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Feature image by Lukas from Pexels
You can download this report here.
Introduction
In the fall of 2021, as part of our 2021-2023 IMLS grant, the Hyku for Consortia team surveyed users of the collaborative Hyku Commons Repository. The survey gathered baseline data about satisfaction with the Hyku Commons platform and service overall, administrative functions, front end user interface, and support/training provided.
We provided a PDF preview of the questions, and used Google Forms as our data collection instrument. The survey had 16 questions, which were a combination of Likert scale and open ended response. A total of 15 responses from PALNI, PALCI, LOUIS, and VIVA users were recorded, and the anonymous survey results are provided below. We very much appreciated this feedback to help us determine future directions for Hyku. We plan to check back periodically with users to gauge improvement. Hopefully, we’ll be able to report an increase in satisfaction as a result of the developments made throughout the IMLS-supported grant project.
Overall Satisfaction
The vast majority of users reported that they are either Satisfied or Very Satisfied (80% combined) with Hyku Commons overall.
Hyku Administrative Functions
Most users report that they are either Satisfied or Very Satisfied (48% combined) with Hyku’s administrative functions.
There are many Haven’t evaluated this or Not Sure responses (42% combined), likely due to the fact that several of our users are new to piloting Hyku and/or haven’t taken a deep dive into all the administrative functions.
Users were most satisfied with Uploading/creating single works, Uploading/creating works in batches, and Adding works to collections, as seen by the number of Very Satisfied responses below.
When looking at Very Unsatisfied, Unsatisfied, and open-ended responses together, we find that users are least satisfied with Existing metadata templates (worktypes), Uploading/creating works in batches, and Repository statistics.
The three Very Unsatisfied responses recorded were for Describing/editing works in batches, Availability of repository activity statistics, and Availability of other repository statistics. The number of Unsatisfied responses are presented below.
The bulk of the open-ended responses called for improvement to administrative functions, and specifically called out the need to customize both metadata and administrative tools.
| Open-ended response category | Number of responses |
| Metadata customization | 8 |
| Repository statistics | 6 |
| Uploading/creating works in batches | 3 |
| Admin customization | 3 |
User Interface
Most users report that they are either Satisfied or Very Satisfied (63% combined) with Hyku’s end-user interface.
There were also several Haven’t evaluated this or Not Sure (23% combined) responses in this category.
Users were most satisfied with Usability, Digital object presentation, and Customization options for site design, as seen by the number of Very Satisfied responses below.
When looking at the Very Unsatisfied, Unsatisfied, and open-ended responses together, users were least satisfied with Searching and search results, Metadata display, and Customization options for site design.
The two Very Unsatisfied responses recorded were for Metadata display and Customization options for site design. The number of Unsatisfied responses are presented below.
Some open-ended responses called for improvement to the user interface, especially Customization options for site design.
| Open-ended response category | Number of responses |
| Customization options for site design | 3 |
| Digital object presentation | 1 |
| Searching and search results | 1 |
| Metadata display | 1 |
| Usability | 1 |
Support and Training
Slightly more than half of users report that they are either Satisfied or Very Satisfied (51% combined) with Hyku Commons support and training. A little less than half reported Haven’t evaluated this or Not Sure (49% combined) responses in this category.
Users were most satisfied with Documentation and Help with troubleshooting, as seen by the number of Very Satisfied responses below.
There were no Unsatisfied responses in this category, although there was one open-ended response requesting screenshots/visuals to be added to the documentation.
Discussion
It’s interesting to note that users expressed both satisfaction and dissatisfaction with some features, for example: Uploading/creating works in batches and Customization options for site design. This will require more investigation to understand fully, but we suspect that users may be happy that a feature exists, but unsatisfied with quirks with its workflow; and/or users might be satisfied with the usability of a feature, but wish it were more customizable.
The data provided by this survey has directly influenced our plans for the next phase of development. We are currently in discussion with developers at Notch8 to implement the following:
- Allinson Flex (a gem providing the building blocks for customizable metadata in Hyku)
- Analytics work from the Oregon Digital project
- Improvements to the Bulkrax bulk import tool. We are also planning to add export functionality.
The Hyku for Consortia team will continue to collect and evaluate both informal and formal feedback on Hyku, and we’ll prioritize future development cycles based on user priorities. We have also started working with Samhaeng, a UX firm out of Denmark, to start our first official phase of user research. This phase will focus on Hyku administrative functions and will produce a report of recommendations for improvements in this area. Stay tuned for more updates!
