TAL Online

Peter Binkley
The Alberta Library
SiteSearch Users Group
8 May 2001

Outline

• A little history
• Parameters
• The usability process
• Demo and description
  • The website
  • Searching and navigating
  • Extended Services
• Future Directions

A Little History

• cross-sectoral VUC for a multi-type consortium
• in development for over a year
• now nearing public launch

Parameters

• localized interface ... but not yet
• serve both (all?) communities
• delight our users and funders

• preparation: web administration tool
• based on Cocoon - an eccentric choice
  • edit ini files
  • manage databases and authos
  • produce statistical reports

The Usability Process

• consultants: Northern Lights, Saskatoon
• the process:
  • review of current site and our desires
  • peer analysis
  • recommendations and implementation
  • task-based usability testing (about 20 subjects)
  • more recommendations, implementation (we are here)
  • final testing and fine-tuning

The Usability Process: Lessons

• the developer's conclusion: upgrade to better users
• think Google - the users will
• simplify
• advertise the content
• do it six months ago

The website

• http://www.talonline.ca
• preserving the sessionid with PHP
• advertise the content

Authentication

• (development server)
• authentication by:
  • IP address
  • cookies (for workstations with dynamic IP addresses)
  • refering URL (for sites that authenticate their own users)
  • user id and password (for staff)
  • guest
• "smart guest"

Demo: searching and navigating

• basic search divided: OPACS and article databases
• for OPACs, broadcast searching primary
• choose and search on one screen
• simplified brief listings, with or without holdings

Demo: extended services

• while we wait for OpenURL etc., let's roll our own links
• rule:

[ALIGaleBookReview]
displayname     = Extended Service
addLabels       = false
class   = ORG.oclc.fmts.rules.AddExtendedService
extendedService = reviewSearch
dblist  = GaleReview
header  = <li><a href="/WebZ/ALIBasicQuery?sessionid=&sessionid;&termA=&ReviewSe
arch.title;&indexA=sh=&operatorB=or&termB=&ReviewSearch.title;&indexB=ti=
authorsearch    = &operatorC=and&termC=&ReviewSearch.author;&indexC=sh=
footerBefore    = &format=B&fmtclass=&next=&StyleTable.pages.briefdisplay;&bad=&
StyleTable.pages.badsearch;&entitytoprecno=1&entitycurrecno=1&numrecs=10&dbchoic
e=1&dbname=
footerMiddle    = ">

• use of jake

Future Directions

• RPA
• ILL
• User Profiles
• Access to user's account (NCIP)

Try it!

http://www.talonline.ca - log in as "test2", password "alberta"