Front Door Committee
February 21, 2001
The single most prominent digital gateway
to the Yale University Library is its Web site, often referred to as the "front
door." The front door suite of Web pages includes the library ‘home page,’
(http://www.library.yale.edu), key research pages (including the former Research
Workstation), the Library Catalogs page (http://www.library.yale.edu/orbis/),
and many second-level pages of library-wide information such as hours, library
locations and services. The front door should present the full range of the
library’s services in a user-centered, elegant, and easy-to-navigate interface
and offer research information and assistance. The front door also serves as
a portal to the Yale University Library’s collections, service units, and school
and departmental libraries. To be effective, this Web site must be consistently
maintained, periodically evaluated and revised, and enhanced by the use of current
technology. The Front Door Committee will carry forward the work of the Research
Workstation Advisory Board and the Front Door Redesign Task Force.
Charge:
The Front Door Committee is charged with maintaining and evaluating
the library’s front door web site. The goal is to improve the library’Web
presence in ways that are responsive to user needs. The front door must be welcoming
and useful to any potential users of the library, both on-site and off-site,
while recognizing that its primary users are Yale students, faculty and staff.
Usability testing and contact with the library’s clientele will drive the group’s
work to improve the site. In addition, the committee will institute an open
process for receiving suggestions from library users and staff.
In the short term, the committee will integrate the library’s
new Web design and organization throughout the library’s front door suite of
pages, and promote use of the graphic themes by all libraries. This will involve
careful thought about how best to present research resources to the public,
how to revamp existing pages to make them simpler and more user-oriented, and
how to apply technology to improve the library’sWeb presence and simplify maintenance.
In mid-summer 2001, the Committee will shepherd the transition of the Research
Workstation to the new design.
In the long term, the committee will work in conjunction with
the Web Advisory Group and other Library Web groups to investigate ways to dynamically
generate Web pages and promote emerging Web projects (such as the new Orbis
and the Yelmo project for subject searching of e-journals and other resources).
The Service Quality Support Director sponsors the suite of pages
constituting the "front door" and the Front Door Committee. Five members
are appointed by for a two-year term, with continuity in membership and representation
across library units.
Initial Membership:
Julie Linden, chair
Suzanne Lorimer
Gillian Mayman
Andy Shimp
Tim Young
Holly Grossetta Nardini, ex officio
Resources to the Committee (to be contacted as needed):
Karen Reardon, ex officio, Workstation Support
Bonnie Turner, for HTML markup
Andrew Gray, for HTML markup
© 2007 Yale University Library
This file last modified 10/03/01
Send comments to libweb@www.library.yale.edu
