| dc.description |
Web geographic information systems (GISs) and the Internet are now
providing the connectivity necessary to support large-scale data access by a wide
variety of users, including not just scientific researchers, but also policy-makers
and marine resource managers. However, connectivity alone cannot ensure that
those who need natural resource information will be able to locate relevant data.
Data clearinghouses need to provide user interfaces that help a broad user
community understand what spatial data are available, how they can be obtained,
and how they should be interpreted.
The Metadata Humane Society project conducted by researchers at Oregon
State University combined traditional interface engineering knowledge, scientific
research and geographic information science (www.nacse.org/mhs). The
researchers wanted to improve access to spatial information by identifying the
primary barriers to usability for the National Geospatial Data Clearinghouse
(NGDC) interfaces. The project included developing an understanding of the
current state of usability among GIS-related Web sites that provide metadata search
facilities and identifying promising approaches to “learnability” and navigability
that might be exploited in improving the NGDC interfaces. To accomplish these
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goals, three types of usability evaluations were performed: initial predictive
evaluation of existing sites, user testing of existing NGDC Interface, and a user
expectations survey. The evaluations involved actual users from a range of
disciplinary backgrounds and user communities, as well different levels of
expertise. The project found that different levels of user expertise require distinct
subsets of the usability criteria. It is recommended that there be at least two
interfaces available for the NGDC addressing different target audiences, and that
each interface should focus on certain criteria. To improve the delivery of spatial
information to marine resource managers, these recommendations to increase
usability should be applied to data clearinghouses such as the Virtual Oregon,
Oregon Coast Geospatial Clearinghouse and the Geography Network. |
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