UA LibGuides Author Guide: Before Publishing

The LibGuides admins use the UA LibGuides Review form when checking guides for compliance with the LibGuides Guidelines & Best Practices. While you're not required to do so, you may wish to use the form as a checklist before publishing your guide.

Here are the items I review; the actual review form is linked below.

LibGuide Content

• Contains academic content
• See UA LibGuides Author Guide > Guidelines & Best Practices > Content

Purpose of LibGuides

• Provides quick links to the most useful resources on a topic
• Provides an overview of key resources in a subject area or course
• See UA LibGuides Author Guide > Guidelines & Best Practices > Throughout

Throughout the Guide

• LibGuide: URL
• Has a friendly URL
• LibGuides: Description
• Includes a brief description of the guide’s purpose and contents
• LibGuides: Tags
• Subject tag(s) assigned
• Course tag(s) assigned
• course_pages tag assigned to course pages
• Tags use lower case
• LibGuides: Subject Associations
• Guide associated with at least one subject category
• LibGuides: Linking
• Materials link directly to resource 
• Scout record permalinks used when possible 
• Repository content used whenever possible
• LibGuides: Media
• Media contribute to guide purpose
• Media used according to copyright standards
• Media related to guide content 
• Images are of high quality
• Discussions of how to navigate resources are visual and concise
• Videos demonstrate resource use or explain a research concept
• Videos are short
• UA and University Libraries videos used when possible
• See UA LibGuides Author Guide > Guidelines & Best Practices > Throughout

Start Here Page

• “Start Here” (Home) Page: Layout
• Descriptions clarify focus of guide
• Home page uses three column layout
• First top-level page labeled “Start Here”
• Right column includes “Welcome” box
• Right column includes “Feedback” box
• Right column boxes in this order from top: “Welcome,” “Feedback” 
• Center column includes “Guide Contents” box
• “Guide Contents” box includes top-level page links, descriptions
• Center column includes “Best Bets” box
• “Best Bets” box links to 3-5 key resources
• Center column boxes in this order from top: “Guide Contents,” “Best Bets”
• Left column includes “Ask Me” box
• Left column includes “Ask a Librarian” box
• Left column includes “Contact Us” box
• Left column boxes in this order from top: “Ask Me,” “Ask a Librarian,” “Contact Us” 
• “Start Here” Page: “Ask Me” Box
• Profile box labeled “Ask Me”
• Ask Me box includes office number, email address, title, phone number, and photo
• Ask Me box photo size is 130 by 130 pixels
• “Start Here” Page: “Ask a Librarian” Box
• Uses the basic Ask a Librarian box from the repository
• “Ask a Librarian” box title is “Ask a Librarian” 
• “Start Here” Page: “Contact Us” Box
• Links to the appropriate “Contact Us” box from the repository
• “Contact Us” box title is “Contact Us”
• See UA LibGuides Author Guide > Guidelines & Best Practices > Start Here Page

Interior Pages

• Interior Pages: Layouts
• Uses two or three column layout
• No empty columns
• Scrolling limited as much as possible
• Left column includes “Ask a Librarian” box titled “Ask a Librarian”
• Left column includes “Contact Us” box from the repository titled “Contact Us”
• Left column boxes in this order from top: “Ask a Librarian,” “Contact Us,” any other content
• An “Ask Me” box is allowed but not recommended; if used, it should precede “Ask a Librarian” at the top of the column
• Interior Pages: Boxes
• Boxes do not overwhelm users with too much information
• Box descriptions are concise and factual
• Boxes are visual rather than textual when possible
• Interior Pages: Box Contents
• Strives for usability, not comprehensiveness
• Lists contain no more than seven items
• Items descriptions are brief and focus on why item is useful
• Scout record permalinks used when possible 
• Repository content used whenever possible
• See UA LibGuides Author Guide > Guidelines & Best Practices > Interior Pages

Tabs

• Tabs: General
• Tabs (top-level pages) are limited to one row
• Subpages are used judiciously
• Subpages are organized under main header tabs and accessed via drop-down menus
• Tabs: Naming and Order
• Tabs names are concise and descriptive
• Tabs names use “&” instead of “and”
• “Start Here” is the first tab
• When used, these top-level tabs use these names and order: Start Here; Articles & Databases; Books; Websites; Media (e.g., audio, video & images); Statistics; Citation Help (if used)
• Tabs: “Articles & Databases”
• Includes no more than seven databases
• Databases listed in order of relevancy
• If appropriate, includes direct links to at least three but no more than seven highly relevant journal titles
• Reuses- and links to- links from the A-Z Databases List
• Includes course or subject-specific information for each database or journal (in the “Description” field when Simple Web Links or Links & Lists box types are used)
• Tabs: “Books”
• Contains links to eBooks when possible
• Contains links to Scout searches, rather than long lists of individual titles, when possible
• Uses the Books from the Catalog box type when book cover images are displayed
• See UA LibGuides Author Guide > Guidelines & Best Practices > Tabs

Style

• Style- Spelling & Capitalization
• Uses the same spellings and use of caps/no caps as Scout for common item types (eBooks vs. e-books, etc.)
• Writing and design follow UA Editorial Style Manual
• See UA LibGuides Author Guide > Guidelines & Best Practices > Style

Related Resources & How To's

Springshare: Introduction to LibGuides > Publish Your Guide