Assessment for CINAHL by Northern - Module 1: Interface Appearance

Submitted by garbea@norther… on
Are the images positioned prominently and easy to find?
Answer: Never
Score: 0
Notes: Images are limited to the logo in the top left corner or used as graphic buttons.
Are there functional images embedded in the background?
Answer: Always
Score: 0
Notes: All images appear to size appropriately to fit screen zooming options. Some icons get fuzzy and show signs of pixelation at larger sizes.
Do informative images contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative?
Answer: Sometimes
Score: 1
Notes: Often linked diagrams or graphs will show up with the alternative text of "Diagram" or "Graph" instead of descriptive text to allow the user to know the graph title or description. At times, there is missing alternative text for images such as Publisher Logos.
Do functional images contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative?
Answer: Always
Score: 2
Notes: Functional images built into the core of EBSCO's search platform appear to be appropriately labelled and are easy to understand the labels. When using arrows for Next and Previous, they use appropriate alternative text to clarify the button's function.
Do images used as text contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative?
Answer: Sometimes
Score: 1
Notes: The EBSCOhost logo does not have appropriate alternative text. It indicates that it will take you for a new search but does not mention the logo text.
Are there icons where appropriate, such as icons to indicate PDF Full Text, Download, Folder, Citation, etc?
Answer: Always
Score: 2
Notes: The regular search page and article page have well-accepted icons to indicate particular areas of the webpage. The first search page is overly complex and could use more iconography to help manage the sheer number of search options.
When zoomed in at 200%, is text intact, readable, and not cut off?
Answer: Always
Score: 2
Notes: Text is always intact, readable and has no areas of cut off.
Are images clear and unpixelated at 200%?
Answer: Sometimes
Score: 1
Notes: Tools Icons (right-hand side) and EBSCOhost logo appear pixelated at 200% in Google Chrome.
Is horizontal scrolling minimized at 200%?
Answer: Always
Score: 2
Notes: There is no horizontal scrolling at 200% in Google Chrome.
Do text and images have a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1?
Answer: Sometimes
Score: 1
Notes: Most pages have a contrast ratio of 8.59:1. But in the detailed article view, the Tools area has a contrast ratio of 4.35:1, meeting only the AA rating.
Do colour coded graphs have text equivalents?
Answer: Never
Score: 0
Notes: Graphs and diagrams found in the database do not appear to have text equivalents.
Are blocks of content separated from one another using visual separation (such as whitespace or borders)?
Answer: Always
Score: 2
Notes: There is a clear use of whitespace and borders to differentiate different areas of content.
Are text alternatives provided where colour is used to indicate an action?
Answer: Always
Score: 2
Notes: Yes, if colour is used to help identify a button, a text alternative is included.
Is there a choice embedded within the database that offers text to speech or read aloud options?
Answer: Always
Score: 2
Notes: When there is an HTML full-text article, there is always the option for text to speech / read aloud.
Using your mouse, is the clickable area around links and buttons large enough for users to see and activate easily?
Answer: Sometimes
Score: 1
Notes: Links in areas such as Author, Source, Subjects etc are often clustered together without any space making it difficult to click on different ones. Buttons usually have ample space for proper activation.
Using your mouse to test links, are links and buttons far enough apart for users to accurately activate?
Answer: Sometimes
Score: 1
Notes: Links in areas such as Author, Source, Subjects etc are often clustered together without any space making it difficult to click on different ones. Buttons usually have ample space for proper activation.
Using any method to test links, are all links and buttons functional (i.e., not dead)?
Answer: Sometimes
Score: 1
Notes: Almost all links and buttons appear functional. The wave tool occasionally picks up an empty link. But I am unable to confirm which link is empty. On the Results pages, the Search History / Alerts have empty links near the RSS symbol.
Are links or buttons accessible via keyboard navigation?
Answer: Sometimes
Score: 1
Notes: Most Keyboard navigations options work well. As seen on the results page: The escape button does not allow you to exit a drop-down menu. The drop-down menus do not allow using your arrow keys. You must tab down the drop-down menu. If you can escape the drop-down menu or open another one, it keeps the menu open over other text. You can access the lefthand menu for refining the search results unless you tab through all content first. On the Detailed Record view: You cannot access the PDF full text on the left-hand side or the Tools options on the right-hand side unless you tab through all content beforehand, including all the text of a HTML full-text article when available.
Can users pause carousel movement?
Answer: Not Applicable
Score: -1
Notes: There do not appear to be any carousel movement items.
Is all functionality, including navigating between carousel items, operable by keyboard?
Answer: Not Applicable
Score: -1
Notes: There do not appear to be any carousel movement items.
Is the order of the text preserved at all screen resolutions, without overlap?
Answer: Sometimes
Score: 1
Notes: On the Detailed Record page: At iPhone screen sizes, the left and right sidebars overlap the detailed record unless manually minimized. In portrait mode, some HTML full-text articles at this resolution require small amounts of side-scrolling if there are tables.
Do images avoid overlapping at all screen resolutions?
Answer: Always
Score: 2
Notes: Image overlap does not appear to be a problem.
Is the overall reading experience preserved at all screen resolutions?
Answer: Sometimes
Score: 1
Notes: On Results Page: The 800 x 600 and phone-sized screen resolutions required side-scrolling to see all information in the Search History / Alerts area.
eResource: CINAHL
eResource Type: Database
Vendor: EBSCO
Institution: Northern
Score: C

Images

Positioning of Images

Question Answer Notes Images
Are the images positioned prominently and easy to find? Never Images are limited to the logo in the top left corner or used as graphic buttons.

Functional images embedded in the background

Question Answer Notes Images
Are there functional images embedded in the background? Always All images appear to size appropriately to fit screen zooming options. Some icons get fuzzy and show signs of pixelation at larger sizes.

Presence of Icons

Question Answer Notes Images
Are there icons where appropriate, such as icons to indicate PDF Full Text, Download, Folder, Citation, etc? Always The regular search page and article page have well-accepted icons to indicate particular areas of the webpage. The first search page is overly complex and could use more iconography to help manage the sheer number of search options.

Alt Text

Question Answer Notes Images
Do informative images contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative? Sometimes Often linked diagrams or graphs will show up with the alternative text of "Diagram" or "Graph" instead of descriptive text to allow the user to know the graph title or description. At times, there is missing alternative text for images such as Publisher Logos.
Do functional images contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative? Always Functional images built into the core of EBSCO's search platform appear to be appropriately labelled and are easy to understand the labels. When using arrows for Next and Previous, they use appropriate alternative text to clarify the button's function.
Do images used as text contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative? Sometimes The EBSCOhost logo does not have appropriate alternative text. It indicates that it will take you for a new search but does not mention the logo text.

Content Scaling

Question Answer Notes Images
When zoomed in at 200%, is text intact, readable, and not cut off? Always Text is always intact, readable and has no areas of cut off.
Are images clear and unpixelated at 200%? Sometimes Tools Icons (right-hand side) and EBSCOhost logo appear pixelated at 200% in Google Chrome.
Is horizontal scrolling minimized at 200%? Always There is no horizontal scrolling at 200% in Google Chrome.

Colour and Contrast

Question Answer Notes Images
Do text and images have a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1? Sometimes Most pages have a contrast ratio of 8.59:1. But in the detailed article view, the Tools area has a contrast ratio of 4.35:1, meeting only the AA rating.

Colour

Question Answer Notes Images
Do colour coded graphs have text equivalents? Never Graphs and diagrams found in the database do not appear to have text equivalents.
Are blocks of content separated from one another using visual separation (such as whitespace or borders)? Always There is a clear use of whitespace and borders to differentiate different areas of content.
Are text alternatives provided where colour is used to indicate an action? Always Yes, if colour is used to help identify a button, a text alternative is included.

Text to speech

Question Answer Notes Images
Is there a choice embedded within the database that offers text to speech or read aloud options? Always When there is an HTML full-text article, there is always the option for text to speech / read aloud.

Clustered Links

Question Answer Notes Images
Using your mouse, is the clickable area around links and buttons large enough for users to see and activate easily? Sometimes Links in areas such as Author, Source, Subjects etc are often clustered together without any space making it difficult to click on different ones. Buttons usually have ample space for proper activation.
Using your mouse to test links, are links and buttons far enough apart for users to accurately activate? Sometimes Links in areas such as Author, Source, Subjects etc are often clustered together without any space making it difficult to click on different ones. Buttons usually have ample space for proper activation.
Using any method to test links, are all links and buttons functional (i.e., not dead)? Sometimes Almost all links and buttons appear functional. The wave tool occasionally picks up an empty link. But I am unable to confirm which link is empty. On the Results pages, the Search History / Alerts have empty links near the RSS symbol.
Are links or buttons accessible via keyboard navigation? Sometimes Most Keyboard navigations options work well. As seen on the results page: The escape button does not allow you to exit a drop-down menu. The drop-down menus do not allow using your arrow keys. You must tab down the drop-down menu. If you can escape the drop-down menu or open another one, it keeps the menu open over other text. You can access the lefthand menu for refining the search results unless you tab through all content first. On the Detailed Record view: You cannot access the PDF full text on the left-hand side or the Tools options on the right-hand side unless you tab through all content beforehand, including all the text of a HTML full-text article when available.

Dynamic content

Question Answer Notes Images
Can users pause carousel movement? Not Applicable There do not appear to be any carousel movement items.
Is all functionality, including navigating between carousel items, operable by keyboard? Not Applicable There do not appear to be any carousel movement items.

Liquid layout

Question Answer Notes Images
Is the order of the text preserved at all screen resolutions, without overlap? Sometimes On the Detailed Record page: At iPhone screen sizes, the left and right sidebars overlap the detailed record unless manually minimized. In portrait mode, some HTML full-text articles at this resolution require small amounts of side-scrolling if there are tables.
Do images avoid overlapping at all screen resolutions? Always Image overlap does not appear to be a problem.
Is the overall reading experience preserved at all screen resolutions? Sometimes On Results Page: The 800 x 600 and phone-sized screen resolutions required side-scrolling to see all information in the Search History / Alerts area.
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