Library & Information Services » James Beauchemin

LIS site improvements since usability testing

James Beauchemin — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 20:17:47 +0000

Soon after the launch of the new Middlebury web site, the LIS website team conducted usability testing on the LIS parts of the site (see report 1, report 2). Many improvements have been made based on the feedback received during testing. Since part of the Team’s charge for this year included following-up on these recommendations, we thought it best to share some of the highlights. These changes were made with the help of many content managers and website editors; we thank you for your contributions!:

improved Google search has recently been implemented on the whole Middlebury site, which has already made searching for LIS content much easier

a revised structure for the LIS Help & Support web pages

improved directory search results, so search “by department” displays the job titles for all members of the department. For example, the listing for all LIS staff

site banners that currently say “Library and Information Services” will soon display additional text for clearer branding of the different LIS website sections

quick links navigation items are now standardized across all parts of the LIS web presence

better color use in the “leaf” color theme for improved legibility

templates for the LIS blog that align with the Drupal site, with new design options for the LIS wiki in progress

on-page search boxes for pages that include sub-page lists is now labeled “Find on this page:” to distinguish from site-wide search boxes

added links to check ILL requests in My MIDCAT

a simpler format for pages that link to multiple forms for clearer and easier navigation. For example: Collection Management Forms

Remember, there’s also an option for anyone to report issues with a page using the Problems with this Page? button, and you can get in touch with LIS Content Managers by finding them at go/liscm.

What’s next? We’re moving on from following-up on the old recommendations to working on marketing strategies for the site, and soon afterward, another round of testing, likely in the form of a user needs analysis and more usability testing. Feel free to send us feedback any time. Thanks!

Helpdesk – Limited Service Hours today (May 24)

James Beauchemin — Mon, 24 May 2010 12:42:17 +0000

The Technology Help and Support Desk will have limited hours today. The Call Center will be open from 12Noon today to 5:00pm at x2200. The Helpdesk Staff will be taking this time in the morning to acclimate to its new … Continue reading →

Technology Helpdesk Relocation

James Beauchemin — Fri, 14 May 2010 19:00:14 +0000

Come Monday May 17 the LIS Technology Helpdesk will be relocating from LIB135 to LIB125. Our actual move of Helpdesk functions will begin Friday May 14 at 3:00pm. While the Helpdesk functions are being relocated to LIB125 the Helpdesk Student Consultants located at our Walk-In Helpdesk Center in LIB202 will be open for business to receive calls and process problems. The staff during the relocation will be engaged in the move. There should be minimal impact to our users during this move and we are confident that we will be back in full operation late Monday morning May 17. Thank you in advance for your patience and understanding during this transition time.

James Beauchemin x2019
Technology Help and Support Manager

Wireless on campus

James Beauchemin — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 14:29:46 +0000

A new wireless network access method has been created on campus which promotes better connectivity to Middlebury resources.

The new wireless access (SSID) is: MIDD-STANDARD. Currently many users access our wireless network by turning-on their laptop and automatically connecting to midd_unplugged. Although this is an easy connection for many this particular wireless access point is becoming saturated with connections and performance is degrading. There is no security on midd_unplugged; using it puts your data at risk.

Connecting to MIDD-STANDARD will improve your networking performance, provide added security and help us reduce the loads on midd_unplugged so that our guests will continue to have a viable Internet connection when visiting.

To connect to MIDD-STANDARD you will need to contact the Helpdesk at x2200 for the key. You will then go into your wireless network console on your laptop and select MIDD-STANDARD from the list.

NOTE: if you are already on midd_secure we recommend you stay with this access. Your Middlebury sign-in credentials will be the key for access and will not change. MIDD-STANDARD’s key may change from time to time requiring you to re-authenticate to the network.

If you have any questions, please contact the Helpdesk at x2200.

Saving your data to MIDDFILES

James Beauchemin — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 13:00:43 +0000

The Technology Support Helpdesk would like to take this opportunity to again remind the campus user community to please save all personal and work related files to their MIDDFILES personal space (on a Windows computer this would be your U drive in File Explorer). We have had a rush of computers recently come into the Helpdesk with failed hard drives. In some cases we were unable to retrieve any information from those failed drives, leaving the user with no means of data recovery. The risks you assume by not using MIDDFILES are significant when a hardware failure occurs on your computer.

To protect yourself and your data it is highly recommend you immediately start relocating your data to your MIDDFILES personal account. You may visit the Technology Help and Support website (shortcut: go.middlebury.edu/helpdesk) for more information on how to use MIDDFILES. You may also want to visit our Wiki resource link for proper MIDDFILES and DFS usage: Backing Up My Files.

If you have any questions please call the Technology Help and Support Desk at x2200.

James Beauchemin
Technology Support Helpdesk

Welcome Dennis Hadley!

James Beauchemin — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 12:22:43 +0000

Please join me in welcoming Dennis Hadley to LIS. Dennis started with us on April 12th and has assumed the position of Senior Technology Specialist at the Technology Support Helpdesk. Dennis comes to us from Paul Smith’s College in NY and brings a wealth of experience in higher-ed support and service to our helpdesk group and to our users. He has already taken the plunge into many support efforts and is adding more value to our group everyday! Please stop by the Technology Helpdesk and say hi to Dennis.

James Beauchemin
Technology Support Helpdesk

Microsoft Office 2007 Upgrade now available!

James Beauchemin — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 12:00:50 +0000

Microsoft Office 2007 Upgrade is now available to all faculty, staff and students on campus. This online upgrade is easy to complete and should not take more than 5-10 minutes of your time. The upgrade can be found at MIDDFILES\Software\Office2007. Double-click the Office2007_upgrade file that is inside the folder. This will start an automated upgrade of your current Microsoft Office Suite. This file will upgrade Microsoft Word, Excel, Powerpoint and Outlook to the 2007 version.

It is recommended that you first prepare for the new Microsoft Office 2007 user interface by visiting the Technology Helpdesk website as a resource to learn more about this upgraded Office version. You may also visit our Wiki resource link here: https://mediawiki.middlebury.edu/wiki/LIS/Microsoft_Word_2007_Basic_Usage

NOTE: If you currently have Microsoft Office Access 2003 you should not run this upgrade. Please contact the Helpdesk for upgrade assistance.

As always if you have any problems or questions please let us know at the Technology Helpdesk x2200.

James Beauchemin
Technology Support Helpdesk

HEAT – gathering statisitics that can enlighten us

James Beauchemin — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 12:35:43 +0000

I have begun an attempt to query HEAT for any useful statistics that could aid us in our mission. Since HEAT has a unique way of structuring its data in its semi-relational model it has been challenging to pull helpful information. One primary reason for this is that the important information we would want to know about (e.g. sites, problem/request details, etc…) are in free-text fields which cannot be queried easily. Another obstacle is that there seem to be a variety of methods currently (historically) used to categorize Web Site specific events. I spent a few hours this week getting to know the database structure and I should be able to provide some statistics (qualified) by early next week. If anyone has suggestions on the type of information/stats we could pull please send them my way. For now I will look for the obvious stats and we can drill into HEAT further as we discover more about HEAT’s dB and where the data is stored.

Vision – Jim

James Beauchemin — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 15:05:44 +0000

To deliver quality information in a timely manner using a clear and intuitive user interface. To incorporate tools and structures in web form for ease of navigation and search capabilities.