Digital Universities

Recently, I read an article in The Guardian discussing university libraries providing more accessible services and collections for the growing “digital native” student body. While I agree that university libraries need to shift their emphasis from physical library space to the digital realm, I do think they should keep UX in mind. Not just usability of the platforms but consider UX from the beginning; do “digital natives” even want everything online? Are there content and services they would prefer in analog?

Which brings me to another recent article bringing up Google’s project to digitize millions of university library books. This was an incredibly ambitious project that started in 2002 that even the Google gods couldn’t achieve. But why should they? Again I ask, do users even need or want digital access to all the university holdings?

Since library resources are finite, perhaps we should first start with some UX studies (surveys, focus groups, interviews, etc) of the current and incoming university students to see what they want and expect from their university library.

I would love to hear your thoughts on this topic.

Monthly Method Spotlight: Experience Prototype

Experience Prototype

What: Experience prototype is a simulation of the service experience.

When/why: By asking participants to simulate the experience, designers can look for any unanticipated issues or needs that arise during the simulation.

How: Quickly prototype a concept using available materials & ask participants to try it out.

Tips: Create your prototype quickly & don’t worry about it being perfect. The idea is that you will improve and build upon your prototype. See our other posts on prototyping.

Interested in using/applying these methods in your work? Contact us for information.