“As the biggest library if it is in disorder is not as useful as a small but well-arranged one, so you may accumulate a vast amount of knowledge but it will be of far less value than a much smaller amount if you have not thought it over for yourself.”

Arthur Schopenhauer

For information professionals, design is a fundamental skill. Information professionals design instructional materials, story hours, specialized collections, search engines and websites. (Weedman, 2018) With regards to the design of information systems, how information is stored determines how well it can be retrieved. (Tucker, 2018)

Information professionals must also be able to query those information systems to extract the needed information. Among the query tools in the information professional’s toolkit are the use Boolean operators. Search engines typically recognize AND, OR, NOT logical (Boolean) operators, but they may have different defaults for which operator is processed first. To circumvent this a searcher can use parentheses, called “nesting” to denote which terms should be searched first.

Evaluation is intricately connected to both design and query, as it informs decisions on both the system being developed as well as competing systems. (Weedman, 2018) “We evaluate the collections we develop and works that may be added to the collection, we evaluate the reliability of a huge range of sources of information, and we evaluate the ‘findability’ and usability of information on the web.” (Weedman, 2018, p. 171) Ultimately, retrieval depends on two things, the accuracy and incisiveness of the query, and the ability of the design to allow queries that will retrieve resources with the desired attributes. (Weedman, 2018)

Info 202 - Information Retrieval System Design

This course covered the design, querying, and evaluation of information retrieval systems, from web hierarchies to controlled vocabularies. The concepts covered provided a foundation for all the topics and ideas in the course including science and practice, information science and library science, and information retrieval.

I learned how to design two major kinds of information retrieval systems: metadata and web hierarchies. I gained an understanding of the basic vocabulary and concepts of information retrieval (IR), and used them in class discussions and analyses of IR design projects. I identified standards and best practices for metadata, classification schema and hierarchies, and applied them in assignments, and identified an appropriate user group for an IR product, assessed their information needs, conducted user research, and designed an information retrieval system to meet those needs. I can explain and apply basic design principles for usability, focused on the content and organization of information for retrieval, and use Boolean logic and other methods to query the databases created as class assignments with effective searches in both natural language and controlled vocabulary fields; and navigate hierarchies efficiently. I also learned to evaluate a database information retrieval system, including its vocabularies, using standard measures such as recall and precision; and evaluate interfaces for information retrieval using basic principles of interface design.

Assignments that contributed to these learning outcomes included quizzes, discussions, exercises and group projects.

Info 246 - Python

This course provided an introduction to using Python to program computer applications. We followed from the instructor’s textbook and practiced programming exercises. The assignments were problems to be solved by coding Python programs that exercised concepts learned. I learned the fundamentals of Python coding statements, how to define and use functions, how to work with data types and lists, use file I/O, and create and maintain a Python dictionary.

Over the semester, I gained practice in coding and testing programs using fundamental Python statements. I learned how to define and use functions and modules. I worked with datatypes and lists and with with file I/O. I also learned how to create and maintain a Python dictionary.

I accomplished these learning outcomes and new skills with a combination of discussions and assignments. Many of these skills were put into practice in assignments featuring an evolving conversation with a “wizard”. The assignments built on each other, with each assignment adding a new skill set, ultimately creating a final directory project.

Team Spicy Librarians: Alpha Design Document - WebDataPro

The purpose of this group project in Info 202 - Information Retrieval System Design was to provide experience in designing a data structure for a database of records for non-traditional objects in a collection; creating and manipulating database files; writing a statement of purpose with a specific user group in mind; writing a set of rules to be used by indexers creating records in a database; beta testing and evaluating a database design; using a database management system (WebDataPro); and managing a group project and working collaboratively online. We worked in groups to design a database for a collection of non-traditional objects; our group chose hot sauce. We wrote a Statement of Purpose (“SOP”) that clearly defines the target user for the collection and states the objectives of the design, and identified our target user. Next, we designed the database in WebDataPro, and wrote the rules needed to ensure consistency and accuracy in indexing and creating records. We then moved from the role of database designers to the role of indexers and, for each object in the collection, created a record that represents it, entering appropriate values for each field in the record. Finally with testing & evaluation of the alpha prototype, we refined the design and created a beta version.

Team Web Redesign Proposal: Boulder City Library Youth Department

For this Info 202 - Information Retrieval System Design group project artifact, we took the position that we were asked to lead a consideration of a re-design of an organization’s website; we chose the Boulder City Library Youth department website to be the subject of our evaluation and redesign. We worked with two versions of a site map, one of the site as it currently exists and one showing possible changes, specifically our recommendations for changes to improve the existing site in order to improve its navigation. We then prepared a report that we would present to designers, developers, stakeholders, and the supervisor requesting the possible re-design. The project evaluation document includes a cover page, executive summary, introduction where we introduce the site and explain the reason for considering a re-design, a site map of the existing site with a discussion including an analysis of its advantages and disadvantages, a re-design site map and discussion, and recommendations including provisional recommendations specific to the site re-design, recommended user testing, and next steps.

Python: Dictionary Project

Each Info 246 - Python assignment presented a new problem to solve using Python techniques taught in lessons or the book. There were not examples in the book, or lessons, that could be copied and pasted into my program that would perform the exact program logic needed to get the assignment to work properly. I took the Python techniques learned and discovered the logic needed to make the program do what the assignment requirements specified it should do. It took some trial and error, but I was able to use Python code to design my program to perform the required tasks. This artifact is a Python program that challenged me to read a file into a List and add and remove employees, then format that data into a Python Dictionary to be able to query and look-up an employee's salary based on their name.

Python Anywhere

Code:

https://www.pythonanywhere.com/user/csbrewer/shares/d97938a8a33d46139aeea353a7e49b0c/

Data:

https://www.pythonanywhere.com/user/csbrewer/shares/0fcd790407a84436abe0ec04a7c19111/

Reflection

There are many approaches to the design, query, and evaluation of information systems. How information is stored determines how well it can be retrieved; this is my mantra for information retrieval system design. It has informed the way I approach information projects, and will continue to do so in the future.

References

Schopenhauer, A. (n.d.). BrainyQuote.com. Retrieved from: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/arthur_schopenhauer_133322

Tucker, V. (2018). Lesson One: Introduction. [Lecture notes].

Weedman, J. (2018). Information Retrieval: Designing, Querying, and Evaluating Information Systems. In K. Haycock & M. Romaniuk (Eds.), The Portable MLIS (2nd ed., 171-185). Santa Barbara: Libraries Unlimited.