help us improve the catalog/browse functions

[hugh]

hey all, we're going to be implementing some improvements to the catalog pages, including a browse function.

so i was hoping all you could help out by:
-explaining what you'd like
-giving example of book sites with really nice catalog/browsing interfaces

some of the things we can look at include:

-Single-box simplified search
Make the default search form a single box. The terms entered in it are used to search title, author, category, genre, and language.

-Browse
Some better way of browsing through everything.

-Analyze the searches actually being done
The log files contain a rich mass of data which might be useful for assessing what people are looking for.

-Include description text in search
As an option

-Group works
It's been suggested that we group works together (eg all the Aesop's fables) and use those groupings to clean up the search results (show just one from any group, with a link to the whole group)

-Reader in compilations
Currently search by reader doesn't include compilations. This has been requested.

but maybe you can help out with other suggestions.

also, if you're any good at design, UI, php or html ... your input would be much appreciated.

so pitch in if you can or wish to!

[Jc]

I'd like to see browsing by Dewey code, a bit like this: http://posner.library.cmu.edu/Posner/browse.html
but more detailed.

[hugh]

heh... dewey code is more than a browse feature, because it would require a database change * massive data-entry project to get dewey codes assigned to all the books. ie: yikes.

however, i like their browse interface, and the idea of having the genre/subjects/categories as a browsable list ...

tho i must say i don't like their search results design much...

[Hokuspokus]

I like the search interface of this side: http://www.booklooker.de/

They sell used books, so when you look for an author you sometimes get hundreds of results. But you can sort the results according to various attributes.

Example how it could be for LibriVox: search for language English, than sort by author, or title, genre, reader, MC, BC, ...
Or search for author Goethe and than sort by language, ...

I would like to have a "refine search" option and a drop down for genres. Makes it easier for people who speak only a little English. Its easier to guess what a given word means, that entering a word in the correct spelling.

-Reader in compilations

That would be great!

[LeonMire]

I would like to have a "refine search" option and a drop down for genres. Makes it easier for people who speak only a little English. Its easier to guess what a given word means, that entering a word in the correct spelling.

Ooh.. the refined search does sound like a good idea. Even for people who speak English natively. What more specifically do you mean?

One thing we've talked about is being able to refine the search so that you can include only complete books. (So if you type in "James Joyce", you can eliminate all the poems and short stories, and just see books by him.)

The drop down box for genres is one that's been mentioned before, but nobody ever got around to it. I also recommend it. But in the meantime.. did you know that if you click on "More Search Options" there's a button that says "Choose by Genre"? It'll bring you to this page: http://librivox.org/newcatalog/genres.php

It's easier than trying to guess the correct spelling, but it's not quite as convenient as a drop down box.

[Hokuspokus]

Thanks for the link to the genre list. I found it once, but couldn't remember how I got there. I bookmarked it now.

About the refined search: What I think about is a combination of different attributes step by step.

Imagine you look for, lets say "Die Leiden des jungen Werther" by Goethe but can't remember the complete title. So you search for Goethe and get, well, 10 results at the moment ( silly example, but lets imagine one day you get 100). But you remember that there was the word "Leiden" in the title. Would be great if you could search within the results for "Leiden".

Of course it is possible to combine attributes right now, but you always have to go back and start a new search when you find that you get to many results.

[Cori]

Minor, but anyway: I'd like a way to separate Shakespeare monologues from the full plays. I wanted to mention which plays we'd completed in my last podcast, but it was an impossible task to sort them from all the bits that are floating about. (Or, if it *is* possible, it's not obvious how.)

I have seen mentioned before the request to sort by time (which is another search feature I'd like!) -- but with the monologues, I don't think that'd help, since the collection as a whole can be about the same length as a play.

[LeonMire]

Yours is a really good example, Cori. If you search for "William Shakespeare", you get 147 search results, many of which are individual items in the Shakespeare Monologues, or individual poems in the Short Poetry collections. That can be really confusing, if all you want to do is find a full-length audiobook to download.

It'd be nice if there were a way to filter out any search results that were iindividual items in a collection. Like when you search for Shakespeare, there'd be a link you could click, or a box you could check prior to searching, that'd say "Include only full works" or something. Or maybe the default should be that it searches only for full-length works, unless you ask it to also include short works in the search results.

I too am casting my vote for a way to sort by audiobook length.

[hugh]

ok so leaving aside the more complex things, here are a couple of wireframes for a simple browse function. one set has genre in the sidebar (benefit: another browse option; drawback: clutters the design making it harder to use). the 2nd set does not have genre in the sidebar. thoughts appreciated.

main browse page:


browse by title page:


browse by author page:


browse page, no genre sidebar:


browse by title page, no genre sidebar:


browse by author page, no genre sidebar:

[Jc]

I like the ones with the Genre. I also like to see how many works are available, so do you think it would be a good idea to put how many works/projects there are for each genre?

[lezer]

Or maybe the Genre list could be a drop down menu, so it's less cluttering?

[Cori]

I hate to bang on about it, but we'll need to update those genres before making them so prominent. (e.g. epistolary fiction, humor/comedy, and some others I forget now.)

[Jc]

How are the genres assigned anyway? Like, one per project, or all that applies?

[Starlite]

How are the genres assigned anyway? Like, one per project, or all that applies?

All that applies.

[hugh]

re the genres in the sidebar, they should be generated dynamically by our master genre list.