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Notes of Meeting of April 5, 2005
Porter Library Room 428
1:30pm to 3:00pm

Present: Christy Branston, Helena Calogeridis, Sandra Keys, Esther Millar, Marina Wan (chair), Marian Davies, Linda Hastings, Bill Oldfield (Recorder), Dan Sich

Regrets: Rachel Caldwell

1. Notes from meeting of March 10, 2005

The notes were approved.

2. Business Arising

• 2. Comment & Suggestions – There is still a need for a list of all the relevant groups that user may wish to contact and then the submission form can be revised.
• 2. Comment & Suggestions – Bill reported on the question about categories and subjects relevant only to Waterloo being used on our web pages. The current ERM system does not allow categories and subjects to be Library specific. If this is a capability that is required the information should be submitted to the TUG Executive for the group that will be looking into ERM system requirements. The discussions lead to 3 specifications that should be sent to the TUG Executive:
1. 1. That a consortial ERM system should have the ability to assign categories and subjects for use that are specific to a single member of the consortium and a single resource type.
2. 2. That a consortial ERM system should have the ability to assign priorities to items for display so that on the list returned to the user the most important items would appear first in the list.
3. 3. That a consortial ERM system must allow for more resource types like, etheses, government publications, ereserves, etc.
• 8. Usability scenarios – Marina has downloaded the email reference archive file from January ad will try to classify the responses. Marian volunteered to help.

3. Agenda Review

No changes.

4. Links' appearance on Library web

Hyperlinks should be consistent across the website. The standard for the Library will be:

• Blue (not underlined) when inactive.
• Blue & underlined when cursor'd-over.
• Purple (not underlined) once visited.

5. Discipline sites

After considerable discussion it was decided that, at least for the initial conversion to the new common look and feel, the Library will use the standard 3 column display for the discipline pages with the third column providing the additional navigation required. The attempt will be made to standardize this additional navigation across the discipline pages but it can left inconsistent as it is now if necessary. This is a practical strategy allowing the use University expertise, particularly as it relates to style sheets, which is currently unavailable in the Library.

The need to add blank lines to the content area when the right navigation area is longer than the content text was mentioned. A style sheet solution to this situation will be sought and used if available to avoid the work around solution of added blank lines.

6. Categories of information and quick links

A number of questions were posed to help the group decide the categories and quick links that should appear on the homepage and navigation bar.

• Who are the primary users and secondary users of the Library website?
• Primary users are the students, faculty and staff of the University of Waterloo
• Secondary users are alumni and the Ontario community which includes high school student, other universities etc.
• tertiary user are the rest of the world which should not concern the design team.
• What do patrons want when they visit the Library website?

the attempt to create a generic lists for our primary users was made:

• Books
• Journal articles
• Statistical information
• Doing business (checking library accounts, renewing, etc)
• Contact
• Help
• Music
• Theses
• Patents
• videotapes
• etc.

Christy has information from a previous survey which she can distribute to members

• What are the key areas most important to our primary users?
• Finding information
• Doing research
• Instructional information
• Course related information
• Review our categories of information, new university library websites

previous mock-ups of the home page were examined

the idea of using these static or paper wire-frame images for usability studies was discussed

the necessity of having the “Connect from Home button on the top level of the menu was discussed and until a standard means of entering URLs in our diverse systems is decided it will remain necessary

further review and discussion of the top plus secondary level navigation links needs to be at the top of the agenda at the groups next meeting

7. Page width and printing

Deferred

8. Sub-sites (e.g. UMD)

Deferred

9. Around the table

None

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