"The key to making things understandable is to understand what it's like to not understand."
- Richard Saul Wurman (architect, author, and designer)
"[Apply empathy] not in the 'how can I figure out what motivates these people so I can get them to do what I want' way, but more in the 'understand the position they find themselves in' way."
- Steve Krug, Don't Make Me Think
Understanding your particular needs, desires, and goals will help us create a good user experience at our library. In the process, we also need to learn what's not working out for you right now. So how will we do that?
Listen.
We plan to run surveys and focus groups. You can share your thoughts (positive or negative) with us on the Sounding Board we've got at main entrance to the library. You can also just talk to us--we're not that scary. Send us an email if we're not around.
Watch and learn.
UX depends on knowing how people truly use devices, services, and spaces - and that means you'll see us staring at you, and you'll see a lot more of us! We'll be more visible and "on the floor" so we can see firsthand how you're interacting our a self-check machine, the way you respond to a display of books, or how the chairs and tables in a certain area get rearranged every day (because it probably makes more sense that way).
Try new things.
Based on what we learn from these observations and your feedback, we'll do our best to respond. We'll try things out and we'll see what works and what doesn't.