sparks website | Go To iTunes