Scholars Portal Day 2008: Inter-faces

This year's theme is Inter-faces, the space in between our collections and those who use them. Interfaces are a hot topic in library circles right now, but what do we really mean when we talk about interfaces? Who is laying claim to these spaces? How are we architecting the spaces forming these connections? Come join us as we engage in discussion on a broad range of topics such as designing learning spaces, updates on what is happening with interfaces at Scholars Portal and individual OCUL sites, Scholars Portal usability studies, and broad trends in web services.

 
Date: December 12, 2008

Location: George Ignatieff Theatre 
15 Devonshire Place 
Trinity College,University of Toronto

8:30 Registration and Breakfast

Introduction

9:00 Welcoming Remarks and OCUL Update Margaret Grove, OCUL Chair
9:10  Scholars Portal Update Alan Darnell, Scholars Portal Manager

Welcome and Scholars Portal Update

Interface Development and Issues - the Vendor Perspective

9:45 XML2GO

Darin McBeath, Director of Disruptive Technology, Elsevier

Over the past decade, the products delivered by scientific publishers have evolved from hard-copy journals to interactive, full-featured web sites offering their customers a rich, user-friendly research experience.  But, is the STM publishing industry reaching a tipping point where their products will once again evolve in response to the changing needs of their customers? This presentation will explore how Elsevier Labs is developing experimental prototypes to investigate this new generation of potential product offerings.  

XML2GO - Elsevier Presentation

10:25 Break

10:45 OCLC

Matt Goldner, Executive Director of End User Services

Information seekers are rapidly moving away from the library as a starting point for discovery. As librarians we must learn today's users workflows and find the right points to integrate our resources into their workflows. Once they do find us we must make our experience compelling enough and easy enough that they will want to consume our resources as part of their ongoing information seeking.

OCLC Presentation

Accessible Interfaces

11:25 Jutta Treviranus, Adaptive Technology Resource Centre at the University of Toronto

Accessible Interfaces

12:00 Lunch

Connecting Interfaces

1:00 <odesi> Jeff Moon, Queen's University
1:40 LibX Allan Bell, University of Waterloo; Tim Knight, York University; Dan Sich, University of Western Ontario; Sally Wilson, Ryerson University

ODESI

LibX

2:20 Break

Understanding User Needs

Convener: Martha Whitehead, Queen's University

2:40 User Consultation and Scholars Portal

Sarah Toy & Meredith Noble, Information Architects at Usability Matters

This session focuses on how user consultation is being used to inform the development of new interfaces and other future development projects for Scholars Portal. Topics covered include understanding the audience, establishing objectives, and choosing a consultation method.

3:10 Scholr 2.0 Revisited Stacy Allison-Cassin, York University

Usability and Scholars Portal

Scholr 2.0

User-Centred Learning Spaces

3:45 Learning Environments Derived from User-centered Discovery Techniques

Crit Stuart, Director for Research, Teaching, and Learning at the Association of Research Libraries

Academic libraries are committed to delivering new or improved learning spaces for students. Information/learning commons have become de rigueur for libraries seeking to refresh and deepen their engagements with undergraduate learners. The most noteworthy learning environments provide enhanced productivity capacities; exposure to collections and digital information; skills training for knowledge creation; and development of information, verbal, written, and multimedia fluencies. While it is tempting to mimic learning space solutions delivered by other libraries, such appropriation circumvents staff-owned discovery processes that create a deep understanding of, and commitment to, what is being built. Smart preprogramming assessment techniques that tap into local user wisdom, learning habits, and research needs provide a helpful framework for identifying needed solutions. 

Learning Environments

4:30 Closing Remarks and Contest Results Margaret Grove

Closing Remarks