Participatory Design in Academic Libraries: New Reports and Findings Page: 48

                                
Mark Werner and Mark Mabbett

Transitory phenomena can be quickly documented. Our method
of using an iPad and Evernote allowed us to quickly capture phe-
nomena that were somewhat transitory during our walks through
the Commons. For example, we could quickly photograph and note
the glare from the sun on the computer screens (Figure 10). Also, as
we observed the queues that sprang up at the printers (Figure 11) or
at the coffee shop (Figure 7) we were able to document them. As we
came across the student who dragged a chair into the entryway to
study (Figure 17), we were able to quickly capture it and document it
for our report.
Showing is better than telling. We could have described the fact
that the student moved the chair (Figure 17), but seeing it, especially
amid the emptiness of the benches provided in the space, we allowed
our readers (many of them administrators who were going to make
decisions about changes to the Commons) to experience more vis-
cerally what our report was telling them. Also, the pictures showed
much more than we could have described. The glare on the screen
(Figure 10), for example, shows precisely where along the wall the
problem was. The stretched-out charging cords (Figure 14) show the
inconvenience for students who need power outlets and the strong
demand for charging areas.

48