How many folks following this discussion are LITA members? Would anyone be
willing to join LITA to be a part of an interest group on this subject? I
will renew my membership in LITA if that is the best route to take.

Josh Welker


-----Original Message-----
From: Code for Libraries [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of
Cindi Blyberg
Sent: Tuesday, September 30, 2014 9:46 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [CODE4LIB] Library community web standards (was: LibGuides v2 -
Templates and Nav)

Oh, and if UX doesn't fit, y'all can establish the LITA Web Standards IG, or
the LITA Code4Lib Web Best Practices IG, or whatever you want to call it.
You need 10 LITA Member signatures:

http://www.ala.org/lita/sites/ala.org.lita/files/content/about/manual/forms/e5-igformation.pdf


http://www.ala.org/lita/about/igs

On Tue, Sep 30, 2014 at 10:44 AM, Cindi Blyberg <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> *puts on LITA hat*
>
> There are several ways that LITA/ALA could play a role here.
>
> Publications:
> There is a series of books called LITA Guides.  Great way to get the
> word out widely, but a static format.
> http://www.alastore.ala.org/SearchResult.aspx?KeyWords=lita
>
> There are also Library Technology Reports - a periodical.  Still
> static, but published more regularly:
> http://alatechsource.org/ltr/index
>
> There is also the LITA UX Interest Group.  IGs are fluid,
> volunteer-run (not appointed), and can pretty much do what they want.
> Publish and update something? Sure!  Establish and run a virtual
> conference? Definitely! Have meetings and programs at conferences? Yes!
> Caveat: must be a LITA member.
>
> Happy to provide more info if needed.
>
> -Cindi
> of the many hats
>
> On Tue, Sep 30, 2014 at 10:34 AM, Joshua Welker <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
>> I definitely agree that we should adhere to larger web standards and
>> that we should actively discourage conventions that libraries have
>> adopted over the years that have nothing to do with wider standards
>> and best practices (e.g.
>> tabbed search boxes, content in sidebar regions). In fact, much of
>> our work would just be bringing together information from several
>> standards into a common location and putting a "librarian" stamp of
>> approval on it.
>>
>> Some topics I had in mind:
>>
>> -Accessibility standards: screen readers, color blindness, keyboard
>> navigation, alt tags, etc.
>> -Text: readable fonts, colors, text alignment -Page layout:
>> navigation location, sidebars, headings and subheadings, search box
>> designs, database pages, mobile friendliness -Best practices for
>> specific library platforms: LibGuides, DSpace, etc.
>>
>> Some official name would be required, of course. I also think it
>> would be great if we could write a draft, bring it to an official ALA
>> group like LITA, and get them to adopt it after making their own tweaks.
>>
>> Josh Welker
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Code for Libraries [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf
>> Of Michael Schofield
>> Sent: Tuesday, September 30, 2014 9:01 AM
>> To: [log in to unmask]
>> Subject: Re: [CODE4LIB] Library community web standards (was:
>> LibGuides
>> v2 -
>> Templates and Nav)
>>
>> I am interested but I am a little hazy about what kind of standards
>> you all are suggesting. I would warn against creating standards that
>> conflict with any actual web standards, because I--and, I think, many
>> others--would honestly recommend that the #libweb should aspire to
>> and adhere more firmly to larger web standards and best practices
>> that conflict with something that's more, ah, librarylike. Although
>> that might not be what you folks have in mind at all : ).
>>
>> Michael S.
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Code for Libraries [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf
>> Of Brad Coffield
>> Sent: Tuesday, September 30, 2014 9:30 AM
>> To: [log in to unmask]
>> Subject: Re: [CODE4LIB] Library community web standards (was:
>> LibGuides
>> v2 -
>> Templates and Nav)
>>
>> Josh, thanks for separating this topic out and starting this new
>> thread. I don't know of any such library standards that exist on the
>> web. I agree that this sounds like a great idea. As for this group or
>> not... why not!
>> It's 2014 and they don't exist yet and they would be incredibly
>> useful for many libraries, if not all. Now all we need is a cool 'working
>> group'
>> title
>> for ourselves and we're halfway done! Right???
>>
>> But seriously, I'd love to help.
>>
>> Brad
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Brad Coffield, MLIS
>> Assistant Information and Web Services Librarian Saint Francis
>> University
>> 814-472-3315
>> [log in to unmask]
>>
>
>