5. Interface
Interface decisions should be based on the project description and the assessments and decisions made in the other guidebook sections.
The following describes the type of information that needs to be specified for each potential component of an interface. Not all of this indicated functionality will be necessary for any given project. The Considerations listed throughout the guide are meant to help in deciding whether or not something may be needed.
- 5.1 File Format(s) Decisions
- 5.2 Define Search Functionality
- 5.3 Define Search Results Display
- 5.4 Define Browse List Functionality
- 5.5 Define Web Site Specs
5.1 File Format(s) Decisions
File format decisions should be based on the description of the primary audience, the user computing platforms, and the materials assessment. File formats should accomodate the various ways in which the target audience will need to utilize the digital materials. e.g.,
- online reading
- printing
- close-up inspection
- scanning for data
5.2 Search Functionality Decisions
Use the Search Spec Worksheet to record the following information. A separate worksheet should be used for each search type.
| Search Type: | Enumerate what search types are required. (e.g., author search, title search, general keyword search, etc.) Considerations |
| Appearance of Box: | Indicate, for each search type, whether a separate search box is required or whether a radio button should be used with a single search box. Considerations |
| Search Label: | Indicate, for each search type, what label should be used on the web page (i.e. what will the search be called for the user?) |
| Fields Searched: | List, for each search type, which fields in the database are to be searched. (e.g., for a Title search, a 'title' and 'uniform title' fields in a database might be searched). |
| String Matching: | Define, for each search, how the search string should be matched in the data. (e.g., keyword, head of string, exact match, partial match, etc.) and whether it should be case sensitive or insensitive. |
| Boolean Operators: | List what
boolean operators need to be supported (if any): - within a search type - between search types |
| Wildcards: | Indicate if
wildcards need to be supported - beginning/middle/end of word? - replacement of single and/or multiple characters? |
| Phrase Searching: | Indicate if phrase searching is required. |
| Proximity Searching: | Indicate if proximity searching is required, and if so, define 'proximity'. |
| Stop Words: | List any stop words for each search type. Considerations |
5.3 Search Results Display Decisions
The following information needs to be specified for the display of search results. A sample of search result formatting is helpful.
| Displayed Fields: | Indicate which fields should be displayed in a record. (e.g., is this a short bib or the full record?) |
| Field Order: | Indicate the order in which fields should be displayed. |
| Formatting: | Define any required formatting on a per field basis and any required punctuation between fields. Indicate line breaks between fields or if labels are needed. Remember to consider any punctuation alreaedy exisiting in the data. |
| Other Elements: | Indicate other elements to appear in in the search result records such as thumbnails. |
| Sort Order: | Indicate the
sort order for records.
|
| Ignored Words: | List any words to be ignored in the sorting of result records. Indicate if they are only to be ignored when the first word of the entry or always ignored. (e.g., 'the', 'a', 'le', 'die', etc.) |
| Links: | Indicate any elements of the results which should be links and what they link to. (e.g. link to fuller bib record, link to scanned image, see also references, hot linked subject terms, etc.) |
| # of Results: | Indicate if search results should be broken into multiple pages and if so, how many records per page. |
5.4 Browse Functionality Decisions
| Browse Lists: | Enumerate what browse lists are required. (e.g., author list, subject list, etc.) |
| Dynamic or Static: | Indicate, for each browse list, whether it needs to be dynamically generated each time the user loads the page or whether it can be a static web page generated regularly from the database. |
| Browse Label: | Indicate, for each browse list, what label should be used on the web page (i.e. what will the browse be called for the user?) |
| Database Fields: | List, for each browse list, which fields in the database are to be used to determine if a record should be included in the list. |
| Entry: | Define, for each browse list, what should constitute an 'entry' in the list (e.g. last name, first name for an author list). What is possible may be limited by the way the data is entered in the database. |
| Sort Order: | Define, for each browse list, the sort order of the entries. |
| Ignored Words: | List any words to be ignored in the sorting of entries. Indicate if they are only to be ignored when the first word of the entry or always ignored. (e.g., 'the', 'a', 'le', 'die', etc.) |
5.5 Web Site Specifications
[under construction....]
5.5.1 Location
Where will the website reside? (within existing site, or stand alone?)
