Using university ranking systems to predict usability of university websites

This research investigated whether a university ranking system called Eduroute could provide useful information regarding the usability of universities' websites. A comparison was conducted between the results obtained by Eduroute regarding the ranking of the top three universities in Jordan, and the results obtained by the heuristic evaluation method regarding the usability of the top three universities' websites. Before employing the heuristic evaluation method, two steps were taken: Investigating the most frequently visited pages on a university's website from the viewpoint of 237 students, and developing a set of comprehensive heuristics specific to educational websites. Then, five heuristic evaluators were selected and asked to visit all the pages determined by the 237 students using the developed heuristics while evaluating each website. The results proved that the ranking of the three universities at Eduroute was an indicator regarding the overall usability of the sites; the first ranked university at Eduroute had the lowest number of usability problems identified by the evaluators, while the least ranked university had the largest number of usability problems. The heuristic evaluators also identified fourteen common usability problems on the three tested websites related to navigation, design, content, and ease of use and communication

Geometrical profile of cohesive-frictional soil slopes for optimal stability

: In this study, finite element method with strength reduction technique is employed to study the stability of slopes with non-straight line profiles comprises three segments. According to this method, the strength parameters are reduced until the slope becomes on the verge of failure. A software called (Optum G2) is used to analyze the geometrical and mechanical parameters. The effect of the geometrical shape of the slope with specific limitations on the factor of safety (FOS) has been investigated to find the corresponding profile configuration that provides maximum stability. The profile (slope face geometry) has been divided into three straight lines (segments) with different lengths. The study involved the soil cohesion (c), angel of internal friction (∅) and the angle of the imaginary straight line linking the slope toe with slope crest (β) called herein slope inclination. The main results showed that using the three segments facing profile can increase the factor of safety (FOS) by up to 15% in comparison with the corresponding slopes of straight line profile. Design charts has been introduced to be utilized by engineers and practitioners to obtain the geometrical parameters for the optimal profile as well as the expected improvement percentage in factor of safety

Examining User Experience of Moodle e-Learning System

This research investigates the user experience (UX) of the Moodle e-learning system employed at one university in Malaysia from students' perspectives. Comprehensive user experience (UX) criteria were suggested, which was adopted from two reliable criteria, to evaluate the user experience (UX) of the e-learning system. The suggested comprehensive user experience (UX) criteria consist of 8 categories and 29 corresponding subcategories; these can be used to evaluate teaching and learning, usability, and hedonic aspects of an e-learning system. Semistructured interviews and questionnaires were employed based on the suggested user experience (UX) criteria to collect qualitative and quantitative data regarding users' experience (UX) of the tested e-learning system. The results showed that the e-learning system had positive user experience (UX) in general from the students' perspectives. The results also showed that the students were satisfied with most of the metrics related to teaching and learning, usability and hedonic. However, the students identified some challenges they faced while interacting with the e-learning system which could be improved in order to improve their user experience (UX) and gain more benefits from a good user experience (UX) e-learning system

Usability evaluation framework for e-commerce websites in developing countries

The importance of evaluating the usability of e-commerce websites is well recognised and this area has attracted research attention for more than a decade. Nearly all the studies that evaluated the usability of e-commerce websites employed either user-based (i.e. user testing) or evaluator-based (i.e. heuristic evaluation) usability evaluation methods; but no research has employed softwarebased (i.e. Google Analytics software) in the evaluation of such sites. Furthermore, the studies which employed user testing and/or heuristic evaluation methods in the evaluation of the usability of e-commerce websites did not offer detail about the benefits and drawbacks of these methods with respect to the identification of specific types of usability problems. This research developed a methodological framework for the usability evaluation of e-commerce websites which involved user testing and heuristic evaluation methods together with Google Analytics software. The framework was developed by comparing the benefits and drawbacks of these methods in terms of the specific areas of usability problems that they could or could not identify on ecommerce websites. The framework involves Google Analytics software as a preliminary step to provide a quick, easy and cheap indication of general potential usability problem areas on an e-commerce website and its specific pages. Then, the framework enables evaluators to choose other methods to provide in-depth detail about specific iv problems on the site. For instance, the framework suggests that user testing is good for identifying specific major usability problems related to four areas: navigation, design, the purchasing process and accessibility and customer service, while the heuristic evaluation is good for identifying a large number of specific minor usability problems related to eight areas including: navigation, internal search, the site architecture, the content, the design, accessibility and customer service, inconsistency and missing capabilities. The framework also suggests that the heuristic evaluation is good at identifying major security and privacy problems. The framework was developed based on an extensive evaluation of the effectiveness of the three methods in identifying specific usability problems in three case studies (e-commerce websites) in Jordan. This highlighted the usefulness of the methods and therefore helps e-commerce retailers to determine the usability method that best matches their needs. The framework was tested and the results indicated the usefulness of the suggested framework in raising awareness of usability and usability evaluation methods among e-commerce retailers in Jordan. This will help them address usability in the design of their websites, thus helping them to survive, grow and achieve success.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

El impacto en las redes sociales de los diseños de comunicación de Casas Reales: una comparativa de actos protocolarios de la monarquía inglesa y española

Programa Oficial de Doutoramento en Sociedade do Coñecemento: Novas perspectivas en Documentación, Comunicación e Humanidades. 566V01[Resumen] La manera de comunicar de la monarquía percibida como un órgano político histórico y tradicional, se ha visto condicionada por la irrupción de nuevos canales de comunicación de la era digital. Las nuevas tecnologías han supuesto una fuente de inquietudes que provienen de la capacidad que ofrecen estas herramientas para interactuar con la institución. No cabe duda de que los medios de comunicación son uno de los principales formadores de opinión pública, por lo que Twitter se convierte en un factor crítico de influencia sobre la opinión pública. El propósito de esta investigación fue: conocer los efectos de las acciones comunicativas de la monarquía española y británica para los usuarios de Twitter, averiguar si su estrategia de comunicación beneficia o perjudica su imagen como institución del Estado y, determinar si se fomenta la bidireccionalidad de los mensajes con el público. Se elige Twitter por ser una red social clara y transparente con igualdad de acceso. Se ha optado por seleccionar actos que tuviesen un suficiente nivel de repercusión en la sociedad para obtener conclusiones que aportaran contenido a la investigación. Se han elegido publicaciones (2018 - 2020) protagonizadas por Felipe VI e Isabel II y se ha realizado un estudio comparativo. La metodología se apoyó en la etnografía virtual desde los enfoques cuantitativo y cualitativo con un componente observacional e interpretativo centrado en el análisis de contenido. Con el objeto de comparar la interacción comunicativa a través de Twitter en estas dos monarquías contemporáneas, se eligió seleccionar en ambas monarquías aconteceres de referencia a propósito de los cuales ambas iniciaron su discurso en Twitter en los últimos años: el día del cumpleaños (acontecer que, aún en diferente fecha, se repite cada año y tiene un carácter biográfico); la felicitación de Navidad (también es una cita habitual anual pero es de carácter festivo y social); y un acontecer de crisis y socialmente catastrófico como fue la invasión de contagios por la Covid-19. Se seleccionaron estos 3 eventos de un mismo ámbito temático en cada una de las monarquías. En concreto la selección ha sido la siguiente: la celebración del cumpleaños de Isabel II y de Felipe VI en ambos casos representativos de un evento biográfico privado, el discurso de Navidad de ambos monarcas por tratarse de un acto tradicional de carácter institucional, y el discurso extraordinario institucional con motivo de la pandemia mundial Covid-19. El estudio se centra en la publicación de vídeos en Twitter protagonizados por Felipe VI e Isabel II, con la excepción del cumpleaños del monarca español, el cual no publica vídeo. Para abordar este objeto de estudio, además se ha elegido la estrategia de seleccionar y registrar lo más aproximadamente posible las reacciones en Twitter para cada evento en el último año: en concreto, los primeros 100 tweets de respuesta el mismo día de cada evento cuya publicación aparece en las cuentas oficiales que tienen cada monarquía en Twitter. En el caso de la muestra Discurso de Navidad Felipe VI son 61 tweets y en el acto del aniversario de Isabel II los números absolutos son 104, siendo obligado respetar que se trata del mismo día de la publicación que cada monarquía hace en sus cuentas de Twitter. Esta selección de aproximadamente 100 mensajes por publicación y evento no sólo habría de permitir mayor rigor para establecer la comparación, sino además, y sobre todo, percibir los perfiles procedentes de aquellos twitteros supuestamente más activos y urgentes por publicar sus apreciaciones más inmediatas frente a su monarca. Las conclusiones confirman que ambas monarquías hacen uso de una estrategia de comunicación propia de instituciones públicas que aspiran a lograr una buena imagen ante los ciudadanos, los cuales exigen una mayor transparencia informativa. Sin embargo, los resultados del análisis manifiestan que Twitter no desarrolla la bidireccionalidad ni la interactuación propia de su naturaleza de red social. Tampoco es un aliado de la Casa Real española frente a la opinión pública, al contrario que lo que ocurre en la corona británica. Esta plataforma se convierte en un canal de elogio hacia la institución.[Resumo] A maneira de comunicar da monarquía, percibida como un órgano político histórico e tradicional, viuse condicionada pola irrupción de novas canles de comunicación da era dixital. As novas tecnoloxías supuxeron unha fonte de inquedanzas que veñen da capacidade que ofrecen estas ferramentas para interactuar coa institución. Non cabe dúbida de que os medios son un dos principais creadores de opinión pública, polo que Twitter convértese nun factor crítico para influír na opinión pública. O propósito desta investigación foi: coñecer os efectos das accións comunicativas da monarquía española e británica para os usuarios de Twitter, pescudar se a súa estratexia de comunicación beneficia ou prexudica a súa imaxe como institución do Estado e, determinar se fomenta a bidireccionalidade das mensaxes co público. Elíxese Twitter por ser unha rede social clara e transparente con igualdade de acceso. Optouse por seleccionar actos que tivesen un nivel de impacto suficiente na sociedade para obter conclusións que achegasen contido á investigación. Elixíronse publicacións (2018 - 2020) protagonizadas por Felipe VI e Isabel II e realizouse un estudo comparativo. A metodoloxía apoiouse na etnografía virtual desde enfoques cuantitativos e cualitativos cun compoñente observacional e interpretativo centrado na análise de contidos. Co obxecto de comparar a interacción comunicativa a través de Twitter nestas dúas monarquías contemporáneas, optouse por seleccionar en ambas as dúas monarquías eventos de referencia sobre os cales ambas comezaron o seu discurso en Twitter nos últimos anos: o día dos aniversarios (acontecer que, aínda en diferente data, repítese cada ano e ten un carácter biográfico); a felicitación de Nadal (tamén é unha cita anual habitual pero de carácter festivo e social); e un acontecer de crise e evento socialmente catastrófico como a invasión de contaxios pola Covid-19. Seleccionáronse estes 3 eventos dun mesmo ámbito temático en cada unha das monarquías. En concreto, a selección foi a seguinte: a celebración do aniversario de Isabel II e Felipe VI en ambos casos representativa dun acto biográfico privado, o pregón de Nadal de ambos monarcas por tratarse dun acto tradicional de carácter institucional, e o discurso extraordinario institucional con motivo da pandemia mundial Covid-19. 7 O estudo céntrase na publicación de vídeos en Twitter protagonizados por Felipe VI e Isabel II, coa excepción do aniversario do monarca español, que non publica vídeo. Para abordar este obxecto de estudo ademáis optouse pola estratexia de seleccionar e rexistrar o máis aproximadamente posible as reaccións en Twitter para cada evento no último ano: concretamente, os 100 primeiros chíos de resposta o mesmo día de cada evento cuxa publicación aparece nas contas oficiais que cada monarquía ten en Twitter. No caso da mostra do Discurso de Nadal de Felipe VI son 61 tweets e no acto do aniversario de Isabel II as cifras absolutas son 104, sendo obrigado respectar que sexa o mesmo día da publicación que cada monarquía fai nas súas contas de Twitter. Esta selección de aproximadamente 100 mensaxes por publicación e evento non só habería de permitir un maior rigor para establecer a comparación senón ademais, e sobre todo, percibir os perfís procedentes daqueles usuarios de Twitter supostamente máis activos e urxentes para publicar as súas apreciacións máis inmediatas respecto ao seu monarca. As conclusións confirman que ambas monarquías fan uso dunha estratexia de comunicación propia das institucións públicas que aspiran a acadar unha boa imaxe ante os cidadáns, que demandan unha maior transparencia informativa. Porén, os resultados da análise mostran que Twitter non desenvolve a bidireccionalidade nin a interacción propia da súa natureza como rede social. Tampouco é un aliado da Casa Real española fronte a opinión pública, a diferenza do que acontece na coroa británica. Esta plataforma convértese nunha canle de eloxios cara á institución.[Abstract] The way of communicating of the monarchy perceived by the public as a historical, traditional and political body, has been shifting the emergence of new channels of communication of the digital age. The new technologies have been a source of unrest, stemming from the new ways those tools can interact with the royal institution. There is no doubt that the media is one of the main communication tools to create and influence public opinion. Accordingly, Twitter becomes a critical factor of influence over public opinion. The purpose of this research was: to get an understanding for the communications actions of the Spanish and British monarchy and their effects on Twitter users, to find out if their respective communication strategy benefits or is harmful to their image as an institution of the State and to determine whether the bidirectionality of messages with the public is encouraged. Twitter is chosen because it is a clear and transparent social network with equal access. It has been chosen to select acts that had a sufficient level of impact on society to obtain conclusions that would contribute to the content of the investigation. Some publications from Felipe VI and Elizabeth II (2018 - 2020) have been chosen for this comparative study. The methodology was based on virtual ethnography using quantitative and qualitative approaches with an observational and interpretative component focused on the content of the analysis. In order to compare the communicative interaction via Twitter for those two contemporary monarchies, I chose in both monarchies reference events for which both began their speech on Twitter in the recent years: The Monarch‘s birthday (it happened that, even on different date, it is repeated every year and of a biographical nature); Christmas greeting (also happens annually but festive and social in nature); Covid-19: a case of social crisis. Those 3 events were selected specifically with the same themes: a news event for each monarchy in a period of 3 calendar years: 2018, 2019 and 2020. In addition, the strategy of selecting and recording as closely as possible the reactions on Twitter for each event in the last year has been chosen specifically, as was the celebration of the birthday of Elizabeth II and Felipe VI: a private biographical event); another, the Christmas speech of both monarchs as it is 9 a traditional act of an institutional nature; and the extraordinary institutional discourse on the occasion of the Covid-19 global pandemic. The study focuses on the publication of videos on Twitter featuring Felipe VI and Isabel II, with the exception of the birthday of the Spanish monarch, who does not publish a video. In order to address this object of study, I have chosen the strategy of selecting and registering each event, as approximately as possible, the first 100 tweets of response on the same day of each event whose publication appears on the official accounts that each monarchy has on Twitter. In the case in the Christmas Speech from Felipe VI, there are 61 tweets and in the act of the anniversary of Elizabeth II the absolute numbers are 104, being obliged to respect that it is the same day of the publication that each monarchy makes on their Twitter accounts. This selection of approximately 100 messages per publication and event should not only allow greater precision for the comparison, but also, and above all, to perceive the profiles coming from the initiative of those who supposedly twitter more actively and urgently in order to publish their most immediate assessments in front of their monarch. The conclusions confirm that both monarchies make use of a communication strategy of public institutions that aim to achieve a good image for their citizens, which require greater transparency of information. However, the results of the analysis show that Twitter does not develop the bidirectionality or interaction of its nature as a social network, it is not favorable of the Spanish Royal Family in the face of public opinion, the opposite case happens to the British crown which becomes a channel of praise towards the institution

Fenomena celebrity worship pada penggemar kpop idol di Kota Semarang

Celebrity worship merupakan sebuah fenomena yang terjadi akibat melakukan aktivitas melihat, mendengar, membaca, dan menulusuri kepribadian idola dimana pemicu utamanya terdapat kekurangan dalam pribadi sehingga mereka mencoba memenuhi dengan berbagai cara salah satunya dengan melakukan aktivitas pengidolaan. Celebrity worship biasanya dilakukan oleh remaja dimana ia sedang dalam fase krisis perubahan emosi dan kognitif sehingga membutuhkan sosok figure untuk dijadikan referensi. Dalam hal ini peneliti mencoba meninjau fenomena ini dengan bimbingan dan konseling Islam dengan rumusan masalah 1. Bagaimana fenomena celebrity worship pada penggemar KPop idol di kota Semarang ? 2. Bagaimana analisis bimbingan dan konseling ? penelitian ini berlatar belakang penggemar kpop idol dari komunitas yang berada di Semarang Penelitian ini menggunakan metode kualitatif dengan pendekatan studi kasus yang menggeneralisasi kasus yang spesifik Hasil penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa fenomena celebrity worship marak berada pada penggemar idol Kpop yang ada di Semarang. Fenomena yang terjadi pada penggemar berada pada tahapan intense personal feeling atau pada tahapan yang sudah tidak normal, dilatar belakangi kesehatan mental yang rendah. Ciri kesehatan mental rendah yang sesuai dengan penggemar yakni ketidakmampuan menyesuaikan diri dengan kondisi lingkungan ataupun perubahan emosional yang biasanya terjadi karena fase pubertas pada remaja. Bentuk perilaku celebrity worship pada penggemar ialah dissociation, tendencies toward addiction , compulsive buying dan depression and anxiety 1.Fenomena celebrity worship pada penggemar KPop Idol di Kota Semarang terjadi karena aktivitas mendengar, melihat, membaca, dan menelusuri kepribadian idola melebihi kepeduliannya terhadap dirinya sendiri. 2.Analisis bimbingan dan konseling Islam yang digunakan pada fenomena celebrity worship penggemar Kpop Idol di Kota Semarang menunjukkan bahwa tingkat kesehatan mental yang rendah mengakibatkan dampak celebrity worship pada tingkatan yang tinggi dimana pengaruh komunitas yang menaungi penggemar mampu mermbantu mengurangi dampak celebrity worship yang bersesuaian dengan tujuan bimbingan dan konseling Islam dalam upaya pengembalian kesadaran dan kemampuan seseorang untuk berinteraksi dengan oranglain dalam rangka pemenuhan kebetuhan jiwa seseorang. Komunitas yang menaungi juga merepresentasikan fungsi dari bimbingan dan konseling Islam yang dengan adanya kegiatan charity dan diskusi yang dilakukan oleh komunitas

E-commerce websites for developing countries – a usability evaluation framework

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop a methodological usability evaluation approach for e-commerce websites in developing countries. Design/methodology/approach – A multi-faceted usability evaluation of three Jordanian e-commerce websites was used, where three usability methods (user testing, heuristic evaluation and web analytics) were applied to the sites. Findings – A four-step approach was developed to facilitate the evaluation of e-commerce sites, mindful of the advantages and disadvantages of the methods used in identifying specific usability problems. Research limitations/implications – The approach was developed and tested using Jordanian users, experts and e-commerce sites. The study compared the ability of the methods to detect problems that were present, however, usability issues not present on any of the sites could not be considered when creating the approach. Practical implications – The approach helps e-commerce retailers evaluate the usability of their websites and understand which usability method(s) best matches their need. Originality/value – This research proposes a new approach for evaluating the usability of e-commerce sites. A novel aspect is the use of web analytics (Google Analytics software) as a component in the usability evaluation in conjunction with heuristics and user testing

Reinforced Concrete Corbels – State of the Art.

This paper represents a historical review, state-of-the-art review, on the experimental researches carried out on corbels in general and strengthening of corbels in particular. The corbels discussed are made of normal, high-strength and self-compacting concrete and subjected to two types of loading, monotonic and repeated loadings. Moreover, a review on the techniques of strengthening used to enhance the load carrying capacities of reinforced concrete corbels is presented too. Finally, directions for future work are proposed and a comprehensive list of references is provided

Hemophagocytic syndrome and acute pancreatitis in acute systemic lupus erythematosus

AbstractHemophagocytic syndrome (HPS) is characterized by the activation of histiocytes with prominent hemophagocytosis in bone marrow and other reticuloendothelial systems. It has two forms: primary and secondary. The precise pathogenesis of HPS is unclear but a dysregulation of macrophage–lymphocyte interactions with subsequent increases in the levels of both T-cell-derived and macrophage-derived cytokines has been suggested. Cardinal symptoms of HPS are prolonged high fever, hepatosplenomegaly, cytopenias, lymphadenopathy and neurological symptoms. In this report, we present a case Systemic Lupus Erythematosus associated with HPS and acute pancreatitis