We have conducted five rounds of usability testing on WorldCat Discovery. View each report below for details about our methods and results.
►Fall 2021
Research Questions:
- Are participants able to find a physical item not owned by their library?
- Will participants find a way to request an item not available at their library?
- Can participants find items that are not the primary edition/format shown by Discovery?
- Can participants tell how many copies of an item their library owns?
- Are participants able to locate the call number for items?
- Can participants tell whether or not an item is checked out?
- How often do participants get error messages when they try to view the full text for an article?
- Did participants succeed at tasks more in the new modern interface as compared to the old interface?
►Spring 2019
Research Questions:
- Can participants find a physical item not owned by their library?
- What do participants do when confronted with a physical item not owned by their library that is owned by other PALNI libraries?
- How often do users get error messages when they try to view the full text for an article?
- Can users find an item that is not the primary edition/format showed by Discovery?
►Spring 2016
Research Questions:
- Do users make use of search tabs on the library website?
- Can users locate information about an item in the Description section of an item record?
- Can users find items from citations in Discovery?
- Can users locate the Discovery citation tool?
- How do users go about searching for particular works in a series?
►Fall 2015/Winter 2016
Research Questions:
- Do participants use search tabs on the library website?
- Can participants find a physical item not owned by their library?
- What do participants do when confronted with a physical item not owned by their library that is owned by other PALNI libraries?
- How often do users get error messages when they try to view the full text for an article?
- Can users find an item that is not the primary edition/format showed by Discovery?
►Spring 2015
Research Questions:
- Do participants use search tabs on the library website?
- Can participants find items owned and not owned by their library?
- Can participants find a way to request a item not available at their library?
- Can participants find an article on a topic?
- Can participants figure out how to save the citation for an article?
