accessibility

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The client experience

For the purposes of testing the three websites, I used an Android phone with Chrome’s mobile browser that supports responsive web design and investigated their collaboration and social networking elements.

University of Queensland Library (UQL)

The UQL website allows conversation with its patrons through the online chat option and a separate “Ask Us” link in the top navigation with contact information for phone, email and additional options. Other ways to connect with UQL are via:

  • Blog
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • YouTube

In terms of usability the mobile view displays the information in a single column presentation. This is important for clients with print, mobility or processing disabilities to focus the content of the page (W3C.org, 2017).

I question the positioning of the anchored chat element at the bottom right of the screen, the space which most right-handed users use to scroll. This could cause interference or accidental activation of the chat function.

ABC News

ABC News is easily accessible for users on mobile. Like the UQ website the mobile version is displayed in a single column view with the navigation options at the top of the page, making it easier for the user to read the content. There is no comment section on articles, but you can share through multiple social avenues. The following links to social media are at the bottom of the page:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube

Trove

The layout of Trove is not very responsive. To read the content, you need to zoom in which causes two-way scrolling (horizontal and vertical). Even landscape mode does not improve the readability of the page. Under the aforementioned W3C standards, the layout for this website would not pass Level A standard. It makes its content inaccessible, for example for a person with print disabilities and dexterity issues (W3C.org, 2017).

However, Trove offers multiple methods to communicate and collaborate, including links to Facebook and Twitter. Additionally, there are options to create content on community projects, such as tagging of images, revisions of the Optical Character Recognition of newspaper articles and an overview of recent comments (Trove, n.d.).

All three sites show different level of accessibility on a mobile device and the provision of access to their social media platforms, although the ABC and UQ Library’s homepage present their content more successfully than Trove. Trove’s strong point is the ways of collaborating with its user base. As illustrated by Decker, social networking applications can be a effective way to engage library users to collaborate as a community (Decker, 2019).

References

Decker, E. N. (2019). Twitter. In Verishagen, N. (2019). Social media : The academic library perspective. doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-102409-6.00007-9

Trove. (n.d.). Trove homepage. Retrieved from https://trove.nla.gov.au/

W3c.org. (2017). Reflow to single column. Retrieved from https://www.w3.org/WAI/GL/low-vision-a11y-tf/wiki/Reflow_to_Single_Column

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The influence of technology on society

How technology shapes society

From the first text based bulletin boards created by Ward Christensen and Randy Suess in 1978 to the massive platforms today such as Facebook and WeChat, it could be argued that social networking has had an irreversible effect on society.  It has become an insatiable tool and companion for many an estimated two and a half billion Facebook users alone at time of writing (internetlivestats.com, n.d.).

Socially and economically it has changed the way people communicate and retrieve information and entertainment and interact with one another.

Nowhere has the change been more evident in terms of its effect than within the galleries, libraries, archives, and museums (GLAM) industry. Libraries in particular have been quick to take on the new technology.

Enhancing the way we as professionals engage with our clients which allows them wider freedom to interact and access information and experience of connecting with their local library.

Libraries have embraced social networking technology such as Facebook, Twitter, blogs, Instagram and YouTube to enhance their online presence.

It has created a new avenue of providing new online training experiences and enhanced the information needs of the community of those in remote or socially disadvantaged areas. Additionally, it has opened opportunities for accessibility with the capacity of most social networks being compliant under the W3C Web Accessibility Initiative through providing audio transcripts, close captioning or tools like alternative image or audio descriptions as immediate examples (W3.org, 2018).

Social networking can not only be an effective communication tool, but also serves as a decisive business tool, especially in terms of employment.  As Segal discusses, over 70 percent of potential employers will review a person’s social media (Hhrm.org, 2020).

The flow on effect can also create a negative impact on the course of employment as seen in 2018 when director James Gunn was fired when old tweets resurfaced with alleged jokes of a highly offensive nature (ABC News, 2018).

Looking forward there are a three thing that will need to be considered for both organisation and individuals alike when engaging with social networking tools successfully:

  • Personal brand, which according to Peters, “everyone has the power to be their own brand and it is each person’s responsibility to promote their brand” (fast company.com, 1997).
  • Privacy, both for organisations as well as the individuals who they represent or use their products
  • Accessibility, in the rush to move forward we must be inclusive and not leave anyone behind

References

ABC News. (2018). Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn fired by Disney after tweets joking about rape, paedophilia resurface. Retrieved from https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-07-21/james-gunn-fired-from-guardians-of-the-galaxy-over-tweets/10020902

Internetlivestats.com. (n.d.). Number of Facebook users. Retrieved from https://www.internetlivestats.com/

Peters, T. (1997). The brand called you. Retrieved from https://www.fastcompany.com/28905/brand-called-you

Segal, J. (2020). Legal trends social media use in hiring:assessing the risks. Retrieved from https://www.shrm.org/hr-today/news/hr-magazine/pages/0914-social-media-hiring.aspx

W3.org. (2018). Accessibility. Retrieved from https://www.w3.org/standards/webdesign/accessibility