X-ray Diffraction Laboratory Case Study (Department of Engineeing Materials)
(Case study created by Nik Reeves)
Describe the purpose of your pilot:
I really wanted to see whether something like uSpace would:
- make it easier for me to get better information out more quickly to a dynamic lab userbase (compared to older routes of putting up flyers and relying on often outdated email lists)
- improve collaboration within the lab. (I have a lot of users doing very similar experiments - there must be scope for sharing experiences!)
- act as a library for popular and important resource material
- help to improve the standard of working practices within the laboratory (e.g. regular blog posts from myself on what (not) to do in the lab!)
How did you go about setting it up:
I set up a minimum amount of content - the real essentials that would show people exactly what the space was for. The most important information was given prominence, with sidebar text boxes highlighting other useful snippets. I included a few blog posts and a discussion to try and get the ball rolling.
Did you get others involved and how long did it take?
I tried to get a few key people from within my lab to lead by example - it didn't really ever happen. I am still hopeful though, and what little interaction I have managed to stimulate has been useful and productive, and has been of great personal value to me.
Did you think it appropriate to acquire "buy in" from your community or management to set it up?
I think it's important that one person, or a small number of people, take the lead in the beginning to ensure uniformity of 'message' and content. Too many cooks coming from too many angles may well spoil the broth?.
Did you use a space or a group? If you choose a group why?
I used a space. This suited my purposes for one lab using one broad technique; everything fell under my single large umbrella! Having said that, it didn't need much content adding before I started to long for the comfort of a little more organisation - perhaps adding some sub-spaces for each individual user group/piece of equipment may have helped me here.
Did your community engage with the space/group - did they get it?
They needed to have it explained to them before they got it, and even then they have never really integrated into their normal working day. They need to be able to have a link with them wherever they go to act as a reminder - in a group like mine where everyone uses shared PCs, perhaps the people responsible for the PCs could have bookmarked the page there. I may be wrong though - as an admin, I really could do with seeing traffic figures, seeing who has visited which pages and when. With that information, I'd be able to try different strategies to try and keep the site in their minds a little more.
Finally did your community achieve what you wanted?
Not yet, not really - I would like to see people using it more as a collaboratory tool, sharing what they know and what resources they have. People were too shy, though, and it was difficult to encourage them to post discussion threads etc. The one thread that did get started was by a Professor, for which I will be eternally grateful! I think uSpace has allowed me to offer a better service to my lab community - I guess it's up to them to really engage in that service, I can't make them do it!
Top tips from your pilot
- Get plenty of content online before you announce the space to your public - I think one mistake I made was in not having enough to make people realise it was worth coming back.
- Keep it clean and tidy - it's easy to make the spaces look jumbled with too much info.
- Get key people onside early on to get the ball rolling with discussions - it didn't work for me, but it probably will for others.
- Be pro-active - keep it updated. For me, having equipment updates online within minutes was vital, or the hundred or so people that use my lab would still be better off knocking on my door!