Library Website Comparison

Library Website Comparison

LSC 548

Authority

Name of Web Site	Scituate Rhode Island Public Library	Scituate Massachusetts Public Library
What is the URL?	http://www.scituatelibrary.org	http://www.scituatetownlibrary.org
Is there a recognizable sponsor of the web site? Who is it? Will it be possible to find background information about this sponsor?	This site seems to be created and maintained by the library, there is no outside sponsor mentioned.	The site seems to be created and maintained only by the library, not by an outside sponsor.
Has descriptive information about the sponsor been provided, either on the opening page or via an “about us” link?	There is an "about the library" link on the opening page.	There is an "about the library" link on the opening page.
Is there an address, phone number, or fax number provided for the sponsor?	There is an address and phone number for the library on the main page.	Yes, all of the contact information about the library is on the front page.
Is a personal author identified for the information, articles, or documents presented at the web site?	There is no author or site designer identified.	There is a link on the bottom of the opening page to the website of the designer who created the page. It is not clear who was the author of the information.
If an author is identified, is it clear what his/her credentials are?	N/A	You can get information about the designer by following the link at the bottom of the opening page. The author is not identified.
Is there a way to contact the author?	N/A	You can contact the designer through the link on the bottom of the opening page. The contact information for the library is also offered at the bottom of each page.
Will it be possible to find background information about the author?	Assuming the staff of the library wrote the page, there is a list of staff, but no background information on them.	No. The author is not identified, and assuming it is the library staff, their names are listed but there is no biographical information about them given.

Scope and Purpose

Does the content appear to be fact or opinion?	The content is all factual information about the library and their policies.	The content appears to be all fact and library policies.
What is the scope or purpose of this web site?	"The mission of the North Scituate Public Library is to act as a focal point in the community providing informational, educational, recreational, and cultural services and materials to all age groups." They do not specifically state the scope or purpose of the website, but we can assume it is to provide some of the information listed in their mission statement to the online community.	This website is to give people information about the public library for the town of Scituate, Massachusetts. It lists ongoing events, provides access to the online catalog, directions, and other information about visiting and using the town library.
Does the information presented here seem to be complete and comprehensive? What is included? What is excluded?	There are six main sections on the opening page: Collections; Kids and Teens; Reference; News and Events; Scituate; and Rhode Island. There are also links to "ask the librarian," "about the library" and contact information as well as the library hours. There is no site map, otherwise most necessary information is included.	There are six main pages on this website: the opening page; an about the library page; the online catalog page, which provides instruction as well as access; a research links page; a children's page; and a news and events page. Each of these main pages has a few sub pages giving more information about each subject. I think it is very comprehensive. The only thing I can see that is missing is information about the author(s) and biographical information about the library staff. I guess there could also be more information about the town -- there are only a few links to other town services or organizations and they are buried in the reference links page.
How can you tell? Is the scope described At the top of the first page? In any help file? In a “frequently asked questions or FAQ section? In any other way?	The scope is not explicitly stated, but the mission statement is, as are library policies, news and events. There is no site map, either, so you have to navigate the site yourself to see what is included.	There is no scope or mission directly stated, but on the opening page, there is a "Quick Find" menu which provides links to the pages most frequently used on the site. This includes a Library FAQ, as well as directions to the library and several of the online catalog pages.
How does this site compare to similar information elsewhere?	This site provides useful information for a small town public library. The design is a little confusing and it is not always easy to navigate through as there are many links to outside sources. There are only a few pages relating to the library. Most of the sites linked to are for other resources in the town, or state and reference sites on different subjects. It does not look as professional as other sites I have seen.	This site seems pretty typical for a small town public library website. It is comparable to other library websites I have looked at. It has a nicer design than some I have seen, but the information provided seems typical.
How is this database structured?	This site is not really a database. The online catalog is a database hosted by the CLAN network of Rhode Island libraries. The Scituate library website is divided into six main sections: Collections; Kids and Teens: Reference; Scituate; Rhode Island; and News and Events.	This site is not a database. The online catalog is a database which is maintained by a separate site, the Old Colony Library Network. The site is organized into six main pages described above.
Are there links provided to other sources of information on this same topic? Is it clear how these links are selected?	There are many links to other sources on this website. The Reference, Scituate and Rhode Island sections contains only links to outside websites. The Scituate and Rhode Island links are to other government and community organizations. It is not clear how the reference links were chosen.	The links that go outside of the site are to the designer's page; reference materials such as newspapers on the reference links page; local museums that the library provides free or discount passes to; and to the local library network, the Old Colony Library Network (OCLN). The OCLN hosts the library's online catalog, so it was chosen to give people more information about the local network of catalogs, as people can use materials from other libraries within the network. The library provides members with free or discount passes to several museums in New England and the website gives links to these museums so people can have more information on them. The reference links are well chosen and give a good mix of local and national sites.
Are the links reliable? Do they get you where you need to go?	The link to the Scituate History Database did not work. The others that I tried all worked.	Yes, the links, though few, all work and provide helpful information.

Accuracy

How accurate is this information?	The information provided seems to be accurate.	The information all seems to be accurate.
How can you tell?	At the bottom of each page, they list the date it was last updated, and most seem to have been updated within the last few months.	The news and events page lists currently ongoing summer activities, it is not outdated. Also, I grew up in the town and know the directions, staff, and other library information given match with my experiences there.
When statistics and other factual data are presented is it cited so that one can verify it?	There are no statistics or factual data that would require citations.	There are no statistics given on the page. There is not any material that would need to be cited, it is mostly just instruction on using the library and library policies.
Are tables, charts, and graphs clear and easy to understand?	There are not any graphics like this.	There are no charts, tables or graphs.
Is there any bibliography?	I don't see a need for a bibliography.	There is no need for a bibliography.
Is the document generally well-written? Free of spelling mistakes and typographical errors?	I did not see any errors on the site.	Yes, I did not see any spelling or grammatical errors.

Objectivity

Check the domain to ascertain possible reasons for the provision of this information ..edu - university, school, or other educational site ..com - company or another commercial site ..gov - government site ..org - nonprofit organization site .~ - usually indicates a personal home page	This is a .org site. While the library is funded mostly by the town and state and government, they also have a board of trustees, a membership association that you must pay to join, and do fundraising like other nonprofit organizations.	This site is a .org site. While the library is funded mostly by the town and state and government, they also have a board of trustees and do fundraising much like other nonprofit organizations.
Is the subject controversial? If so, Are all sides of the issue presented? Is the presentation too bland? Is there a bias? If so, is it stated up front? Is the information free from advertising?	There is nothing controversial about this website, nor are there any biases or advertising.	There is nothing controversial on this site. There does not seem to be any bias. There is no advertising.
Is the information free from advertising?	The library pages themselves do not have any advertising. Although some of the links to outside pages do contain advertising, there is no link that goes directly to an advertisement.	Yes, it is free from advertising.

Currentness

Are any of the following dates provided? Creation date Post date Revision date	Creation and post dates are not provided, but they do post the date of last update at the bottom of each page.	There are no creation, posting, or revision dates given.
When was this site last updated? How can you tell? Is there any information on how often the site is updated?	There is no information on how frequently the site is updated. You can tell when each page was updated because they post the date at the bottom of each page. Each page has a different date, so they seem to update different pages as necessary.	There is no date specifying when the site was last updated, however the news and events page lists events for July and August 2004. Earlier events have been removed, leading me to believe it was likely updated in early or mid July.
What was updated?	Each page seems to be updated separately. On the main page, you can tell it was recently updated because they have posted the July Newsletter. I have not visited this site before July, so I do not know what else was updated.	The only obvious thing that was updated is the news and events page. There is nothing to indicate when or why other pages were last updated.
How does the creation of the database stay current?	The online catalog database is maintained by CLAN.	The only database involved is the library catalog, which is maintained and updated by the Old Colony Library Network. I do not have a library card for this network anymore, so I could not login to get more information.
In cases where there is statistical data or factual data is it indicated when that data was gathered?	There is no statistical data that would need to be cited in such a way.	There is no such data.
Does the information seem out of date?	No, all of the information on the site seems to be current.	No, nothing seems out of date.
How stable is this site, its address and its information? Is it here today and gone (or moved) tomorrow?	The site seems to be stable, I have not had problems accessing it.	The site seems very stable, I have never had a problem accessing it.

Arrangement and Format

How easy is it to find and use this site?	A google search for Scituate Library lists the Massachusetts site first and the Rhode Island site section. A search for Scituate Rhode Island Library will bring this site up first.	A google search for Scituate Library gives this site as the first result, and the Scituate Rhode Island Library as the second result. Both are easy to find and adding the state to the search terms will alter which result is listed first.
How convenient is it?	The site is convenient.	The site is convenient.
How well-organized?	This site is not as well organized as others I have seen. The News and Events section is in the middle of the page, with the other five sections along the right and left hand columns. There is no site map, and there is no indication what are internal pages and what links bring you to outside sites.	I think the site is very well organized. The menu of six main pages is at the top of each page, making it easy to get back to other parts of the site. The contact information for the library is also listed at the bottom of each page.
How quickly can you usually get to this site? Get around the site?	You can get to the site quickly, but it is a little slow to get around. There is no indication of what links bring you to outside sites, and outside sites open in the same window, so you have to use the back button of your browser a lot to get back to the library site.	The site is easy to get to and get around. As mentioned above, there are links on each page back to any of the six main pages. The internal pages also have links to all the other pages within each section.
How appropriate is the format of the database for its intended audience?	This format may be a little confusing for the general public, as it is hard to tell what links are about the library, and which are links to external sites.	The format is simple and appropriate for the general public.
Does the information seem out of date?	None of the information is out of date.	None of the information seems obviously outdated.
Are there any hardware, software, or multimedia requirements?	There is one simple animation on the main page, but it shouldn't require any special software. The "ask a librarian" link when clicked automatically opened a new message in my computer's Outlook email program. I am not sure what would happen if you did not have Outlook or were using a public computer.	No. There is no flash or other multimedia involved.

Design Considerations

Does it function well with different browsers?	Yes, I had no trouble using it with Safari, Explorer or Netscape.	Yes, I had no trouble using this site with Safari, Explorer or Netscape.
Is too much filler used?	The main site seems a little cluttered, and a lot of the pages contain a lot of links. However, they are mostly useful and there is not a lot of filler text between the links.	No, there is hardly any filler. I found the site to be fairly sparse, and there is no extraneous unnecessary information.
Is it obvious when you leave to a different site?	No, this is a weakness and something that makes the site difficult to navigate. I prefer outside links to open in a separate window, and that does not happen here. It is very easy to accidentally leave the library site.	This is a weakness of the site. The library catalog opens in another window, so it is obvious that it is on a separate site. However, the links to the member museums and to the research sites open in the same window, replacing the library page. There is no message saying you will be leaving the library website. I prefer when links to outside websites open in a new window.

Layout Considerations

Enough white space?	Yes, the background is white.	Yes, the background of all the pages is white.
Overdone styles?	I did not like the style of this website, it seemed a bit less professional than others. The tables and graphics were very simple and unsophisticated. But I wouldn't call it "over done," it is still fairly simple.	No, the style of this site is very simple, with white backgrounds, black and gold text and few pictures.
Too many links?	Yes, I think a lot of the pages contain too many links with unclear descriptions of what they are.	No there are not very many links at all outside of the reference page.
Links with too many words?	No, the links are simply titled and they do not type out the entire URL.	No, the links are simple and noted only by the page title, not the entire URL.
Textual descriptions too brief or too long?	The textual descriptions are way too brief, in fact in a lot of cases they do not exist!	The textual descriptions of links on the reference page are too brief. The pages linked to are hardly explained at all -- only a sentence or a few words about each.
Use of color?	The colors here are typical and boring. The text is black, links are blue and visited links are purple -- I believe these are the default settings for most browsers and it's not very creative.	There is not much color used, and the colors that are used are muted and subtle, not too bright. I think it works well for this site.

Graphics

Do the graphics relate to the surrounding text?	Not really. There is one graphic of a librarian figure with her finger to her mouth in a "shhh..." kind of manner. This is located underneath the "Ask A Librarian" link. The only other graphic is of a few cartoonish flowers in the News and Events section in the middle of the main page.	The only graphics are photographs of the exterior and interior of the library.
Do the graphics provide important information?	No, the graphics do not provide any information and seem to be only decorative.	No, the graphics provide only visuals of the facility.
Does the size of the graphics relate to the page content?	Yes, the graphics, while unnecessary, are well sized.	Yes, the graphics are appropriate sizes for their placement within the site.
Are pictures missing?	No.	No.
What is the quality of the graphics?	The photograph is of decent quality. The flowers are basic clip art and not very sophisticated.	The graphics are decent quality photographs.
How long does it take for the graphics to display?	The graphics display quickly.	The graphics display very quickly.
Are textual descriptions of graphics provided when a text-based browser is used?	I don't use a text-based browser, but there was an IMG ALT tag for the picture of the librarian figure when I viewed the source of the page, but not for the flowers.	I don't use a text-based browser, however there are captions and IMG ALT tags when I viewed the source of the page, indicating that some text will appear in place of the graphics for people using a text-based browser.
Are the textual descriptions appropriate?	Yes the description for the librarian picture says "click here to send mail." It does not say who your mail will go to, though.	Yes, they are simple, and say things like "Picture of Library."

Help Information

Is “help” provided?	I found no help or FAQ pages.	There is no "help" page or link, but there is a FAQ page. Also, the page about the online catalog provides instruction on using the catalog as well as links to the library network's help information. There is also a link to email the library for more information, and the phone number is also provided.
Is “help” information easy to find?	If there is any, it is not easy to find as I didn't see any!	Yes, the FAQ page is on the main page in the Quick Finds drop down menu. The phone number and email are listed on every page. The online catalog information is available on the first page of the catalog section, and the links are easily identified.
How helpful is the “help” information?	N/A	The FAQ and the instruction on using the catalog are very helpful.
If “help” isn't provided, should it be provided?	Yes, I think there should always be a basic help and instructional page.	I don't think there needs to be more help provided. The FAQ and online catalog provide all the information that most users should need, and the email and phone number are easy to find for those who need more in depth information.

Feedback Information

Are opportunities for feedback provided?	I guess the only option would be to call the phone number given or to click the "ask a librarian" link to send email.	There is one email address given for feedback and questions.
Are feedback opportunities easy to find?	The "ask a librarian" link and phone number are only given on the main page.	Yes, the email address is given on each page.

Overall Feel and Look

How well organized is the site?	The site is OK. It is composed mostly of links, very little text. There are a few problems with broken links and in one instance on an internal page, I clicked a "return to home" link and was sent to the April home page with the April Newsletter, not the July page I had seen previously. The six main categories are good, but the links are not well explained, and it is confusing to navigate through the site as you often end up on external sites.	This site is very well organized. Everything is easy to find and it is easy to navigate through.
Are the pages consistent from page to page?	Yes, the internal pages are of consistent design.	Yes, the pages all look similar, with the same header menu and footer information on each page.
How easy is it to locate important information?	The hours and phone number are listed on the main page, which is helpful. Other important information about the library, such as the staff and policies are found in the About the Library page. Other information is not as easy to find as many links are not explained, and there is no site map.	I found all of the information on the site easy to find and navigate to. There is no site map, however.
On a scale of 1 to 10 (1=poor, 10=superior), rate each web site.	I give this site a 6.	I give this website a 9.
Briefly describe why you rated each as you did.	This site contains a lot of basic information about the library, but it relies too much on links to outside sites. Many of the links are useful, but they are not explained or described in anyway. Also, it is annoying when a link brings you to an outside site without warning, as most links here do. The design is unsophisticated and boring. There are several instances of broken links and overall it was confusing to navigate through.	This is an excellent website which doesn't get a 10 because it is missing a few fundamentals such as a site map, identification of authors, and notification of updates or dates of posting.