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Next Generation Melvyl Pilot — Tell us what you think!

May 19, 2008 Author: Ellen MeltzerCategories:

By Ellen Meltzer, CDL Information Services Manager

How will the Next Generation Melvyl Pilot be evaluated, and how can users provide input?

There are several ways the pilot will be evaluated, including the following:

    1. End user assessment during the pilot will be a key piece of the evaluation process.  Two rounds of assessment with faculty and graduate students will take place in May at UC Berkeley and UC Irvine conducted by UC’s End User Assessment Task Group and OCLC’s well-established assessment team.  Participants will be observed and recorded, and their screen moves and audio will be captured for future viewing.  Lessons learned from the assessment will be folded into upcoming versions of the interface.

A second round of testing with end users will take place in the fall to evaluate other features or interface changes made since round one.

  1. Users, including librarians, have several other ways of providing input on the pilot:
    1. They can provide input using the Feedback link at the bottom of the screen or in the pulldown menu marked Home in the upper left of the screen.  Comments go to both OCLC and to the CDL.  Checking the box “I am a librarian or library employee” ensures the comment goes directly to OCLC first.
    2. They can use the Ask a Librarian link under “Get Help” in the Web banner.  As per the recommendation of the Help & End User Support Task Group, the Ask a Librarian links go to the local campus library service.  Those staffing these services are welcome to send any questions to the CDL Helpline for assistance in answering them.
    3. There will be a Survey link (coming soon) in the Web banner.  The purpose of the survey is to assess user satisfaction, gather information about ease of use and provide users the opportunity to tell us what features they like and dislike about the service.

Remember, some improvements are already in process.  Don’t forget to read the list of Known Problems to see what OCLC is already working on.

The Next Generation Melvyl is in perpetual beta, and we expect to see enhancements throughout the pilot.  User assessment is key to providing the information that will drive improvements.  Please be sure to encourage users to use one of these mechanisms to tell the UC and OCLC teams what you think.

For more information on the pilot, see http://libraries.universityofcalifornia.edu/about/uc_oclc.html