Evaluation of library Web sites: the Danish case

Abstract

This paper presents the major findings from the project “Development of new methods for evaluation of library Web sites on the World Wide Web”. The report includes a brief examination and discussion of quality applied to Web sites in general and concerning library Web sites in particular. Findings from a few empirical surveys are presented. A new list of quality criteria for evaluation of academic libraries is compiled. The list is tested on three Danish academic libraries. Finally, a revised list of criteria is applied to twelve major Danish academic libraries. The findings include the panellists’ scores and their verbal comments. The main conclusion is that the Web sites of the Danish academic libraries in question are above average compared with Web sites in general. They do not, however, come up to expectations as virtual expressions of the quality levels of the libraries. This situation can only be improved if the libraries allocate the necessary resources regarding updating and development of the Web sites. This should be done on the basis of regular user studies and comparative evaluations.