NWDA Reports Appendix 3 Evaluation Reports

NWDA Home Page--Context

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Home Page Context 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 77

 Home Page Context 5 Very good

 ID: 76

 Home Page Context 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 89

 Home Page Context 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 88

 Home Page Context 5 Just great.

 ID: 86

 Home Page Context 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 85

 Home Page Context 4 NA

 ID: 72

 Home Page Context 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 79

 Home Page Context 4 works as an opening page

 ID: 90

 Home Page Context 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Home Page Context 2 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 78

 

 Average rating: 4.4

NWDA Home Page--Design

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Home Page Design 5 I appreciate the clear and easy-to-find links at the top

 of the webpage. Nice color scheme.

 ID: 89

 Home Page Design 5 This page looks good.

 ID: 85

 Home Page Design 4 Some of the text may be too small

 ID: 79

 Home Page Design 4 The design is visually appealing but there is a lot of

 empty space. While this creates a simple look, it also

 ID: 76  feels empty. The lack of interesting and diverse

 access points creates a feeling of sparseness rather

 than richness. I'm sure this will fill up with interesting

 possibilities in the future.

 Home Page Design 4 clean, easy to read, but sub-menus are not

 immediately apparent; what about drop down menus?

 ID: 90

 Home Page Design 4 The changing photographs and links to more

 information about the images provide the page with

 ID: 88 visual interest and satisfaction for the curious. The

 two tones of font also add visual interest and help

 lead the eye. Having the introductory sentence at the

 top, followed by the Project Description with different

 background color is helpful for satisfying varying

 degrees of interest in what the project is about. I don't

  really care for the layout of the text. (Maybe two longer

  lines, instead of 3 at the top and possibly justified

 text for the Project Description, with the heading more

  distinct from the body of the text and more distinct

 formatting of paragraphs.) I am not personally fond of

 the yellow, orange, green and brown color scheme of

 the top menu. I would prefer something more in the

 way of maroons, which would look nice with the gray.

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Home Page Design 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Home Page Design 3 I'm having trouble with the size. The home page does

  not fit on my screen and I have to screen over. More

 ID: 72 color! The photographs are great. Map could be a bit

  more interesting and maybe include an interactive

 element.

 Home Page Design 3 The design is beautiful, but it takes a long time to

 load on a computer without DSL.

 ID: 77

 Home Page Design 2 The home page is too wide for the screen. I can

 understand the need to scroll down, but it is annoying

 ID: 78  to have to scroll across to see the entire page. 

 When I clicked on "click for more about NWDA

 images" I get the same home page.

 Home Page Design 1 Type too small; not enough color/tone contrast; no

 "pizazz;" no "I want to see more!" Did like that the

 ID: 86 picture changed with each visit.

 Average rating: 3.5

NWDA Home Page--Functionality

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Home Page Functionality 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 77

 Home Page Functionality 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 88

 Home Page Functionality 5 I'm not an academic, but seems to be exactly what one

 would expect.

 ID: 86

 Home Page Functionality 5 Simple and pleasing to the eye.

 ID: 85

 Home Page Functionality 4 Seems like all the appropriate links and options are

 available.

 ID: 72

 Home Page Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 79

 Home Page Functionality 4 See comments above regarding the feel of the page and

 its need for some enticement. The photos do need the

 ID: 76 "click for more information" link to work as promised, but

 otherwise this page functions exactly how I would expect.

 Home Page Functionality 4 Not too cluttered, but should have clearer sense of what

 kinds of materials are available

 ID: 90

 Home Page Functionality 4 I think it works really very well, but you still might want to

 consider the search tool I mentioned earlier (to search

 ID: 89 the site, but not the databases).

 Home Page Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Home Page Functionality 3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 78

 

 Average rating: 4.3

NWDA Home Page—Information/Language

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Home Page Information/Language  5 The narrative provides the bare-bones explanation. Bare-

 bones is good because Internet readers skip over things.

 ID: 77 The colorful tabs on the top row are obviously where

 additional information can be found. Putting the term

 "search" as the first word is good.

 Home Page Information/Language  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 89

 Home Page Information/Language  5 Not a lot of flowery text; it's brief and to the point.

 ID: 85

 Home Page Information/Language  4 NA

 ID: 72

 Home Page Information/Language  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 79

 Home Page Information/Language  4 good--again, no sense yet of what kinds of materials

 might lie within

 ID: 90

 Home Page Information/Language  4 Problem--the December 2004 completion of Phase I is

 distracting as either a mistake or post-dated information?

 ID: 88  The Project Description is informative but EAD and

 "finding aids" will probably leave some of your visitors

 scratching their heads. You might include a brief list of

 examples (e.g., "...finding aids, such as file level

 inventories, indexes, and box lists.")

 Home Page Information/Language  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Home Page Information/Language  4 Seemed just great.

 ID: 86

 Home Page Information/Language  3 The language is clear, but the home page does not really

  explain how the website can be used--it mainly

 ID: 78 discusses accomplishments of the NWDA.

 Home Page Information/Language  3 The information presented on the home page appears at

 the time of this evaluation to be a temporary filler. More

 ID: 76 interesting language would be great, perhaps not as

 large a block of text under "Project Description"--maybe

 get rid of that section, since the project seems to have

 already occurred or nearing completion. The language is

  informative but not especially inviting.

 Average rating: 4.1

NWDA Home Page--Navigation

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Home Page Navigation 5 Works great. The links are obvious.

 ID: 77

 Home Page Navigation 5 Navigation is simple and works! In connection with this

 evaluation form, the link from the form resulted in a "page

 ID: 88 cannot be found" error. I had to follow the default link on

 the error page to get to the right place.

 Home Page Navigation 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Home Page Navigation 5 Easy to spot the link, and weren't too many and they

 worked quickly and well.

 ID: 86

 Home Page Navigation 5 Intuitive.

 ID: 85

 Home Page Navigation 4 Did not get all the images on the "About NWDA" link.

 Otherwise, everything seemed to work.

 ID: 72

 Home Page Navigation 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 79

 Home Page Navigation 4 Leaving aside the problem described above re

 information on images, navigation is good.

 ID: 78

 Home Page Navigation 4 The links are appropriate and clear as to what they will

 lead to. However, it feels as if there is a lack of access

 ID: 76 points to the search page or to collections. I'm sure as

 time goes by there will be an increased number of links

 to specialized searches/collections or to thematic pages

  or displays. The link below the photo for "More about"

 the images doesn't work.

 Home Page Navigation 4 same--see above

 ID: 90

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Home Page Navigation 4 It seems a few things are missing. On the home page it

 would be helpful to have a "search" bar, so the user can

 ID: 89 search the website, but not its contents. i.e. one could

 type "advanced search" and a page would pop up with a

 link to the advanced search page. Also, speaking of an

 advanced search, I couldn't find it anywhere. Shouldn't it

 be on the search page along with the basic search

 option?

 Average rating: 4.5

Basic Search Page--Context

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Basic Search Context  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 76

 Basic Search Context  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 85

 Basic Search Context  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Basic Search Context  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 88

 Basic Search Context  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 89

 Basic Search Context  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 83

 Basic Search Context  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 74

 Basic Search Context  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 71

 Basic Search Context  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 62

 Basic Search Context  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 67

 Basic Search Context  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 78

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Basic Search Context  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 90

 Basic Search Context  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 79

 Basic Search Context  4

 ID: 81

 Basic Search Context  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 68

 Basic Search Context  4 Simple and obvious.

 ID: 86

 Basic Search Context  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 84

 Basic Search Context  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 77

 Basic Search Context  3 Very difficult to evaluate since we don't have the entire

 site available.

 ID: 72

 Average rating: 4.4

Basic Search Page--Design

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Basic Search Design 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 74

 Basic Search Design 5 I like the simplicity of the interface. The lack of clutter

 makes it easy to use.

 ID: 71

 Basic Search Design 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 85

 Basic Search Design 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 84

 Basic Search Design 4

 ID: 81

 Basic Search Design 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 79

 Basic Search Design 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 67

 Basic Search Design 4 Simple and obvious.

 ID: 86

 Basic Search Design 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Basic Search Design 4 You definitely need something in all that white space

 above the photograph, but I don't like the "Search" right

 ID: 88 next to "Search the NWDA Database."

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Basic Search Design 4 Until I clicked on the "Search help" button, I wasn't aware

 that I could use boolean operators in the basic search

 ID: 89 box. It seems that it might be more intuitive if there were

 two or more empty boxes connected by drop-down

 selection boxes (with options of "and," "not," etc.) It wasn't

  hard to figure out, but this might make it easier.

 Basic Search Design 4 Nice, clean, easy to follow

 ID: 90

 Basic Search Design 3 This page is optimized for high- resolution screens,

 1024x768 or higher resolution. Unfortunately, that makes

 ID: 83  it less useful with monitors set to 800x600 or 640x480. 

 A LOT of the likely users of this interface still have

 monitors set to those resolutions. It's necessary to scroll

  to see the whole of the interface.

 Basic Search Design 3 The search locked up with IE. I had to change to

 Netscape to make it work.

 ID: 77

 Basic Search Design 3 The large amount of white space on the left side is

 distracting. Of course, this will probably change when

 ID: 72 the other links (like to the homepage) are added. More

 color?

 Basic Search Design 3 better to have search choices on left and image/open

 space on left. When I tried it on small screen

 ID: 62 computers(low resolution) I was forced to scroll left.

 Basic Search Design 3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 68

 Basic Search Design 3 I love the look and feel of the page, but I'm not crazy

 about the layout. It would be nice if the search options

 ID: 76 were more neatly arranged and more clearly presented. A

 little confusing as it is.

 Basic Search Design [please include any comments here]

 ID: 78

 Average rating: 3.8

Basic Search Page--Functionality

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Basic Search Functionality 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 71

 Basic Search Functionality 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 85

 Basic Search Functionality 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Basic Search Functionality 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 83

 Basic Search Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 77

 Basic Search Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 84

 Basic Search Functionality 4 Simple and obvious.

 ID: 86

 Basic Search Functionality 4 People may want the assistance/ease of the Browse list

 with the capability to limit to one facility. For those who

 ID: 88 aren't paying close enough attention, they may think that

 entering an institution in the Basic Search and using the

 Browse list limits results to one facility. I would provide

 the option to do that if possible.

 Basic Search Functionality 4 See above comments.

 ID: 89

 Basic Search Functionality 4 Again, clean and easy to follow--but should you have it

 divided by title, subject, etc. as in a library or archival

 ID: 90 catalog?

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Basic Search Functionality 4 The basic keyword search function is good, but I had

 some confusion as to how it relates to the topical

 ID: 76 browsing terms search. Apparently they are separate.

 Otherwise, the search performed admirably, and results

 were delivered quickly.

 Basic Search Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 72

 Basic Search Functionality 4 This was just about right.

 ID: 62

 Basic Search Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 78

 Basic Search Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 79

 Basic Search Functionality 4

 ID: 81

 Basic Search Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 68

 Basic Search Functionality 3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 67

 Basic Search Functionality 3 I'm in general quite impressed with the design and

 operation. But I was frustrated by a trial search involving

 ID: 74 'oral history.' The program seemed to sort by first keyword

  (and not always consistently) so that 'Anna Tobiason'

 OH came before 'Anna Hopen" and 'Anna Beck.' If there

 is a way to tag the main collection name and search it,

 that would be ideal.

 Average rating: 4.1

Basic Search Page—Information/Language

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Basic Search Information/Language  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 71

 Basic Search Information/Language  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 85

 Basic Search Information/Language  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Basic Search Information/Language  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 89

 Basic Search Information/Language  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 77

 Basic Search Information/Language  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 84

 Basic Search Information/Language  4 Simple and obvious.

 ID: 86

 Basic Search Information/Language  4 Could be clearer about the Browse function and the fact

 that it is completely separate from the Basic Search.

 ID: 88 This is conveyed somewhat by the formatting and

 separate Submit and Retrieve buttons, but some people

 may appreciate more distinct segregation.

 Basic Search Information/Language  4 Should indicate to users to use the pull down menue to

 select specific institution

 ID: 90

 Basic Search Information/Language  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 74

 Basic Search Information/Language  4 Concise and simple. Easy for first time users to

 understand. Good help page.

 ID: 72

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Basic Search Information/Language  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 62

 Basic Search Information/Language  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 67

 Basic Search Information/Language  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 78

 Basic Search Information/Language  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 79

 Basic Search Information/Language  4

 ID: 81

 Basic Search Information/Language  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 68

 Basic Search Information/Language  3 Ther is no label at all for the basic search entry box. I'm

 sure this was done to make the page look cleaner, but

 ID: 83 that's still a bad idea. The purpose of the Browsing

 Terms field is ucnlear at first glance-- a field name

 such as "Choose a Subject" wold be clearer. It's also not

  clear whether you are supposed to combine this with a

 basic search or use it independently.

 Basic Search Information/Language  3 The language on the search page is straightforward; the

 help page language is actually not too bad, but I fear that

 ID: 76  it may not be accessed much because it appears too

 complex. I wonder if most people would actually

 remember to use "+" instead of "and", etc. In the help

 screen as well, maybe instead of using "...will retrieve all

 finding aids" you could use "...will retrieve all collection

 guides".

 Average rating: 4.1

Basic Search Page—Navigation

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Basic Search Navigation 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 71

 Basic Search Navigation 5 Again, this is intuitive. It says what it means.

 ID: 85

 Basic Search Navigation 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 78

 Basic Search Navigation 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 88

 Basic Search Navigation 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 83

 Basic Search Navigation 4 Searching on the page is straightforward. When I did an

 "adj2" search, nothing happened, and the search page

 ID: 77 became inoperative. I could click on "Retrieve" as many

 times as I wanted, and nothing happened. At this point, I

 had to stop evaluating the search page on IE. I

 transferred to Netscape.

 Basic Search Navigation 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 84

 Basic Search Navigation 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Basic Search Navigation 4 This is good for a basic search page, but since I couldn't

  find the advanced search page, I have a few

 ID: 89 suggestions in case the advanced search page doesn't

 have these options. First, as a researcher, I would like it

 if I could type in a subject, such as "labor" and "women",

 or even "labor" and "women" and "Quakers". Then below

 that I would like to select a geographic area, such as

 "Washington". Below that, I would like to select a time

 frame, such as "1910-1955". After that, I would like to

 select a material type, such as "audio tape," or "all

 material types." Below that, I would like to select a

 language preference, such as "English" (this may not be

 a big deal since these are all American archival

 documents). And after that, I would like to select the

 institutions I'd like to search, such as "University of

 Oregon" and "Oregon State University" (on that drop-down

 menu of institutions, you ought to be able to hold the

 Control button to select multiple institutions [but not all

 Basic Search Navigation 4 see above

 ID: 90

 Basic Search Navigation 4 The links are all relevant and appropriate. I would favor

 moving the "Advanced Search" link up to a more

 ID: 76 immediately visible place.

 Basic Search Navigation 4 Navigation links work and it's easy to get back and forth. 

 Helpful links, especially being able to link to participating

 ID: 72  institution websites.

 Basic Search Navigation 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 79

 Basic Search Navigation 4

 ID: 81

 Basic Search Navigation 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 68

 Basic Search Navigation 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 74

 Basic Search Navigation 2.5 Browsing terms need short explaination.

 ID: 62

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Basic Search Navigation 2 Perhaps add in some spelling cross-referencing? For

 instance, if you ask for Edgecliff Sanatorium with

 ID: 86 "sanitorium" misspelled, "no hits" comes up. That could

 be fixed???

 Basic Search Navigation 1 Having a new window open with each finding aid

 accessed is confusing. Navigating a site such as this

 ID: 67 without the functionality of the back buttons on a browser

 is difficult.

 Average rating: 3.9

Advanced Search Page—Context

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Advanced Search Context  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 71

 Advanced Search Context  5 This page has the potential of being the most important

 of the entire site, especially if it is made a bit easier to

 ID: 76 use. The search capabilities represented here are

 tremendous and really offer the potential to exploit the

 great work put into the encoded finding aids.

 Advanced Search Context  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Advanced Search Context  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 83

 Advanced Search Context  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 68

 Advanced Search Context  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 79

 Advanced Search Context  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 67

 Advanced Search Context  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 77

 Advanced Search Context  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 74

 Advanced Search Context  4 Got to start someplace.

 ID: 86

 Advanced Search Context  3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 72

 Advanced Search Context  3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 78

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Advanced Search Context  3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 84

 Advanced Search Context  2 This page fits poorly with the rest of the site. The buttons

  are too heavy and out of character with the home page

 ID: 62 and the results pages.

 Advanced Search Context  1 I do not see an "Advanced Search" on this page.

 ID: 85

 Average rating: 3.7

Advanced Search Page—Design

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Advanced Search Design 1 The block of text is too far right. Too much white space

 on the left. The upper frame is too large for the amount of

 ID: 62  content. Why use frames at all on this page? Having

 developed many web pages I have learned from

 experience that frames have a high probability of errors

 and it gains nothing (particularly on this page). If you

 need standardization use a template or CSS.

 Advanced Search Design 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 67

 Advanced Search Design 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 68

 Advanced Search Design 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 71

 Advanced Search Design 3 I don't think the advanced search page is complete. 

 Needs clearer help function, links, color (please!). 

 ID: 72 Distracting to list search operators at every search

 option. Contains same information.

 Advanced Search Design 4 Make the 'clear' and 'search' buttons larger than those for

 the 'operators.' Search will be the more common option

 ID: 74 and a larger button will steer people there first. Perhaps

 also mute color of 'operators' buttons.

 Advanced Search Design 2 The design of this page is not consistent with the rest of

 the site. It is very empty (even moreso than the other

 ID: 76 pages). The search operators buttons seem too large

 and the colors seem at odds with the color scheme of

 the site. This has a temporary look and feel as far as

 design, and I expect it will be as attractive as the other

 pages soon.

 Advanced Search Design 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 77

 Advanced Search Design 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 78

 Advanced Search Design 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 79

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Advanced Search Design 2 Even if you click to full-screen this page, with an

 800x600 monitor too much scrolling is needed. The

 ID: 83 large white border below the End Session button ensures

  that it's impossible to see all the input boxes at once. 

 There sems no good reason to repeat the big green

 Search Operators link four times. Since the whole thrust

 of this interface seems to be that we should see lots of

 white space, the repetition of that link is especially

 strange. This page opens in a reduced-size window,

 which makes these interface problems even worse.

 Advanced Search Design 3 Generally speaking, the lower rating I'm giving the entire

 advanced search category is due to my own unfamiliarity

 ID: 84 with this type of search.

 Advanced Search Design 1 I do not see an "Advanced Search" on this page. 

 However, the basic search works well.

 ID: 85

 Advanced Search Design 4 Simple and obvious.

 ID: 86

 Advanced Search Design 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Average rating: 3.4

Advanced Search Page—Functionality

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Advanced Search Functionality 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 71

 Advanced Search Functionality 5 Comments above notwithstanding, the advanced search

 function is excellent. I would even like more options, but

 ID: 76 that's a personal preference. Some points of conflict are

 the "clear" or "search" buttons on the bottom of the

 screen--the "clear" button is too easy to select, which I

 did accidentally. The help screens that appear when

 clicking on "search operators" are too large for my liking.

 Advanced Search Functionality 5 outstanding

 ID: 87

 Advanced Search Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 68

 Advanced Search Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 79

 Advanced Search Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 74

 Advanced Search Functionality 4 Simple and obvious.

 ID: 86

 Advanced Search Functionality 4 With the unsusually high number of possible operators,

 it's possible to create very focsed searches, if a user

 ID: 83 wishes to learn how to do so. The only caveat is that

 there are perhps so MANY options that an inexperienced

 searcher may se so many choices that s/he does not

 know what to do.

 Advanced Search Functionality 3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 72

 Advanced Search Functionality 3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 78

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Advanced Search Functionality 3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 67

 Advanced Search Functionality 3 browser problems as noted above.

 ID: 77

 Advanced Search Functionality 3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 84

 Advanced Search Functionality 2 The page functions okay as such (buttons work) but see

 coments above.

 ID: 62

 Advanced Search Functionality 1 I do not see an "Advanced Search" on this page.

 ID: 85

 Average rating: 3.5

Advanced Search Page—Information/Language

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Advanced Search Information/Language  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Advanced Search Information/Language  4 It may be difficult for researchers who are not familiar

 with the structure of archival finding aids to understand

 ID: 71 the fields that are used in the advanced search page,

 even if they are accustomed to using internet search

 engines. A separate help section for the advanced

 search page might be helpful, although these users

 would probably be well-served by the basic search

 option.

 Advanced Search Information/Language  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 68

 Advanced Search Information/Language  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 79

 Advanced Search Information/Language  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 78

 Advanced Search Information/Language  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 77

 Advanced Search Information/Language  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 74

 Advanced Search Information/Language  4 Simple and obvious.

 ID: 86

 Advanced Search Information/Language  3 Again, hard to evaluate

 ID: 72

 Advanced Search Information/Language  3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 84

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Advanced Search Information/Language  2 As with the Basic Search page, the "hits in context" is

 confusing.

 ID: 67

 Advanced Search Information/Language  2 Some of the language is not very clear. I don't know what

 I am searching if I select "entire finding aid

 ID: 76 development". I suspect that non-archivists may also

 have difficulty with that as with other field titles such as

 "summary of collection contents." What exactly does that

  access point search? Is it the Abstract, or the

 collection overview section of a finding aid? Maybe there

  could be help screens associated with each search

 field that explain what parts of the database is search by

 each.

 Advanced Search Information/Language  2 Theer are several problems with the terminology on this

 page, and while I usually favor an advaced search page

 ID: 83 with a large number of options, this one is harder to use

  than it needs to be. A "What is this?" link for the 

 Collection Inventory box label would be useful to 

 researchers who are unfamiliar with archives. The two 

 drop-down boxes below that, “Sort By” and “Order” are

 EXCEPTIONALLY cryptic. The default for “Sort By” is

 "Select criterion" and that won't be clear to most people.

  Why not just pick one of the three criteria from which you

  are supposed to select and make that the default? Why

 not do the same with the “Order” drop-down? Why not so

 these the way they are done in WorldCat (for example)

 with a set Sort options box which goes to another page

 where these can be set. Believe me, it would be easier 

 for people to figure out than the present setup!

 Advanced Search Information/Language  1 What is with the overlarge search operator buttons? They

  all appeared to give the same info but even if there are

 ID: 62 difference they are much to large and prominant for their

 importance.

 Advanced Search Information/Language  1 I do not see an "Advanced Search" on this page.

 ID: 85

 Average rating: 3.1

Advanced Search Page—Navigation

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Advanced Search Navigation  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Advanced Search Navigation  4 It would be helpful for the Advanced Search page to have

  a link back to the NWDA home page, and perhaps also

 ID: 71 to the basic search page.

 Advanced Search Navigation  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 68

 Advanced Search Navigation  4 I especially like the search operators pop-up help screen.

  Even for experienced researchers, it's helpful to have

 ID: 79 hints on doing boolean searching, etc.

 Advanced Search Navigation  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 78

 Advanced Search Navigation  4 As before, IE locked up. No searches were allowed. I had

  to transfer to Netscape.

 ID: 77

 Advanced Search Navigation  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 74

 Advanced Search Navigation  4 The drop-down boxes are alos a navigational issue. At

 present,almost nobody is going to use them-- they're

 ID: 83 confusing. OTOH, they are not the main features of the

 page, and for most people it won't matter much if these

 are used. Other page navigation is OK.

 Advanced Search Navigation  3 The available links are easy to navigate.

 ID: 72

 Advanced Search Navigation  3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 84

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Advanced Search Navigation  2 See comments about design. There are no links from

 this page to anywhere else in the site, as there are on

 ID: 76 other pages. It appears to be lacking a frame.

 Advanced Search Navigation  2 My click on "Basque Americans" yielded no hits..so why

 is it on the list?

 ID: 86

 Advanced Search Navigation  1 Poorly done. Novice users may have difficulty with the

 lack of back/forward navigation buttons or just using the

 ID: 67 back arrow on one's browser. Opening a new window is

 confusing and can cause one to completely leave the

 website. People are hesitant (especially novice/moderate

  Web users) to close a window, thus they may end up

 with several windows open that would slow down their

 searches or loading of large finding aids.

 Advanced Search Navigation  1 Navagation should include the ability to go back to the

 home page. To end the session I get a message that

 ID: 62 asks if I want to close the window and then it goes back

 to the home page. You should be able to navigate back

 to the basic search, browsing terms, participating

 institutions etc, etc. This page needs serious work.

 Sorry.

 Advanced Search Navigation  1 I do not see an "Advanced Search" on this page.

 ID: 85

 Average rating: 3.1

Search Result List—Context

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Search Result List Context 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 71

 Search Result List Context 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 78

 Search Result List Context 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 76

 Search Result List Context 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 89

 Search Result List Context 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 88

 Search Result List Context 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 85

 Search Result List Context 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 72

 Search Result List Context 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 68

 Search Result List Context 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 77

 Search Result List Context 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Search Result List Context 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 84

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Search Result List Context 3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 67

 Search Result List Context 3 I'm simply surprised by what did not come up in several

 calculated searches, where I knew to expect certain

 ID: 74 collections and materials. For instance, despite the

 window containing a Pauling collection visual document

 from OSU Special Collections, I could not locate the

 Pauling collection in either the basic or advanced search

  by entering 'Pauling' as the keyword to search. (A few

 other collections containing Pauling materials did come

 up.) In addition, a search for all materials held in

 Special Collections at OSU [part II of basic search]

 yielded only a handful of collections -- neither Pauling

 nor the Malamud papers came up. That shook my

 confidence.

 Search Result List Context 3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 90

 Search Result List Context 0 Again see note about the overall site.

 ID: 62

 Average rating: 3.9

NWDA Search Results List—Design

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Search Result List Design  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 71

 Search Result List Design  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 74

 Search Result List Design  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 89

 Search Result List Design  5 Really nice. It searches in phrases without framing in

 quotes, it seems. I personally like that.

 ID: 85

 Search Result List Design  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 68

 Search Result List Design  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 67

 Search Result List Design  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 77

 Search Result List Design  4 The design is clear and attractive, however it lacks the

 NWDA logo and panel that I had come to expect for all

 ID: 76 pages.

 Search Result List Design  4 Good, but should keep same look throughout each page;

 it doesn't matc the earlier design

 ID: 90

 Search Result List Design  4 Don't care for the layout of the number of documents

 section at the top and bottom, strangely offset. I see with

 ID: 88 multiple page results, this is more centered, but I would

 put the (of 163) next to the 1 to 10 and place the arrow

 and last link next to each other. I do like the layout of the

 actual results, although I might justify text in the

 paragraphs.

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Search Result List Design  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Search Result List Design  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 84

 Search Result List Design  3 Graphics and color. Not enought to make it distracting

 but enough to make the page more visually appealing.

 ID: 72

 Search Result List Design  3 For some reason, the results page was not immediately

 understandable (not sure why).

 ID: 78

 Search Result List Design  3 The frame at the top uses too much real estate and

 provides too little help. The results list themselves I think

 ID: 62  work well. Why use grey type instead of black? The

 contrast may not be great enough for some people.

 Average rating: 4.1

Search Result List—Functionality

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Search Result List Functionality 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 71

 Search Result List Functionality 5 Loved the links to the details.

 ID: 78

 Search Result List Functionality 5 Refer to other comments above regarding links and

 language, but otherwise, this is an outstanding page that

 ID: 76  is very functional.

 Search Result List Functionality 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 89

 Search Result List Functionality 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 88

 Search Result List Functionality 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 85

 Search Result List Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 72

 Search Result List Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 68

 Search Result List Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 77

 Search Result List Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 74

 Search Result List Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Search Result List Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 84

 Search Result List Functionality 3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 67

 Search Result List Functionality 3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 90

 Search Result List Functionality 2 Needs navigation help. The response time was adequate.

 ID: 62

 Average rating: 4.1

Search Result List—Information/Language

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Search Result List Information/Language  3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 78

 Search Result List Information/Language  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 74

 Search Result List Information/Language  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 89

 Search Result List Information/Language  4 I either don't understand or the number of hits doesn't

 coincide with the hits in context link. When the number of

 ID: 88  hits says 3, I expect to see 3 instances in context, but

 only see 1. Then I am further confused because when I

 go to the Complete Finding Aid, I only see one

 highlighted instance of my search in each of the two

 results. So what does the 3 hits signify? (This may have

 been a fluke. I tried with a different search and saw the

 correct number of hits in the Hits in Context.)

 Search Result List Information/Language  5 The hits in context and full finding aid are nice additions.

  They allow for a reseracher to see more than just the

 ID: 85 quick hit returned, but rather where it came from and is it

 worth looking farther.

 Search Result List Information/Language  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 71

 Search Result List Information/Language  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 68

 Search Result List Information/Language  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 77

 Search Result List Information/Language  4 Information is very informative in the abstracts--some

 more than others, understandably. File size is a useful

 ID: 76 addition, as is number of hits. "Hits in context" is

 somewhat vague, but I can't think of an alternative at the

 moment. In general, this is a strong page.

 Search Result List Information/Language  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Search Result List Information/Language  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 84

 Search Result List Information/Language  4 Very clear and easy to read. The hits in content link is

 VERY helpful, as is the full size of finding aid note.

 ID: 72

 Search Result List Information/Language  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 67

 Search Result List Information/Language  3 see above

 ID: 90

 Search Result List Information/Language  5 I think the parts are well explained. I am unclear why

 there is an xml markup but I am sure there is a reason of

 ID: 62 which I am unaware.

 Average rating: 4.2

Search Result List—Navigation

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Search Result List Navigation  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 78

 Search Result List Navigation  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 74

 Search Result List Navigation  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 89

 Search Result List Navigation  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 88

 Search Result List Navigation  5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 85

 Search Result List Navigation  4 The link back to the NWDA info page at the bottom of the

  list results is a little hard to see. It would help if there

 ID: 71 was another link at the top of the page, and also if the

 link's text was a different color than the text of the search

 results.

 Search Result List Navigation  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 68

 Search Result List Navigation  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 77

 Search Result List Navigation  4 Aside from the absence of standard NWDA links and

 logo in the banner at the top, the links in the

 ID: 76 results/summaries are good and appropriate. The "xml

 markup" link may not be desirable to most users.

 Search Result List Navigation  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Search Result List Navigation  4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 84

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Search Result List Navigation  3 Easy to move deeper into the finding aids but no other

 links available, except for a new search. Must use back

 ID: 72 key.

 Search Result List Navigation  3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 67

 Search Result List Navigation  3 see above

 ID: 90

 Search Result List Navigation  2 The navigation should be standard with the homepage

 and other pages. There is no easy, visible way to return

 ID: 62 to the homepage from here or to change the search such

 as limit by institutions. Needs work.

 Average rating: 4.0

Search Result Full Detail—Context

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Search Result Detail Context 5 Excellent resource.

 ID: 76

 Search Result Detail Context 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 71

 Search Result Detail Context 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 85

 Search Result Detail Context 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 78

 Search Result Detail Context 5 Finding aids provide great detail and information. They

 exceed my expectation.

 ID: 62

 Search Result Detail Context 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 88

 Search Result Detail Context 5 Once again, very thorough. What might also be neat

 though would be to have a link on each Full Detail Page

 ID: 89 to another page where researchers can post comments

 about the materials and read the comments of other

 researchers. It might really be helpful and neat and it

 would get researchers to do some extra work for you.

 These types of "message boards" are found many places

  on the internet and really do get a lot of use. I have seen

 them on news websites so that people can respond to

 news stories they read (check out any story on AOL's

 home page, for example). On the NWDA website I could

 see such a forum being used by researchers to discuss

 things and share information. You could also have one

 large forum for the whole website instead of for each

 individual collection, but have it be searchable by

 subject or collection heading.

 Search Result Detail Context 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 83

 Search Result Detail Context 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 84

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Search Result Detail Context 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Search Result Detail Context 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 77

 Search Result Detail Context 4 All relevant hits. Again, I appreciate the highlighted hits.

 ID: 72

 Search Result Detail Context 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 79

 Search Result Detail Context 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 68

 Search Result Detail Context 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 74

 Search Result Detail Context 3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 90

 Search Result Detail Context 3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 67

 Average rating: 4.4

Search Result Full Detail—Design

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Search Result Detail Design 5 Very good design, clear, easy to take in. Expanded size

 of browser can be annoying, but that is probably

 ID: 76 inevitable.

 Search Result Detail Design 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 68

 Search Result Detail Design 5 Super. As mentioned, it allows for the researcher to see

 where the records/item falls within the larger collection.

 ID: 85

 Search Result Detail Design 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 78

 Search Result Detail Design 5 Clear and well-organized.

 ID: 89

 Search Result Detail Design 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 84

 Search Result Detail Design 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Search Result Detail Design 4 Not sure I care for the gray (or light green?) text for the

 main information, a bit too light.

 ID: 88

 Search Result Detail Design 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 77

 Search Result Detail Design 4 Page is still too white and gray for my taste but others

 may find color too distracting.

 ID: 72

 Search Result Detail Design 4 The finding aids are much clearer than the advanced

 search or the results pages.

 ID: 62

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Search Result Detail Design 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 67

 Search Result Detail Design 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 79

 Search Result Detail Design 4 The gray border of on the left side of the page overlaps

 part of the text of the finding aids. I found that this

 ID: 71 interrupts my eye when I'm trying to read the finding aid.

 This is not a big inconvenience, but it would be

 somewhat cumbersome if I were to spend a long period

 of time doing research on the site.

 Search Result Detail Design 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 74

 Search Result Detail Design 3 4 it's pretty, but as noted regarding other pages, you have

  to scroll left and right unless you have a high-res

 ID: 83 monitor. Since frames are not used, all that very useful

 contents information over on the right quickly vanishes

 from view as you scroll down.

 Search Result Detail Design 3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 90

 Average rating: 4.2

Search Result Full Detail—Functionality

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Search Result Detail Functionality 5 This was great.

 ID: 77

 Search Result Detail Functionality 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 71

 Search Result Detail Functionality 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 68

 Search Result Detail Functionality 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 78

 Search Result Detail Functionality 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 85

 Search Result Detail Functionality 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 88

 Search Result Detail Functionality 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 89

 Search Result Detail Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 84

 Search Result Detail Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Search Result Detail Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 83

 Search Result Detail Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 74

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Search Result Detail Functionality 4 Kept getting timed out when I moved from the search

 results to the full detail page.

 ID: 72

 Search Result Detail Functionality 4 Functionality seems to be fine.

 ID: 62

 Search Result Detail Functionality 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 79

 Search Result Detail Functionality 3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 90

 Search Result Detail Functionality 3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 67

 Search Result Detail Functionality 3 The functionality is affected by factors mentioned above

 such as navigation. In general, these are fantastic

 ID: 76 resources and are extremely well done. They are so good

  that I was left wanting to search within individual finding

 aids once discovered. That would move the ranking from

 3 to a 5.

 Average rating: 4.2

Search Result Full Detail—Information/Language

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Search Result Detail Information/Language 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 71

 Search Result Detail Information/Language 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 85

 Search Result Detail Information/Language 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 78

 Search Result Detail Information/Language 5 I particularly like knowing both the "inclusive dates" and

 "bulk dates" of a set of materials. Very thorough

 ID: 89 descriptions of the collection, both quantitatively and

 qualitatively.

 Search Result Detail Information/Language 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 83

 Search Result Detail Information/Language 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 77

 Search Result Detail Information/Language 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 84

 Search Result Detail Information/Language 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Search Result Detail Information/Language 4 Not sure why the Quantity section included in my

 example includes "0 compact discs" when it doesn't list

 ID: 88 several other possible formats which it apparently doesn't

  include either. Does this tie into the combined

 "Cassette/Cd" listing?

 Search Result Detail Information/Language 4 Naturally, this appears to vary in quality depending on the

  contents of each finding aid, but as far as the static

 ID: 76 components of the finding aids, the language

 corresponds well to the structure of the document, which

 makes it easy to understand.

 Search Result Detail Information/Language 4 Provides necessary information without being too wordy.

 Still some problems with repository encoding but

 ID: 72 otherwise it's quite clear.

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Search Result Detail Information/Language 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 79

 Search Result Detail Information/Language 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 68

 Search Result Detail Information/Language 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 74

 Search Result Detail Information/Language 3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 90

 Search Result Detail Information/Language 3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 67

 Search Result Detail Information/Language 0 I think the language is fine.

 ID: 62

 Average rating: 3.9

Search Result Full Detail—Navigation

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Search Result Detail Navigation 5 Pretty straightforward design.

 ID: 85

 Search Result Detail Navigation 5 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 78

 Search Result Detail Navigation 5 I like the links on the left hand side of the page that allow

  the researcher to "jump down" to each section.

 ID: 89

 Search Result Detail Navigation 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 77

 Search Result Detail Navigation 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 84

 Search Result Detail Navigation 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 87

 Search Result Detail Navigation 4 I don't understand the Hits arrow, which seems to

 function just like the top arrow.

 ID: 88

 Search Result Detail Navigation 4 See comment under interface design. You can't get back

  to the contents links without going back to the top of the

 ID: 83  page.

 Search Result Detail Navigation 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 74

 Search Result Detail Navigation 4 My "hits" link at the top of the page doesn't seem to work. 

 Also, hard to get back to the search results from the full

 ID: 72 detail page.

 Search Result Detail Navigation 4 The finding aids are the best part of the site. Easy to

 understand and navigate.

 ID: 62

 Element Evaluated Rating (5=High 1=Low) Comments

 Search Result Detail Navigation 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 79

 Search Result Detail Navigation 4 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 68

 Search Result Detail Navigation 4 Links to other pages are not immediately apparent.

 ID: 71

 Search Result Detail Navigation 3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 90

 Search Result Detail Navigation 3 [please include any comments here]

 ID: 67

 Search Result Detail Navigation 3 Many of the standard links are very good, but larger

 documents are difficult to navigate as a whole entity. May

 ID: 76  better be broken up at some point and each section

 searched/navigated separately. I do not understand the

 purpose of the "View Search Result Info" link. When I

 select "Hits in context" I find the linking a little confusing,

  but I really like the idea of that view. What I find

 confusing is the identification of the component levels

 where the search terms are found. It would be better to

 identify those not by "component" but by the level attribute

  and perhaps a unittitle and parent unittitle--something a

 little more contextual.

 Average rating: 4.0

 

Evaluations completed by WWU undergraduate students, July 2004:

 

Student narrative comments:

 

 

In general the site seemed easy to use. I hade to try several terms before anything would come up, words like Saltice, Chris Mensalves, Margaret Felt and Luvina Buchanan did not turn up any results. It seems as though at least some of these people are important enough in PNW history to show up. i think that the advanced search would help a lot. the directions were all easy to follow and the format is similar to many other search engines which made it even easier to follow.

 

Overall I found the NWDA site easy to use and very thorough. I didn’t find any confusing language that may be used in archival and historical cirlces that could have hindered my success in conducting a search. When I went through my "logging" search I got 125 hits. Since the advanced search was not working I, as a user, adjusted and skimmed through the different hits by looking at the summaries accompanied by each one. I think that giving a brief summary of the data is helpful in that it saves people a lot of time while doing research. The three collections I looked at were the Guide to the Nels Simonseth Oral History 1901-1982, Guide to the Clarence Strong Papers 1917-1975, and the Guide to the Ed Carlson Oral History 1897-1981. I was impressed by how much detail the finding aids go into. With each I was given information about where the documents are located, how many linear feet each collection amounts to, overviews of the type of data that different aspects of the collections encompass, biographical data, employment etc. My three selections were purely random and as it turns out the Ed Carlson and Nels Simonseth collection both come out of the same library at PLU dealing with scandinavian immigrants. I suppose my point is students without much experience in using online archival data should, like I have found, have a relatively painless time finding what they are looking for. When the "advance search" portion comes online I think it will be even easier and faster.

 

 

Today I went to the Northwest Digital Archives page and experiemented with the basic search.  I searched under the subjects loggers and Whitmans.  I looked closely at the descriptions of the Brice P. Disque Papers, the Guide to Northern Montana Forestry Associations records, and the Guide to the Marcus and Narcissa Whitman Papers.  Brice P. Disque's papers are a collection of papers, letters, financial documents, etc. that are important to this man's life.  I learned that he was involved in making the logging of spruce trees a more orderly affair (very interesting).  The Northern MT Forestry Assoc. Records contained all the dealings the association had from 1907 to 1991.  These records contain minutes from their meetings, which I think would be interesting to see in order to know about all the different ways they attempted to combat forest fire in the region.  The Marcus and Narcissa Whitman Papers contain correspondence, journals, church records, etc.  I think the church records would be interesting to look at and see how many natives joined the church and what sort of business went on in the church.  The website seems like a very helpful tool for anyone interested in looking at primary sources.  I like how they describe in detail what the collection is and give a brief history of the subject. 

 

I checked out the NWDA site and tried to do a basic search for Japanese mill workers, using a combination of words, but had no luck. Instead, I searched "Japanese" and what I found were collections related

to: 1. Japanese Internment, 2. A Japanese Emigrant who lived the "American Dream" and became a member of the middle / upper middle class, 3. Papers relating to Japanese churches. I browsed each of these type of

collections(specifically: Mary Farquharson Papers Relating to the Incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II 1942-1945, Yoshiko Uchida Papers 1948-1977, & Highland Park United Methodist Church (Spokane,

Wash.) Records 1900-1991"), and found that there was little to be found about any run of the mill working Japanese person in the PNW, which I think it is telling about the ways archives come about.

 

 

archives bonus assignment

summer quarter 2004

 

I went to the archive search engine and typed in "whitman", "nez pierce indians", and "fishing treaty". The results of my search varried. There appeared to be many things which may be useful such as archives on the Whitmans including murder trial documents and primary source journal entries seperated into different catagories including one marked incidents, as well as personal letters and newpaper articles. The search for nez pierce and salmon treaty however were disappointing however in terms of what i was able to find. The nez pierce indian search only provided one match which i found a little odd considering the broad face of the topic and the salmon treaty search provided no matches. While i have no experience with archives before my first impression of the search wasnt very good. I felt that for my needs i wasnt able to find anything (apart from the Whitman documents) that would have been of extreme value had i been doing a broad study of two of the three topics.

 

So I check out the Northwest Digital Archives. I thought that they were generally very clear and easy to navigate as well as visually pleasing. I don't have any experience in online archives but I thought the finding aids were erally informative in that I could get a really good sense of what the archieves had, so I would be able to determine if I need to get out there and see them. Three Archive Collections I looked at: 1. Olivia Karline Floathe Peterson Oral History (1888-1983) Collection at Pacific Lutheran University: She was a Norwegian immigrant to Spokane, then eventually to Seattle. Some of her other family were settled in Minnesota but she went West to visit her sister in Spokane, she moved to Seattle because her husband was a fisherman there. Her occupations included working in a boarding house, working as a book keeper, and domestic work. This collection was dealing with the experiences of Scandinavian women in the PNW. 2. Fujita Family Photograph Collection 1920s and 30s. Collection at University of Washington's Special Collections: This collection was listed as 51 pictures (I think it was 51). These pictures depicted the activities of a Japanese in Seattle. The site only gave short description of the pictures... and I mean SHORT like "Girl in Kimono" and "Boy." 3. Bucklin Family Papers 1864-1988, 1864-1988. Collection at Washington State University: Collection of diaries, letters, and miscellaneous legal documents of Nathan Bucklin, his son and grandson. He was the manager of lumber mills at Seabck and Port Madison (Bainbridge Island!!! Oh yeah!) He was born in Maine but came to Kitsap County to be the supervisor of a mill. He was active in county politics, served as Deputy assessor and major of Port Orchard. The site detailed how the collection was arranged, by legal documents, correspondence, and diary entries, then by date.

 

 

Guide to the Center for Columbia River History Oral Histories 1998-2000

Guide to the King County Labor Council of Washington Records
1889-2003

L.V. McWhorter Photograph Collection

 

I visited the collections above and spent about twenty minutes navigating through the site. I have to confess that I don’t know a lot about archives but my evaluation of its usability is that it is adequate.

I was able to quickly find collections that were within the realm of my search topics and obviously the indexing of the site is quite significant so you could narrow down your search quickly if you had a real good feel for what you needed.