Accessibility Compliance and Assessments for Gateway Websites in Life Sciences: Toward Inclusive Design

One main purpose of information architecture and site navigation is to enhance the effectiveness of user interfaces (UIs) by supporting and enabling task completion, accessibility, and sustainability. This is of particular importance for science gateways given the complexity of information on portal sites. We examined the accessibility of 50 randomly selected gateway websites in the Life Sciences category in the Science Gateways Community Institute (SGCI) catalog, using both manual and automated methodologies. None of these sites produced an accessible website as per W3C, WCAG 2.1, and Section 508 standards. The most common accessibility success in these websites was URL structure, which enables web browsers and search engines to access content

Search Engine Optimisation in UK news production

This is an Author's Accepted Manuscript of an article published in Journalism Practice, 5(4), 462 - 477, 2011, copyright Taylor & Francis, available online at: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/17512786.2010.551020.This paper represents an exploratory study into an emerging culture in UK online newsrooms—the practice of Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), which assesses its impact on news production. Comprising a short-term participant observational case study at a national online news publisher, and a series of semi-structured, in-depth interviews with SEO professionals at three further UK media organisations, the author sets out to establish how SEO is operationalised in the newsroom, and what consequences these practices have for online news production. SEO practice is found to be varied and application is not universal. Not all UK news organisations are making the most of SEO even though some publishers take a highly sophisticated approach. Efforts are constrained by time, resources and management support, as well as off-page technical issues. SEO policy is found, in some cases, to inform editorial policy, but there is resistance to the principal of SEO driving decision-making. Several themes are established which call for further research

Accessible Gateways: Communicating Inclusive Design Practices with Pattern Libraries

<p>On a website, a pattern library is typically defined as a collection of reusable user interface (UI) components. A pattern library can be a part of a website's overall design and development system, or it can be a unique collection of UI components with supporting documentation for information architects,designers, and developers. A shared set of pattern libraries can help Science Gateways when multiple teams need to collaborate. Pattern libraries also ensure consistency and quality throughout a website. Noreen Whysel and Shari Thurow,co-founders of the Information Architecture Gateway, will present a workshop on creating an accessible pattern libraries and style guides for gateway websites at Gateways 2023. </p&gt

Accessibility Compliance and Assessments for Gateway Websites in Life Sciences: Toward Inclusive Design

Information architects and accessibility experts examined the accessibility of 50 randomly selected gateway websites in the Life Sciences category in the Science Gateways Community Institute (SGCI) catalog, using both manual and automated methodologies. None of these sites produced an accessible website as per W3C, WCAG 2.1, and Section 508 standards. The most common accessibility success in these websites was URL structure, which enables web browsers and search engines to access content. Both manual and automatic methodologies are needed to fully assess website accessibility. For example, a website can meet W3C accessibility standards and not be fully accessible. However, automated tools are useful for identifying and troubleshooting accessibility issues for expert reviews

Accessible Gateways: Communicating Inclusive Design Practices with Style Guides

<p>Style Guides and Pattern Libraries are user experience (UX) tools that help to communicate user interface design and code to members of the website team. In addition, these tools help Science Gateway teams to comply with the accessibility requirements of many grant-funded programs. Noreen Whysel and Shari Thurow, co-founders of the Information Architecture Gateway, will present a workshop on creating an accessible pattern libraries and style guides for gateway websites at Gateways 2023. Style Guides and Pattern Libraries ensure that gateway websites meet Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG 2.1) and create consistent, usable and sustainable information architectures.</p&gt

Adolescents Searching for Health Information on the Internet: An Observational Study

BACKGROUND: Adolescents' access to health information on the Internet is partly a function of their ability to search for and find answers to their health-related questions. Adolescents may have unique health and computer literacy needs. Although many surveys, interviews, and focus groups have been utilized to understand the information-seeking and information-retrieval behavior of adolescents looking for health information online, we were unable to locate observations of individual adolescents that have been conducted in this context. OBJECTIVE: This study was designed to understand how adolescents search for health information using the Internet and what implications this may have on access to health information. METHODS: A convenience sample of 12 students (age 12-17 years) from 1 middle school and 2 high schools in southeast Michigan were provided with 6 health-related questions and asked to look for answers using the Internet. Researchers recorded 68 specific searches using software that captured screen images as well as synchronized audio recordings. Recordings were reviewed later and specific search techniques and strategies were coded. A qualitative review of the verbal communication was also performed. RESULTS: Out of 68 observed searches, 47 (69%) were successful in that the adolescent found a correct and useful answer to the health question. The majority of sites that students attempted to access were retrieved directly from search engine results (77%) or a search engine's recommended links (10%); only a small percentage were directly accessed (5%) or linked from another site (7%). The majority (83%) of followed links from search engine results came from the first 9 results. Incorrect spelling (30 of 132 search terms), number of pages visited within a site (ranging from 1-15), and overall search strategy (eg, using a search engine versus directly accessing a site), were each important determinants of success. Qualitative analysis revealed that participants used a trial-and-error approach to formulate search strings, scanned pages randomly instead of systematically, and did not consider the source of the content when searching for health information. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides a useful snapshot of current adolescent searching patterns. The results have implications for constructing realistic simulations of adolescent search behavior, improving distribution and usefulness of Web sites with health information relevant to adolescents, and enhancing educators' knowledge of what specific pitfalls students are likely to encounter