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MIT Libraries

Web Guidelines: MIT Libraries

Subject Pages

These guidelines are meant to assist you in creating pages with the following characteristics:

    • clear
    • concise
    • simple
    • well-organized
    • easy to navigate

We recommend that all subject pages have a similar layout, but flexible content.

templates

Suggested content & features

will vary by discipline

Selector's name, title, and email address (photo optional) Example:
Tracy Gabridge
Electrical Engineering & Computer Science Librarian
tag@mit.edu

Dynamic links to databases in Vera

Example:
Databases for Aeronautics

Some possible categories to include

  • professional organizations and associations
  • web sites that include primary documents
  • quality metasites for that discipline
  • related MIT sites, departments, course pages
  • new book lists
  • unique local resources
  • library services
  • lists of print journals, including call numbers
  • suggested LC subject headings for Barton searches (if appropriate)
  • recommendation of useful search strategies in Barton may be useful for certain topics
Some features to consider
  • a place for users to suggest additional links
  • a "new" icon, or listing of recently added items by date
  • what's popular (list most frequently clicked on items) (provided by our web logs - coming eventually!)

 

Tips for quality pages

These basic features can help increase a page's usefulness.

Include brief annotations, rather than just lists of links, where possible.

You may want to create a separate page with visible URLs (useful for printing).

Include cross-references to related subject guides & course pages in the MIT Libraries.

Multiple views (i.e. alphabetical and topical) may be helpful for very large subject pages.
If something is available to the MIT community only, clearly indicate it (since many of our pages are visited by outside users).
Keep links up to date using automated link-checking (this will be provided by web contacts in the future, but will still require human decision-making for the broken links).
Revise your page at least once per semester, but more frequently if possible.