Transcript North Carolina State University Libraries Mobile

Mobilizing the Library: Beyond the Catalog
NCSU Libraries Mobile
Jason Casden, Digital Technologies Development Librarian
David Woodbury, NCSU Libraries Fellow
Markus Wust, Digital Collections and Preservation Librarian
1
Markus Wust
History and Services
2
NCSU Libraries Mobile
•
•
•
•
•
History
Services
Project plan & design
Technical details
Stats & Future plans
3
MobiLIB: NCSU Libraries’ First Mobile
Service
• Launched in 2007 (before iPhone)
• Few models in higher education (Ball State
University, University of Texas)
• Mobile not part of institutional strategy
• No campus collaborators
• No formal development team
4
MobiLIB Services
1. Catalog
2. Computer Availability
3. Opening Hours
4. Campus Directory
5. Contact Information
6. Links to External
Information Providers
7. Campus Bus Status
Information (External)
5
Reusing existing services
• Much of MobiLIB was based upon existing data
services
–
–
–
–
Catalog
Computer Availability
Library Hours
Campus Directory (by campus IT)
• Simplified development and maintenance
• Reduced development time
• Ensured data consistency
6
Catalog using our Catalog Web Service
7
Other Interfaces, Same Data Source
8
Other Interfaces, Same Data Source
Automatically
generate display of
new book titles
iGoogle gadget
Create cover image
displays for blog
posts
9
Computer Availability
10
Other Interface, Same Data Source
11
Library Hours
12
Other Interface, Same Data Source
13
Today…
2 Projects:
• WolfWalk
– Self-guided historical walking tour of NC State
campus
• NCSU Libraries Mobile
– Next-generation mobile library site
14
WolfWalk
• Mobile web version to be
launched March 2010
• iPhone application coming
soon
• Browse information and
photographs of campus sites
• Detect user’s location to
display closest sites
15
NCSU Libraries Mobile
• Launched December 2009 (after iPhone, Droid,
etc.)
• “Mobile” has become strategic initiative
• Formalization of development efforts
• Collaboration with campus IT
• Utilizes same MIT mobile framework (for
display and device detection) as campus site
16
NC State Mobile Web (Campus Site)
17
Our mobile services
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Locations & Hours
Computer Availability
Catalog Search
Reference Services
Webcam Feeds
GroupFinder
News & Events
Link to campus mobile site
18
Locations & Hours
New: Images, maps, descriptions
User Context: Is this branch library open tonight?
19
Computer Availability
New: Visual display, added branch library
User Context: Where can I find an available computer?
20
Catalog Search
New: Cover images, email/text message records
User context: Is the book I need currently available?
21
Reference Services
New: Integrated reference chat
User context: I have a question about the library…
22
Webcam Feeds
New Service: View multiple webcam feeds
User Context: Do I have time to get a coffee?
23
GroupFinder
New Service: Find groups within the library
User Context: Where is my study group?
24
News & Events
New Service: View multiple library-related news feeds
User Context: What is new at the NCSU Libraries?
25
Real time tools
26
David Woodbury
Project Planning & Design
27
Project timeline
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Campus site launch (September 3, 2009)
Planning & wireframes (September)
Programming (early October)
Beta launch (late October)
Formal launch & promotion (November)
Main website redirect (December)
GroupFinder & bug fixes (February 2010)
28
Project team
• One project manager & two programmers
• Approximately one month and half of work for
FTE (split between three of us)
• However, we were using services that took
many months to build
29
What to mobilize?
• What services are currently available?
• What services are applicable on a mobile
device?
• What services translate well to the mobile
environment?
• What tools can be created easily?
• What would be fun to see?
30
Relationship to home page
• Mobile Site ≠ Home Page
• Narrow options for mobile
• Can always link back
• Needs to be maintained by
web team
• Branding & tools need
relate to main site
31
“Mobile” is not just shrinking the page
32
Use only essential, relevant content
33
Use only essential, relevant content
34
Reduce options, simplify
35
Push data as high as possible
36
Limit data to mobile context
37
Limit data to mobile context
• For time oriented
data, we assume
current day & time
• We assume action
oriented
38
Use the mobile interface
39
Provide appropriate tools for the
user’s context
40
Expose hidden, useful content
41
Mobile Planning Tips
•
•
•
•
•
Start with the services that make mobile sense
Limit the amount of data entry
Link back to main site
Promote your site
Talk to students to get reality check
42
NCSU Libraries Mobile Initiative
• Key area for the Libraries
• Includes department representatives from
across the Libraries
• Will plan, advise, and support mobile
development
• Will work with new formalized NC State Mobile
campus group
43
Jason Casden
Technical Planning and Implementation
44
45
When to Make a Native App
• Charging for it
• Creating a game
• Using specific
locations*
• Using cameras
• Using accelerometers
• Accessing the
filesystems
• Offline users
* Actually available to web-based applications
46
The Case for Mobile Web Apps
“I believe that unless your application meets one
of these native application criteria, you should
not create a native application, but should
instead focus on building a mobile web
application.”
— Brian Fling, “Mobile Design and Development”
47
WolfWalk, Two Ways
48
Our tools
• Mobile website
– XHTML 1.0 transitional
– CSS
– non-essential JavaScript and AJAX
• MIT Mobile Web Open Source Project
• Leaned on pre-existing web services
• Targeted higher-end devices
49
No developers?
• Tools that require only HTML knowledge
– iWebKit, iUI, Dashcode…
– Good for static content
– May lack good multi-tiered device support
50
No developers?
• Vendors
–
–
–
–
–
Boopsie, Terribly Clever…
Can manage mobile development process for you
You may lack control over the final product
May be expensive
Doesn’t develop internal expertise
51
Best practices
• Standards and official guidelines
– Useful, but slow-moving
– Don’t get stuck
52
Lots of Devices
Top Level
iPhones, Android
phones, Palm Pre
Large touch
screens,
sophisticated web
capabilities
Middle Level
Blackberry, Nokia
smartphones,
Windows mobile,
etc.
May lack touch
screen and some
CSS and
JavaScript
capabilities.
Low Level
Web-enabled flip
phones
Small screens, low
web functionality
53
Content Adaptation
54
Separating data from presentation
55
Testing
CC BY-SA 2.0:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/wfryer/392918
9482/
56
Recommendations
57
Be Agile
•
•
•
•
Rapid development cycle
Think iteratively
Adjust to change quickly
Avoid paralysis
58
Play
59
Collaborate
• Campus efforts
• External projects
• Steal what you like
– Improve it, so it can be stolen back
60
In Summary…
• Mobile websites are becoming very
sophisticated
• Mobile web app development is web
development
– just a little different
61
Stats!
Page views: 34657
Unique visits: 6573
62
What device?
What is getting used?
63
Future Mobile Plans
•
•
•
•
•
•
Study room reservations
Patron account information and tools
Summon article searching
ReservesDirect
Building wayfinding
Staff tools
64
Resources
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Ballard, Barbara. (2007). Designing the Mobile User Experience.
Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons.
Fling, Brian. (2009). Mobile Design and Development: Practical
Concepts and Techniques for Creating Mobile Sites and Web Apps.
Sebastopol, California: O’Reilly Media.
W3C Mobile Web Best Practices: http://www.w3.org/TR/mobile-bp/
W3C CSS Mobile Profile: http://www.w3.org/TR/css-mobile/
Griggs, K., Bridges, L. M., Rempel, H. G. (2009). “library/mobile: Tips
on Designing and Developing Mobile Web Sites”, The Code4Lib
Journal, Issue 8. Retrieved from:
http://journal.code4lib.org/articles/2055
MIT Mobile Web Open Source Project:
http://sourceforge.net/projects/mitmobileweb/
NCSU Libraries Mobile Project Page:
http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/dli/projects/librariesmobile/
65