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Introduction<br />

Procedures for Creat<strong>in</strong>g Useful Web Sites<br />

Judy Cossel Rice<br />

Department of Instructional Science, College of Education<br />

Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah<br />

Judy_Rice@byu.edu<br />

Paul F. Merrill<br />

Department of Instructional Science, College of Education<br />

Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah<br />

Paul_Merrill@byu.edu<br />

Carol Lee Hawk<strong>in</strong>s<br />

College of Education<br />

Brigham Young University Provo, Utah<br />

Carol_Lee_Hawk<strong>in</strong>s@byu.edu<br />

Abstract. The Instructional Science Department at Brigham Young University developed a<br />

procedure for identify<strong>in</strong>g the specific <strong>in</strong><strong>format</strong>ion that should be <strong>in</strong>cluded at a Web site and<br />

an approach for address<strong>in</strong>g style and usability issues. The procedures focus on identify<strong>in</strong>g<br />

the audience, determ<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g their <strong>in</strong><strong>format</strong>ional needs and design<strong>in</strong>g a site where this<br />

<strong>in</strong><strong>format</strong>ion can be easily accessed. The procedure outl<strong>in</strong>es the steps of prelim<strong>in</strong>ary plann<strong>in</strong>g,<br />

design plann<strong>in</strong>g (audience identification, audience needs assessment, content determ<strong>in</strong>ation,<br />

cognitive design considerations, visual design considerations, usability facilitation) and Web<br />

site management.<br />

In the summer of 1994 we undertook the creation of a World Wide Web site for the Department of<br />

Instructional Science, Brigham Young University (http://www.byu.edu/<strong>in</strong>sci). The site was to be a repository<br />

of <strong>in</strong><strong>format</strong>ion about our program and to be a reference for those enrolled <strong>in</strong> it. The project resulted <strong>in</strong> the<br />

development of a procedure for identify<strong>in</strong>g the specific <strong>in</strong><strong>format</strong>ion that should be <strong>in</strong>cluded at a site as well as<br />

methods for address<strong>in</strong>g style and usability issues. We comb<strong>in</strong>ed task-centered and user-centered design<br />

pr<strong>in</strong>ciples to provide the theoretical foundation for the project. We are now us<strong>in</strong>g this approach to design a<br />

site for the College of Education.<br />

Task-centered design pr<strong>in</strong>ciples focus on the tasks or jobs a targeted group needs to accomplish and what is<br />

necessary to complete the tasks. This approach facilitates the creation of a World Wide Web site by def<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g<br />

the <strong>in</strong><strong>format</strong>ion needs of a targeted audience. It requires designers to identify who will be access<strong>in</strong>g their site,<br />

what this group will be try<strong>in</strong>g to accomplish, and what <strong>in</strong><strong>format</strong>ion they will need to accomplish the goal<br />

<strong>in</strong>stead of simply plac<strong>in</strong>g a large body of available <strong>in</strong><strong>format</strong>ion onl<strong>in</strong>e. Designers can then select what they<br />

wish to provide given the unique qualities of the Web and their resources.<br />

User design pr<strong>in</strong>ciples focus on how people <strong>in</strong>terface with programs--the human-computer <strong>in</strong>teractions that<br />

occur. This approach encourages the designer to create a site where people can readily locate and retrieve the<br />

needed <strong>in</strong><strong>format</strong>ion. The designer pays particular attention to the graphical user <strong>in</strong>terface (GUI), screen layout<br />

and access speed. People do not want to wait for several m<strong>in</strong>utes while a huge image map loads, even if it is<br />

an extremely <strong>in</strong><strong>format</strong>ive, graphically pleas<strong>in</strong>g, navigational marvel. Similarly, if the user is unable to locate<br />

<strong>in</strong><strong>format</strong>ion at the site, it essentially does not exist for that person.<br />

The Web was such a new medium when we first undertook the creation of the Instructional Science’s site, we<br />

could not rely on established procedures for its development as none existed. While we were able to draw from<br />

other discipl<strong>in</strong>es, we were still faced with issues unique to the Web such as limited <strong>format</strong>t<strong>in</strong>g options, access

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