| Author's title |
Chief, Gong-Guan Campus Branch Library, Doctoral Candidate, Graduate Institute of Library & Information Studies, National Taiwan Normal University; Professor, Graduate Institute of Library & Information Studies, National Taiwan Normal University; Graduate Student, Graduate Institute of Library & Information Studies, National Taiwan Normal University; Graduate Student, Graduate Institute of Library & Information Studies, National Taiwan Normal University |
| Abstract |
Nowadays, a lot of information and resources are spread and retrieved through the Internet. The impact of internet is wide. It gradually becomes a new way to promote the popularization of science and science education through the internet. National Taiwan Normal University Library has built a popular science reading website to introduce popular scientific books and promote the dissemination of scientific knowledge and new knowledge. In addition, this website also intends to provide scientific reading methods for science teachers at all levels to enhance students' scientific literacy and cultivate the science reading habits in daily life. Divided into five stages, this study focuses on the users of popular science reading website. In the first stage, we collected seventeen Chinese popular science reading websites to analyze the architectures and the labels of the websites. In the second stage, we interviewed the users to understand their demands. In the third stage, we used the card sorting method to understand whether the users were aware of the architecture of the websites and the significance of the naming of the labels. We interviewed the users regarding the users’ experiences in the fourth stage. In the fifth stage,we conducted the Usability Test to understand users’ experiences, purposes, motivations, preferences, and characteristics in order to know users’ behaviors and the problems they encounter. This study has several conclusions. First, we concluded users’ opinions towards the architecture and labels of the website through card sorting method and cluster analysis. Then we developed a website of nine-category and 2-level architecture. Second, we got to know users’ purposes, motivations, and preferences in using the popular science website. Third, we understood the usability problems regarding organizations, label-naming, search functions, and the interface of operative designs. Finally, this study proposes two suggestions to solve the problems to maintain the popular science reading website in the future.
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