The Academic Website Usability Research
The aim of the paper is to present a usability evaluation of the website of the Faculty of Management (Czestochowa University of Technology) and to identify the major strengths and weaknesses as well as challenges in information architecture and interface design of this site. The research was conduc...
Gespeichert in:
| Veröffentlicht in: | Электронное моделирование |
|---|---|
| Datum: | 2009 |
| 1. Verfasser: | |
| Format: | Artikel |
| Sprache: | English |
| Veröffentlicht: |
Інститут проблем моделювання в енергетиці ім. Г.Є. Пухова НАН України
2009
|
| Online Zugang: | https://nasplib.isofts.kiev.ua/handle/123456789/101533 |
| Tags: |
Tag hinzufügen
Keine Tags, Fügen Sie den ersten Tag hinzu!
|
| Назва журналу: | Digital Library of Periodicals of National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine |
| Zitieren: | The Academic Website Usability Research / J. Kwiatkowska // Электронное моделирование. — 2009. — Т. 31, № 6. — С. 119-128. — Бібліогр.: 8 назв. — англ. |
Institution
Digital Library of Periodicals of National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine| id |
nasplib_isofts_kiev_ua-123456789-101533 |
|---|---|
| record_format |
dspace |
| spelling |
Kwiatkowska, J. 2016-06-04T13:22:21Z 2016-06-04T13:22:21Z 2009 The Academic Website Usability Research / J. Kwiatkowska // Электронное моделирование. — 2009. — Т. 31, № 6. — С. 119-128. — Бібліогр.: 8 назв. — англ. 0204-3572 https://nasplib.isofts.kiev.ua/handle/123456789/101533 The aim of the paper is to present a usability evaluation of the website of the Faculty of Management (Czestochowa University of Technology) and to identify the major strengths and weaknesses as well as challenges in information architecture and interface design of this site. The research was conducted on the basis of heuristic analysis. Дана оценка качества вебсайта факультета менеджмента Честоховского технологического университета и идентифицированы основные преимущества и недостатки, а также проблемы в архитектуре информации и дизайне интерфейса этого сайта. Исследование проведено на основе эвристического анализа. Дано оцінку якості вебсайта факультету менеджменту Честоховського технологічного університету та ідентифіковано основні переваги і недоліки, а також проблеми в архітектурі інформації та дизайні інтерфейсу цього сайта. Дослідження проведено на базі евристичного аналізу. en Інститут проблем моделювання в енергетиці ім. Г.Є. Пухова НАН України Электронное моделирование The Academic Website Usability Research Исследование качества университетского веб-сайта Article published earlier |
| institution |
Digital Library of Periodicals of National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine |
| collection |
DSpace DC |
| title |
The Academic Website Usability Research |
| spellingShingle |
The Academic Website Usability Research Kwiatkowska, J. |
| title_short |
The Academic Website Usability Research |
| title_full |
The Academic Website Usability Research |
| title_fullStr |
The Academic Website Usability Research |
| title_full_unstemmed |
The Academic Website Usability Research |
| title_sort |
academic website usability research |
| author |
Kwiatkowska, J. |
| author_facet |
Kwiatkowska, J. |
| publishDate |
2009 |
| language |
English |
| container_title |
Электронное моделирование |
| publisher |
Інститут проблем моделювання в енергетиці ім. Г.Є. Пухова НАН України |
| format |
Article |
| title_alt |
Исследование качества университетского веб-сайта |
| description |
The aim of the paper is to present a usability evaluation of the website of the Faculty of Management (Czestochowa University of Technology) and to identify the major strengths and weaknesses as well as challenges in information architecture and interface design of this site. The research was conducted on the basis of heuristic analysis.
Дана оценка качества вебсайта факультета менеджмента Честоховского технологического университета и идентифицированы основные преимущества и недостатки, а также проблемы в архитектуре информации и дизайне интерфейса этого сайта. Исследование проведено на основе эвристического анализа.
Дано оцінку якості вебсайта факультету менеджменту Честоховського технологічного університету та ідентифіковано основні переваги і недоліки, а також проблеми в архітектурі інформації та дизайні інтерфейсу цього сайта. Дослідження проведено на базі евристичного аналізу.
|
| issn |
0204-3572 |
| url |
https://nasplib.isofts.kiev.ua/handle/123456789/101533 |
| citation_txt |
The Academic Website Usability Research / J. Kwiatkowska // Электронное моделирование. — 2009. — Т. 31, № 6. — С. 119-128. — Бібліогр.: 8 назв. — англ. |
| work_keys_str_mv |
AT kwiatkowskaj theacademicwebsiteusabilityresearch AT kwiatkowskaj issledovaniekačestvauniversitetskogovebsaita AT kwiatkowskaj academicwebsiteusabilityresearch |
| first_indexed |
2025-11-26T17:35:51Z |
| last_indexed |
2025-11-26T17:35:51Z |
| _version_ |
1850765806986592256 |
| fulltext |
J. Kwiatkowska
Czestochowa University of Technology,
(joanna@zim.pcz.pl)
The Academic Website Usability Research
The aim of the paper is to present a usability evaluation of the website of the Faculty of Manage-
ment (Czestochowa University of Technology) and to identify the major strengths and weaknesses
as well as challenges in information architecture and interface design of this site. The research was
conducted on the basis of heuristic analysis.
Äàíà îöåíêà êà÷åñòâà âåáñàéòà ôàêóëüòåòà ìåíåäæìåíòà ×åñòîõîâñêîãî òåõíîëîãè÷åñêîãî
óíèâåðñèòåòà è èäåíòèôèöèðîâàíû îñíîâíûå ïðåèìóùåñòâà è íåäîñòàòêè, à òàêæå ïðîá-
ëåìû â àðõèòåêòóðå èíôîðìàöèè è äèçàéíå èíòåðôåéñà ýòîãî ñàéòà. Èññëåäîâàíèå ïðîâå-
äåíî íà îñíîâå ýâðèñòè÷åñêîãî àíàëèçà.
K e y w o r d s: usability, information architecture, World Wide Web, website design, user-cen-
tred design, heuristic analysis.
Internet – formerly a niche and exclusive medium, today constitutes an insepara-
ble element of our reality. What is more, its range grows continuously. Many
companies and institutions noticed that websites, formerly considered just as
showcases, constitute nowadays a very important channel of communication.
Thus, a website that meets requirements of their clients, raises simultaneously
their satisfaction and, what is more, it strengthens interest in this company or in-
stitution. According to Barbara Kudrycka, the Minister of Science and Higher
Education in Poland, the times of baby bust in Poland (Fig. 1) and the abolish-
ment of compulsory military service will contribute to the decrease in the num-
ber of students (up to 30%) in the near future [1]. Universities have found them-
selves in a very difficult situation and will have to use all the means to survive
the crisis.
According to experts [3], the institution website that meets the usability cri-
teria can increase its position on the market. For example, the version of the
PoohCorner kindergarten’s website consistent with usability norms has contrib-
uted to 700% growth of the interest in kindergarten’s offer [3]. In my opinion
this approach would be effective in the case of the Faculty of Management
(Czestochowa University of Technology), therefore I decided to identify the
challenges in the university website.
ISSN 0204–3572. Ýëåêòðîí. ìîäåëèðîâàíèå. 2009. Ò. 31. ¹ 6 119
�
Methodology. Usability (also web-usability) is the science of websites’ er-
gonomics. It concerns intuitive navigation and ensures easy access to requested
information. A useful website is accessible for handicapped and the presented
information have logical structure.
My research is based on heuristic analysis (audit) which is conducted in or-
der to find weak points of the website. The following points present advantages
of applied changes according to heuristic analysis:
easy navigation;
easy search of information;
intuitive use of functions;
content readability;
clients satisfaction, loyalty and trust;
institution image improvement;
better position in search of engines results (SEO).
Additionally, the Nielsen Norman Group postulates concerning usability
have been used in this research [4].
Case study. The Faculty of Management website is available online at
http://zim.pcz.pl/.
I. Website structure. The website structure concerns the content arrange-
ment. In the case of http://zim.pcz.pl/, the structure has three asymmetric col-
umns, where menu is on the left side (Fig. 2).
II. Navigation. A navigation constitutes a basis of hypertext documents.
Among website designers there exist different tendencies concerning menu lo-
J. Kwiatkowska
120 ISSN 0204–3572. Electronic Modeling. 2009. V. 31. ¹ 6
Births
Years
Deaths
1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
I
n
th
o
u
s
a
n
d
s
600
500
400
300
Fig. 1. Population movements in Poland 1989 — 2006 [2]
cation. According to Jakob Nielsen research, 30% of all investigated websites
have a navigation menu on the left side (Table 1) [5].
The investigated website has menu on the left side. Although this is a very
popular solution (see above-cited numerical data), there are strong arguments
pro right-sided menu:
when we do not use a mouse (pointing device), its cursor rests usually on the
right side of computer screen; hand argument [6];
the majority of people is right-handed;
brain argument [6] «(…)every cerebral hemisphere has a tendency to pay at-
tention to things located on the opposite side of the body [the left on the right, the
right on the left] (...), where the left cerebral hemisphere is more efficient than
the right. According to this, people attention (...) can be attracted on the right, be-
cause there is no equilibrium between cerebral hemispheres.» [7].
On the other hand, we read from left to right in all western alphabets that can
indicate the advantage of the left-sided menu.
The Academic Website Usability Research
ISSN 0204–3572. Ýëåêòðîí. ìîäåëèðîâàíèå. 2009. Ò. 31. ¹ 6 121
Fig. 2. Website structure
Navigation pattern Percentage
Left side menu
Horizontal overlapping menu
Links at the top of the page
Categories in the middle of the website
Cascade menu
Other
30
30
18
12
10
6
Table 1. Tendencies concerning menu location [5]
A very strong disadvantage of the Faculty of Management website naviga-
tion is the lack of visible content distribution. It is difficult to find an educational
offer of resident studies, non-resident studies or postgraduate studies at once
(different scripts of website use). The good idea to solve this problem is applica-
tion of horizontal overlapping menu (Fig. 3).
Additionally, there is a lack of navigational element called breadcrumbs,
which shows a path covered by user within website structure, for example:
Home > Educational offer > Academic year structure.
On the one hand the existing navigation may contain a long list of links, it is easy
to scale and the length of links names are not crucial. On the other hand such
menu occupies a lot of space, and the items of menu placed below a page break
are invisible.
III. Logo. The logo of the Faculty is placed on the left upper side of the
screen, that is recommended by web designer. The other advantage is that when
we click on this logo, we are being sent back on the main page (exception: there
is no return by the logo link from webmail).
IV. Search engine. There is a lack of a search engine on the website.
V. Graphical user interface.
Buttons. There is no indication which navigation button has been pressed.
What is more, names of the buttons are mixed: when we press Conferences but-
ton (7th position in the menu), in contrast to other buttons it changes its colour
(red) and the place in menu hierarchy (5th position in the menu)!!
Hyperlinks. The hyperlinks have blue colour that is correct, but there is no
useful and conventional underline. What is more, the visited hyperlinks have
black colour, which belongs to colours reserved for active hyperlinks [4].
Scroll bar. The scroll bar is classic, thus there is no problem while running it
in different web browsers.
Cursor. There is a proper change (from arrow to hand indicator) in the case
of pointing hyperlinks.
Icon. There is a lack of useful icons (for example Home), which send back a
user to other pages.
VI. Advertisement. While visiting the Faculty website, the advertising ban-
ner concerning postgraduate studies is visible. According to researches, such a
J. Kwiatkowska
122 ISSN 0204–3572. Electronic Modeling. 2009. V. 31. ¹ 6
Resident studies Non-resident studies Postgraduate studies
Fig. 3. Horizontal overlapping menu – content distribution suggestion
solution is not recommended due to banner blindness effect (web visitors ignore
advertisements unwittingly), which is very often observed [8].
VII. Typography.
Font. On the Faculty website, sans serif Verdana font designed by Matthew
Carter (premiere: July 8, 1996) has been used. It is the modern, simple and pro-
fessional font that ensures the best legibility.
The accessibility of the fonts has been defined correctly (definition of the
family in the Cascading Style Sheets):
BODY {font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;}.
Unfortunately, navigation menu comprises graphic images, therefore amblyopic
people have no chance to enlarge these items.
Font size. The font size (10—12 points) is suitable for its target group (stu-
dents) (Table 2).
Font colour – black and blue.
1. Contrast between background and font colour (tested with Colour
Check available online at http://www.etre.com/tools/colourcheck/). Results:
Your colour combination of #000000 and #ffffff passes Checkpoint
2.2 Brightness
The difference in brightness between your foreground and background colours is suf-
ficient and meets the standard recommended by the W3C.
Contrast
The contrast between your foreground and background colours is sufficient and meets
the standard recommended by the W3C.
A sample of how text will appear using the colour combinations you specified is shown
below.
This is a sample of how text will appear using the colour combinations you specified.
Foreground: #000000. Background: #ffffff.
Note that passing this test does not assure readability. Certain colour combinations can
pass Checkpoint 2.2 and still cause readability problems, as illustrated below. You
should carefully consider the appropriateness of the colours you choose and their in
tended purpose.
2. Colour contrast (tested with Colour Contrast Analyser available online at
http://blackwidows.co.uk/resources/color-contrast-analyser.php). Results:
The Academic Website Usability Research
ISSN 0204–3572. Ýëåêòðîí. ìîäåëèðîâàíèå. 2009. Ò. 31. ¹ 6 123
Readers (difference according to age) Font size, points
Children 12 — 14
Young people 10 — 12
Standard 10 — 12
The Elderly 12 — 14
Table 2. Font sizes according to user age [5]
Input
Background: #FFFFFF
Text: #000000
Colour Brightness: 255
The difference in brightness between the two colours complies with the W3C threshold
of 125.
Colour Difference: 765
Warning: This figure significantly exceeds the W3C threshold of 500 and may create
problems for people with dyslexia - especially when used with bold text and/or
headings. Consider reducing it to below 600.
Background: #FFFFFF
Text: #0031c6
Colour Brightness: 203
The difference in brightness between the two colours complies with the W3C threshold
of 125.
Colour Difference: 518
This complies with the W3C threshold of 500.
Paragraphs format. Text is divided into blocks containing 5-10 lines. It en-
sures the light between paragraphs, that makes the text more readable. Unfortu-
nately, text alignment (justification) is improper. Comparison:
J. Kwiatkowska
124 ISSN 0204–3572. Electronic Modeling. 2009. V. 31. ¹ 6
Justification To left
Czestochowa University of Technology is the
biggest public university in region. The
fifty-year scientific and didactic activity of
Czestochowa University of Technology en-
rolled permanently in history and tradition of
the town. In all-Polish rankings of public uni-
versities, Czestochowa University of Tech-
nology places in the lead of universities with
similar educational profile.
Changes after 1989 caused growth of demand
at labour market for highly skilled specialists
in management. To adapt teaching system to
prevailing conditions, organization and man-
agement in the machine-building industry
specialization has been established at Me-
chanical Engineering Department. The next
stage was the foundation of the Chair of Orga-
nization and Managementin 1991.
Intensive development of the Chair and in-
crease in the number of students led to the es-
tablishment of the Institute of Management,
which acted as the basic organizational unit
on the terms of faculty. Further dynamic
growth...
Czestochowa University of Technology is the
biggest public university in region. The
fifty-year scientific and didactic activity of
Czestochowa University of Technology en-
rolled permanently in history and tradition of
the town. In all-Polish rankings of public uni-
versities, Czestochowa University of Tech-
nology places in the lead of universities with
similar educational profile.
Changes after 1989 caused growth of demand
at labour market for highly skilled specialists
in management. To adapt teaching system to
prevailing conditions, organization and man-
agement in the machine-building industry
specialization has been established at Me-
chanical Engineering Department. The next
stage was the foundation of the Chair of Orga-
nization and Managementin 1991.
Intensive development of the Chair and in-
crease in the number of students led to the es-
tablishment of the Institute of Management,
which acted as the basic organizational unit
on the terms of faculty. Further dynamic
growth...
Text source: http://zim.pcz.pl/eng/informacje/
VIII. Colours. Thanks to the Colour Palette Generator colours at the Fac-
ulty website have identified (the Colour Palette Generator available online at
http://www.degraeve.com/color-palette/) (Fig. 4).
Unfortunately, such colour scheme does not belong to the following the col-
our matrix (216 colours) recommended for websites (Table 3) [5]:
Does not belong to the colour matrix:
ice-blue foreground #daedfe;
navy-blue banner #3abccb;
light grey background #fbfbfb;
menu #d7e3ff.
IX. Website reception by web visitors with visual impairment (tested with
Visual Impairment Simulator for Microsoft Windows® available online at
http://vis.cita.uiuc.edu/downld.php).
X. Website activity in different web browsers (tested with Visual Browser
Shots available online at http://browsershots.org/).Only results indicating prob-
lems have been presented:
Linux – Opera 10.00, Opera 9.64, Conqueror 3.5 – does not work at all.
The Academic Website Usability Research
ISSN 0204–3572. Ýëåêòðîí. ìîäåëèðîâàíèå. 2009. Ò. 31. ¹ 6 125
Percents 0 20 40 60 80 100
0 — 255 0 51 102 153 204 255
00 — FF 00 33 66 99 CC FF
Table 3. Colour matrix
Fig. 4. Colour Palette Generator – test results
Linux – Firefox 2.0, Firefox 3.5.2, Iceape 1.3.13, Diallo 0.8, Seamonkey
1.2, Shiretoko 3.5, Flock 1.2.1 — problem with Flash;
Windows – Opera 8.54, MSIE 5.5 — problem with Flash;
Linux – Iceweasel 3.0.4 — problems with graphic.
Conclusions. According to the results of the study presented above, there is
a lot of challenges in the site’s information architecture as well in the interface
design. The improvement of the Faculty website might bring advantages to stu-
dents as well as the Faculty itself.
Äàíî îö³íêó ÿêîñò³ âåáñàéòà ôàêóëüòåòó ìåíåäæìåíòó ×åñòîõîâñüêîãî òåõíîëîã³÷íîãî
óí³âåðñèòåòó òà ³äåíòèô³êîâàíî îñíîâí³ ïåðåâàãè ³ íåäîë³êè, à òàêîæ ïðîáëåìè â àðõ³òåê-
òóð³ ³íôîðìàö³¿ òà äèçàéí³ ³íòåðôåéñó öüîãî ñàéòà. Äîñë³äæåííÿ ïðîâåäåíî íà áàç³ åâðèñ-
òè÷íîãî àíàë³çó.
1. Kudrycka: prowadzenie badan pomo�ze przetrwac ni�z demograficzny. October 13,2009.—
available on-line at http://www.naukawpolsce.pap.pl
2. Sytuacja demograficzna w Polsce. Conference materials. October 23, 2007. Glowny Urzad
Statystyczny Departament Badan Demograficznych, 2007.
3. Usability. Pierwsza wizyta.—available on-line at http://www.usability.com.pl/firstvisit.html
4. The Nielsen Norman Group. — available on-line at http://www.nngroup.com
5. Kasperski M., Boguska-Torbicz A. Projektowanie stron www. Gliwice: Wyd. Helion, 2008.
6. Marek Kasperski blog.— available on-line at http://ui.blox.pl/2007/07/Herezje-menu-
prawostronne.html
7. Ingram J. Plonacy dom. Odkrywajac tajemnice mozgu. — Warszawa : Proszynski i S-ka,
1996.—P. 80—83.
8. Banner Blindness: Old and New Findings. Jakob Nielsen’s Alertbox, August 20, 2007.—
available on-line at http://www.useit.com/alertbox/banner-blindness.html
Submitted on 19.10.09
J. Kwiatkowska
126 ISSN 0204–3572. Electronic Modeling. 2009. V. 31. ¹ 6
� �
�
�
� �
�
|