Here’s the link to my OLA 2016 live google doc/blog! Enjoy (but not too much).
OLA 2016 – Lori’s Report
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Designing For Digital 2016 Conference (Austin, TX)
Opening Keynote: Jesse James Garrett
- Designer, his company Adaptive Path (He coined term AJAX)
- http://www.jjg.net/about/
- The elements of user experience model online, book published 2010 included more than just web, but design of other things (in our library: http://search.library.oregonstate.edu/OSU:everything:CP71151729100001451) TK5105.888 .G37 2011
What do you want people to say about your product? “Can’t live without it”
Picture a triangle: Tech is the base but features are the next layer to consider (ex, first word processor “word star,” then word with all toolbars turned on, but that overwhelms users with too much). Experience sits at the top of the triangle. 1984 Steve jobs quote: “When you start looking at a problem, it seems really simple—because you don’t understand its complexity. And your solutions are way too oversimplified, and they don’t work. Then you get into the problem and you see it’s really complicated. And you come up with all these convoluted solutions. That’s where most people stop, and the solutions tend to work for a while. But the really great person will keep going and find the key underlying principle of the problem and sort of come full circle with a beautiful, elegant solution that works.”
Key concepts:
- Start w the customer experience and work backwards
- Human engagement key
- Products are people too (ex, people give names to their cars!)
- Use repeatedly, recommend to a friend, would buy again
- Experiences with products build relationships (and create loyalty)
My presentation: Ask Me! A Mobile Concierge Station as a Library Wayfinding Solution
Beth, using her hands too much as usual
Q/A/suggestions:
- Consider taking it around campus
- Try using it on other floors
- Using for other events
- Try working with web folks to determine if we can make changes there as well
- Hire students just to do this, where a vest, super outgoing and friendly (another university does this)
Journey from subjective to objective capturing user experience
By Librarians at Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis
(their presentation was not uploaded to the site yet – lame!)
It is the norm to conduct usability testing for library’s websites. Often, these tests focus only on effectiveness or efficiency rather than measuring users’ experiential perspectives This presentation covered UX research conducted in the fall 2015 semester.
- User experience testing during library instruction
- Screencastomatic , preloaded on computers
- Testing website navigation
- Learned tips as an instructor on improving teaching too
- Used lemon tree software (?)
lunch with my former boss who was in town visiting his family, at the famous Texas Chili Parlor
Serve Design – afternoon workshop – by Matt Franks, Faculty, Austin Center for Design
Book Recommendations: Exposing the magic of design by Jon kolko and Innovation X by Adam Richardson
“Services are co produced by people using them”
Independent touch points:
- Perceived by users as a single functioning entity
- Used together over time to solve a problem or achieve a goal
Process to service design- Ethnography, Synthesis, Prototyping
Customer journey map exercise:
- Perished state, what people working there think
- Actual state, observe.
- Do both and compare!
People-
- Thoughts and perceptions
- Feeling and emotions
- Actions and behaviors
Researching the systems –
- Environment
- Recognitions and response
- Affordance and indication
Activity Service Design Timeline (Journey mapping): Reflection timeline, draw a line, choose a time scale, intro a frame of reference, create first point “you are here now”, ask someone how did you get here, why did you come here. Shoot for 10-14 people
- Do this in the environment where you are researching so thy can think about it visually and point to things.
- Cut up all the things said and put on a wall to try to get patterns and theme
- Mix the data up regardless of person
- Sketch a visual flow of the data, touch points (sometimes have to infer touchpoints), visually add smiley faces etc.
- Scale can be flexible, small timeframe or large
- Learn to take better notes!
- Create vignettes that illustrate a potential solution to a problem. One page.
Applying this back to our libraries:
- There is a difference between Demographic vs User Group!
- Don’t be predictive but provocative
- Pay them with food (since we cant pay them $60/hour!)
- Try these as the topic: “I want to get an understanding of your perception of the library” OR “How does the library fit into your world” perhaps walk through library with them, record with audio, and write while walking, always 1:1
- Be concerned about everything – and be prepared to do it yourself
- Get out of the building
- Stop talking and make something
Screen printing the bags at the conference reception!
Constant strategy – morning workshop – by Sarah Kznarich @kznarich
Book: How to make sense of any mess by Abby Covert
Sarah says: Learn to write if it’s the one thing you do!
“Content strategy plans for the creation, publication, and governance of useful usable content”
- Vision, goals and planning: What are your core values? Take them to the next level, why and how. (Core messaging mad lib exercise)
- Business goals now and users needs/tasks are key to understand and connect. (exercise).
- Golden or core content- Venn diagram of biz needs overlapping with user needs is core content.
- Voice and tone leads to brand personality.
- What we can do at OSU, take our core values and find ways to integrate that and get that in tone and voice in our library web site.
Margot Bloomstein, godmother of message architecture. @mbloomstein
brand sort exercise with a bought stack of cards:
- Gather stakeholders
- Categorize
- Facilitate
- Filter
- Prioritize
- Yay
Check out Voiceandtone.com
“Be human, think about people at their worst and they’ll work much better when they are at their best too”
Organizing content:
Example: menu bar that says just “resources, recommendations, research”as over arching categories, super menu below shows subcontent, a good way to organize.
Tools to use:
- Optional sort -$
- Board thing – free
- Trello – free
Content audit tools: CAT (content analysis tool) OR Screaming frog
used to define each page on the website
considering those involved and regular updates
Intro to Tableau
By Sarah Tudesco Assessment Librarian, Yale University
- Works in Mac and PC
- Tableau public version too (less filters)
- Started at Stanford, 7 years ago, VizQL for Data viz
- Good for… Visual analytics, ad hoc analysis, dashboards
- Not good for… Data warehouse or spreadsheet replacement, extract-transform-load tool
Our walk through in the session:
- Once data in tableau, choose live or extract. Being new or needing to be fast then choose extract.
- Filter next before bringing into tableau
- At bottom click on the orange highlighted “sheet 1” – now you are in the work interface
- Note dimensions and measures
- Started by clicking # of records… Then can add other data points…can add other data points by dragging to “marks” box then choose way to add it.
- Circular colored buttons are called pills.
- Measure, right click to change the data type
- Commons Z to undo
- Different things happen when you click on things in different order, but you can always undo and go back.
————–
Something borrowed: interactive space planning and design
By Marisa Ball Florida International University Libraries
- Iteration in space planning, small incremental steps, but over all plan/timeline.
- It will be a lot harder to undue bad space design than it is for web design
- End result or product — critique or review — analysis of data and feedback — insights identified — back iteration again
- How to ID problems? Twitter was huge. Observational studies, student projects,
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Did not attend this one but the slides/content are great! Write Responsively: Content as a Touchpoint https://www.dropbox.com/s/00tkiu0hei0jluf/D11%20-%20Write%20Responsively%20Content%20as%20a%20Touchpoint.pdf?dl=0
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Understanding Service Design Principles in Creating Effective Library Services and Spaces by Kris Johnson (MSU)
Book recommendation – Encoding Space: Shaping Learning Environments That Unlock Human Potential by Brian Matthews and Leigh Ann Soistmann
Need of an overall Master plan for your space, do not do in small pieces – holistic is key! First did lots of small manipulations to spaces over the years … But then slowed down and started thinking about the library as a whole.
Steps/Timeline:
- Think about if you do yourself or a consultant
- RFP for a master plan. Selected 2 from 6 proposals, selected a firm that is both architectural and design focused, particularly focusing on service design.
- First step in master plan- talk to lots of people, both in the library, all stakeholders, etc.
- Service design task force was carefully selected with right ethos of being open minded and constructively and from the whole library
- 30/55 library staff came to the visioning session for library staff
- To recruit students don’t do rsvps. They did push digital flyer to digital boards around campus.. But table in lobby of library and clip board to sign up was best
Cool Tools!!!
Visioning cards – pick a card that represents the library today and one you wish the library episode be; translates to flip card with keywords and orally report out. Design team took this and translated to key themes.
Headline activity – it’s a opening day of the library and pick a headline that would encapsulate, as individuals and then in groups, then on sticky notes on the wall. Design team then translated them into key themes.
Trends (I second that) – controversial statement, quickly agree or disagree “the future of a library is about technology but not books” then you vote on 1-2 you like, and then articulate and advocate on why.
Keep/toss/create – what you still really like about the library, what would you toss, and waists something news.
Ideal user experience map – think about one task to accomplish, think about everything that goes into that process (columns of 5 E’s
What makes a great service? Activity – Creating group created the service philosophy
This took 2/3 of the process.
The building plan now, is last 1/3 of the process.
The architects sat through every single meeting until now!
Service design feedback steps:
- Identity patterns
- Share back to stakeholders
- Understand organizational implications – not all is space related
- Make decision based on previousLy defined priorities or set priorities and make decisions.
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Closing Keynote: Library Innovation By Design
by Michelle Ha Ticker formally of IDEO now with FLUX
Design thinking for libraries: http://designthinkingforlibraries.com/
Desire – feasible – viable, where they connect is innovation!
Inspiration then ideation then iteration (see photo)
Inspiration- Field work, get our from desk have people show you not just tell you or do a survey check a box
Ideation – is best when working off ideas of other people, be visual, encourage wild idea, defer judgement
Iteration -think with your hands
All you need is creativity, curiously, fresh eyes
Rethink our thinking from … to…
- Reflecting on data … Imagining a future
- Secondary research answers questions…. Design research opens up new questions
- Org is structured by operational teams … Org is driven by strategic teams
- Failure is avoided… Failure is invited
T shaped people very good in one area
X shaped people come from more than one field…better!! They are more diverse and play well with others.
Innovation is a verb not a noun. A process and an outcome.
Thinking big but starting small Libraries are a living lab | Librarians are great service designers!
Critical Librarianship and Pedagogy Symposium 2016
I wrote up a thing about going to CLAPS on my Tumblr: https://t.co/LDtmT8ZQ8h
I am still chewing over some of the sesssions, so I might write up some more, and I’ll just edit and add to this post.
I had the opportunity to attend the Oregon Highe Education Susatainability Conference at Lane Community College last week. I “live blogged” the event on Google Docs and had a good interactive time with my staff. Click that link to see all the great things I learned there! ~Lori
AMICAL 2015
This is a little late, but better late than never?
I was lucky enough to be invited to give a workshop at the 2015 conference for the AMICAL Consortium. AMICAL is a consortium that serves librarians, faculty and technologists who teach and work at American international liberal arts institutions (like the American University of Cairo, of Nigeria, of Paris, of Afghanistan, and so on). This year, it was hosted by the American University of Bulgaria, which is located in Blagoevgrad, about an hour south of Sofia.
View from city center, Blagoevgrad
I can honestly say that I have never been so well treated by confernece organizers. They were kind enough to allow me to come in a couple of days early to manage the jet lag (Bulgaria is ten time zones away) so I flew into Sofia and stayed there overnight, instead of moving on directly to Blagoevgrad. In Sofia, I met up with another attendee, Lori Townsend from the University of New Mexico who you may know as the librarian who first introduced threshold concepts into the library literature — a topic that has come back to the forefront as part of the new ACRL Framework for Information Literacy in Higher Education. Lori and I spent some time walking around Sofia before making the trek to the conference site.
This was the view from my hotel —
Hotel room view — the plaza in front of the National Palace of Culture
We saw a lot of extremely old churches — the coolest one had an archaeological level dating back to the 3rd century below an actual, working church — but I wasn’t allowed to take photos there. This is The Rotunda St. George, which dates back to the 4th century
It is believed that this is the oldest building in Sofia
There are also miles and miles of public parks — some all manicured and park-like, and others foresty and wild, like this one –
After a day of walking around Sofia, we arrived in Blagoevgrad for the conference. My workshop was scheduled on the first day, before the opening keynote. If you can arrange that kind of schedule for yourself – I HIGHLY recommend it. Finishing with all of your responsibilities before the conference actually starts makes for an extremely enjoyable conference!
My workshop was in two parts — the first part was about developing good research assignments, and the barriers that students face when they’re handed badly designed assignments. The room was jam-packed full, which made for a great atmosphere, but which made it difficult to get around to all of the students!
Information Literacy workshop, part 1 – AMICAL 2015
About 2/3 of the attendees stayed for the second part of the workshop – which focused on curiosity and imagination. I’ll admit it — this part was more fun!
One of the great surprises of this experience happened at the beginning of the workshop, when I was introduced by one of the conference facilitators — who turned out to be one of my library school professors, Rebecca Miller. She’s now the Head of the library at the American University of Afghanistan in Kabul!
Dr. Rebecca Miller, The American University of Afghanistan
Once my talk was over, I got to sit back and enjoy the rest of the conference. The opening keynote from Lori Townsend was great — and did a really good job of highlighting the barriers I had described in my workshop. The closing keynote was from Nancy Fried Foster, who reported on some new research that she’s done looking at the research habits of faculty. Nancy has been to five (!) AMICAL conferences now, and has also done site visits at several AMICAL campuses, helping libraries around the world use ethnography to inform their space decisions.
In some ways, I think that it would have worked better for my workshop to happen at the end of the conference — Lori and Nancy did such a good job making the case for doing the work I was advocating for in my workshop, that I think it would have been a really effective progression. One thing I didn’t realize before attending the conference was just how recently some of these campuses have started working on information literacy as a goal. Some, like the American University of Cairo have been doing library instruction for decades now — but others have programs that have launched in the last couple of years! I think i could have done a better job bridging those gaps.
The rest of the conference was a variety of shorter papers and talks where faculty and librarians shared case studies about the work on their campuses. I got to meet some amazing educators — like Gohar Stepanyan, who teaches finance in Armenia, and who conducted one of the more interesting studies of student resource use that I’ve seen. Anguelina Popova is Bulgarian, but she runs the center for teaching excellence at the American University of Central Asia AND she’s pursuing a PhD from the Open University of the Netherlands! She’s doing some amazing work in information and digital literacy, almost exactly on the other side of the world from us (and she also helped me navigate traditional Bulgarian cuisine). And Joyce Rafla has an extremely interesting job supporting pedagogy at the American University of Cairo — and is a definite kindred spirit when it comes to research assignment design!
This is just the tip of the iceberg — notes and summaries from all of the conference sessions are available at the AMICAL blog. This is a fascinating organization and a really effective conference. Highly recommended!
ACRL 2015… from BFW
ACRL2015 in Portland was an exciting whirlwind of learning and chaos for me – and I was super happy to drive a few hours north than fly across county for the conference 🙂
As part of the coordinating committee – co-chair of the Innovations committee – we were in charge of running the “fun” stuff such as the unCon, yoga, smoothie bikes, BigFoot, battledecks, 1st timer bingo, conference reads, lounge, lunch/food trucks, etc.
![IMG951517[2]](http://blogs.oregonstate.edu/librarytravelwriting/files/2015/04/IMG9515172.jpg)
I also had a blast presenting with an amazing group of librarians on a panel early Thursday morning – Keep it Green: Leading Sustainable and Successful Online Teams. These are librarians I have worked with virtually and successfully within ACRL committees – all of them were also on Innovations. We are hoping to present this panel talk again in a virtual format maybe through LLAMA or other venues as it was well received am I believe useful to many who are running online committee and groups.
I attended a number of other sessions, hit or miss at times (some poor speakers or not useful choices for me) but I always try to find at least one takeaway for any session. One session slot had 3 different panels discussing student workers, advisory teams and using students in renovating a library, and a poster on empowering student workers all offered some ideas. Turning student library jobs into high impact practices talk shared ideas on setting up student workers with specific real world skills, connections to their courses, reflection time, and methods to connect with their other student workers. By including students in this process the students could better use this library position in interviews and future employment. These librarians connected with other departments on campus who hired lots of students to share ideas, tips and co-training. The student advisory talk showed how the connection of student with the dean/director of the library really showed them how valuable their input was – but be sure not to include your student workers as they have a more biased view of the library. If organized well, the advisory team could be a real boost to the students for their resume and skill set. The last speaker covered the design-model-build using students in an architecture department, to help assess, plan and design an outdoor sculpture area by the library. Working with students on real world projects – wow great idea! Though I have a feeling the Valley Library has already implemented a number of these ideas already so I hear…
I also attended a number of space planning, makerspaces, ethnographic workshops and UX sessions. I have read a lot about these concepts and done some of this work in past jobs so there wasn’t too much new information but always some takeaways. In the UX for the people talk, the biggest concept I took with me was “rethink when you have to say no to a user.” The space planning/redesign session learned about new spaces such as teen booths or data diners created in little nooks, reservable and the 5×5 rule for weeding (is the item used less than 5 times, over 5 years and at least 5 in our consortium own it). Oh and the horticulture students creating a healthy snack option – an apple vending machine! In the cognitive mapping session I found out about cartodb.com and floorplanner.com as tools for mapping. Interesting takeaway from their sharing was how our most heavily traffic areas of the library contained the most low identification items according to the students (items such as new books, librarian offices, journals, print materials in general). The makerspaces session (pdf) included usingLegos in your library. Megan Lotts has some creative and inexpensive ways to bring creative and critical thinking skills to the library without buying a 3d printer and being high tech. There was also a session that shared survey results on academic libraries and resources lists (though the conference I ran on academic libraries and making missed his list 🙁
I enjoyed the lightening round sharing on Sustainability Across the Academic Library – there were a lot of panelist and a lot of ideas to follow up on from Charney’s 7 part sustainability action plan for her library, and Tanners Seed Lending Library tips. Most of this panel’s discussion is found in the book Focus on Educating for Sustainability: Toolkit for Academic Libraries by Jankowska. And the BOF lunch with SustainRT folks is always refreshing!
On saturday I concluded with session on responsive web design (we already do that here at the Valley Library, I now know!), survey of our users (feeling questions and how do you use your time in the library were key), and applying Universal Design and Accessibility to your website (design principles such as hierarchy, chunking, color, accessibility and layering were discussed)
Beyond that I enjoyed visiting the many posters, including some of our own, hanging with the ACRL bigwigs at the Chairs reception, and excitement over the next ACRL in my hometown of Baltimore in 2017!
2014 Society of American Archivists
Elizabeth Nielsen’s report of the 2014 Society of American Archivists (SAA) annual meeting in Washington, DC. is here.