Data Experience Lab (DXL) Discoverability Study

After many months of collaboration and planning, the Libraries’ Data & Visualization Services department opened the new Data Experience Lab (DXL) in fall 2020 to a nearly empty campus which had largely shifted to virtual operation because of COVID-19. The disruption of the pandemic limited our ability to do usability testing before the space opened. As students returned to campus, there were indications of lower-than-expected usage of the Data Science Consultant service at the DXL. We wondered whether students were having trouble discovering the DXL.

Before the Data Experience Lab was built, the Data & Visualization Services department prototyped the Data Science Consultant service at the D. H. Hill Jr. Library using a table that was rolled into the Learning Commons each day, called the Data Point. Over the 14 months of its operation, the Data Point averaged 119 transactions/month, while in the 14 months after students returned to campus in August 2021, the DXL averaged only 33 transactions/month. The Data Point was in a highly visible and popular area of the library. We theorized that the lower number of transactions was due in part to the DXL being on the third floor of the building in an area less “discoverable” to people who do not intentionally seek out the space and our Data Science Consultant service. We also speculated that part of the reduction in usage might be related to continued pandemic effects on library visits.

Goals

1. To understand how students respond to the current Data Experience Lab (DXL) signage and environment.
2. To determine whether improvements are needed for discoverability of the DXL and the Data Science Consultant Service.
3. Based on our findings, make recommendations for improving DXL and Consultant Service discoverability.

Findings

Discovering the space and how it is used

Through a scavenger hunt, interviews, survey responses, and observational studies, we learned more about how students discovered the space and how they used it.

Operating a Tiny Café in the Ask Us lobby of the Hill Library, we asked passersby whether or not they had used the DXL and invited non-users to participate in a scavenger hunt to find the space. Volunteers were asked, “Imagine an instructor told you to go to the Data Experience Lab, or DXL for short. How would you find it?” We observed how students navigated the library in response to this question, then asked them for their observations about the DXL once we arrived at the space.

• We noticed some difficulty in reaching the correct floor, even when volunteers received directions from Libraries staff at Ask Us. The signs on the third floor pointing to the DXL were very effective once the volunteers found the floor.
  • 33% of volunteers had difficulty reaching the correct floor, even after getting directions from Ask Us.
  • 61% of volunteers mentioned Ask Us as a resource they would use to help find the space.
• Few volunteers stopped to look at either the screen indicating assistance from Data Science Consultants or the reservation kiosk.
• Once in the space, volunteers appreciated the dual-monitor setup at the workstations and the relative quiet of the space, even during busy times. There was often quiet conversation, but it was not disruptive, and several interviewees said the quiet atmosphere was great for working on projects or studying.
• Of volunteers who had not previously used the DXL, only four of the 13 volunteers surveyed knew generally of its location already. Of the 17 volunteers we talked to about the space during the Tiny Café, four had used the space previously.

The discoverability survey included questions about how active users first found out about the DXL, how easy it was to use the space, and whether they were aware of the Data Science Consultant Service, a program developed to support anyone at NC State University with data science problems through short consultations and email requests. The DXL is staffed by Data Science Consultants, graduate students who provide data science support through consultations and email requests. Anyone at NC State is welcome to use the Data Science Consultant Service.

• The most common way respondents discovered the lab was walking by the space (35%), followed by hearing about it from a Libraries staff member (23%) and hearing about it from a friend (18%). We were surprised that hearing about it from a course instructor (7%) and from the website (12%) were less common ways to discover the lab.
• We were satisfied that 88% of respondents found the things in the physical space to be clear to use. The respondents who did not find it clear to use mentioned that the computer reservation system was the most confusing part.
• Another surprising finding was that fewer than half of the respondents (46%) were aware of the Data Science Consultant Service despite having passed by the consulting table and related signage to enter the lab. However, several users still indicated that the in-person help available in the DXL was an important feature to them.
• Users appreciated the space’s open and calm quality as well as its clean, comfortable, and organized environment. Several users indicated the space’s particular value in collaborative coding projects and felt that the space was an environment in which they could be creative.

We completed an observational study of the DXL to learn how users were interacting with the signage, what the overall noise level was throughout the day, and how many users were present in the lab in the morning versus afternoon. We recorded user activity and qualities of the space at various times of day over the course of two weeks in April 2023.

• There were more users in the space in the afternoons overall (12 users, three more than in the morning). Around 65% of the users were at a desktop workstation rather than on a laptop or not on a computer.
• A consultant was present for 35% of the observations, and the noise level was not affected by their presence.
• The space was quiet overall (65%). There was light conversation in 30% of the observations and moderate noise in only 5%.
• In around half of the observations, users interacted with signs, with most of them looking at the reservation kiosk. The rest of the users were looking at the consultant schedule e-board.
• We were surprised that many users also enjoyed using the DXL for non-computing purposes. Several users spent time in the space with their own laptops or without a computer. 

Improvements based on user suggestions and feedback

In the Tiny Café interviews and discoverability survey responses, users could provide suggestions for improving the DXL space and signage. We value feedback from Libraries users and will do our best to take these suggestions into consideration as we plan for the DXL in the future.

Here are some recommendations based on common suggestions: 

• Add more workstations, as the lab gets full at peak times.
• Make the reservation system clearer.
• Make it clear which software is offered in the lab.
• Have a sign on the second floor to point upwards to the DXL.
• Add Linux workstations for machine learning projects.
• Include more dual-monitor workstations across the Libraries.
• Upgraded keyboards, such as ergonomic ones.
• Employ more outreach to encourage awareness of the space and its services.
• Offer more laptop docking stations for users who want to use their own laptop in the space.

Conclusion

Overall, we found that users are satisfied with the space and services offered at the DXL. In terms of discoverability, we found that scavenger hunt volunteers had the most trouble finding the correct floor, sometimes mistaking other service points for the DXL, but were able to find the lab once they reached the third floor. Once users reached the second floor, they did not find a resource to further orient them in the proper direction. We noticed that students relied on signage; it would be helpful to have signage to guide them from the beginning to the end of their journey. The suggestions to add a DXL sign prior to the third floor could help solve this problem.

Also, the reservation system for the computers was confusing to some users. Some participants noted being unsure about their ability to use the space without a reservation when they first arrived. To alleviate this issue, we could add signage or instructions to the reservation kiosk to make reserving a computer a clear and easy process.

Most of the study participants responded well to the DXL environment, particularly the quiet, open space and dual-monitor setups. Although some users of the space said they would like to see more workstations, nearly all users reported a positive experience there.

While our study was focused on discoverability of the physical space through signs, we were surprised that half of all survey respondents who had previously used the space had not heard of the Data Science Consultant Service provided in both the Hill Library's DXL and the Hunt Library's Dataspace. By providing access to the DXL, we intend to make data science more accessible to everyone. Increasing user awareness of the Consultant Service is important to us, and we may pursue potential solutions to this challenge in a future user research study.