Frontline staff at the Brynmor Jones Library are constantly asked for directions. Where is Teaching Room 6? Where can I top up printer credit? Where can I print? Where do I return books? I’m sure it’s the same at other Academic Libraries too. This led to thinking about signage and particularly how we might use interactive signage in the future to make it easy for our library users to find their way around the building and accomplish tasks.
Our first thinking has been around an interactive map which would be displayed on a 60” touch screen (We were lucky enough to have one around). The prototype has been built using Adobe Flash, for the simple reason that I knew how to use it and could do the work relatively quickly. Since our sole purpose has been to display it on one screen and gather feedback, Flash as a platform hasn’t been an issue. We do however, understand that if we wanted to develop it into a mobile friendly map we would have to rethink the technology.
In the first prototype stage we have asked our staff and volunteer students for feedback on the following:
- Usefulness
- Functionality
- Visuals and animations
- Usability
- Additional features
- Additional services/markers
Following on from this feedback we will consider the value of further development.
If you are interested in having a play with the prototype (and have the flash plugin) you can access in here. It is designed to run at 1920 x 1080. If you are interested in knowing more or want to send feedback, please get in touch.
