Site Evaluation Tool Research Articles

A comparative study of web site performance

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to develop a set of criteria and an instrument for evaluating upscale hotel web sites and test these in a comparative study of South Korean and the US upscale hotel web sites.Design/methodology/approachThe hotel web sites are assessed by a team of 25 trained evaluators. The study measures and compares the overall effectiveness of upscale hotel web sites and checks the correlation between overall web site effectiveness and size of upscale hotels in South Korea and the US by using balanced scorecard (BSC) approach. To evaluate and analyze upscale hotel web site performance or effectiveness, 14 upscale hotels in both South Korea and the USA are selected. These hotels are selected through Expedia.com or Hotels.com and are rated as either four‐ to five‐star.FindingsThe results show that there is no significant difference in the overall effectiveness of the upscale hotel web sites in South Korea and the USA. However, the web sites of the Korean upscale hotels perform slightly better than their US counterparts. The main conclusion drawn is that most upscale hotels in both countries are not effectively using web sites from the marketing and upscale hotel perspectives.Originality/valueThe first objective of this research study is to develop a web site evaluation tool for upscale hotels. The modified BSC approach for performance measurement is adopted as the overall framework for the evaluation process. Therefore, BSC performance measurements are adapted and developed to reflect the specific context of upscale hotel online marketing, with an upscale hotel perspective being added to the critical success factors. Also, this study compares actual upscale hotels web page in two different countries and that approach is unique.

Innovative Forensic Assessment and Remediation Strategies for Polluted Aquifers

This study focuses on the use of innovative techniques to evaluate and remediate polluted aquifer layers. While environmental forensic techniques offer valuable innovative tools for site characterization and evaluation, bioremediation approaches provide innovative remedial solutions applicable to a large variety of contaminants and environmental conditions. In this study, a literature review of the main forensic techniques has been performed and their applicability for optimized site remediation was pointed out. Additionally, an innovative bioremediation approach has been tested at pilot scale for its effectiveness on a historically oil polluted aquifer on the Black Sea Coast in Romania. Specifically, an installation was designed and tested in the Laboratory of Hydraulics and Environmental Protection from the Technical University of Civil Engineering, Bucharest, in order to assess and remove contamination from impacted groundwater using reactive barriers. The barriers were comprised of layers of material with microbial activity effective for retention/remediation of groundwater pollutants. The monitored parameters included: grain particle distribution, saturation, chemical composition of pollutants, and behavior of polluted plume. This investigation was conducted in the framework of a collaborative research project funded by the Romanian Ministry of Education and Research. The results were used to successfully design a remedial system for the large-scale field implementation. In conclusion, a standardized and efficient system to evaluate, monitor, and remediate historically polluted aquifer layers has been proposed, successfully tested, and is ready for field deployment. The proposed remediation strategy can be adjusted for a large variety of pollutants and aquifer conditions.

A SITE EVALUATION TOOL FOR ASSESSING WATER QUALITY IMPACTS FROM CONVENTIONAL AND LOW IMPACT DEVELOPMENT

A SITE EVALUATION TOOL FOR ASSESSING WATER QUALITY IMPACTS FROM CONVENTIONAL AND LOW IMPACT DEVELOPMENT

Evaluating the Quality of Websites Offering Information on Female Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder

This study evaluates websites relevant to female hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD). Its primary aim is to evaluate the quality of Internet HSDD information. One hundred and one websites, identified through simple Google searches, were scored using a tool incorporating expert consensus-derived quality criteria for HSDD. The tool included structural criteria such as currency, authorship, and disclosure of competing interests. It also included performance criteria, evaluating accuracy, and comprehensiveness, and was adapted from a published website evaluation tool for diabetes. For each website, a quality index score with a potential range from 1 to 5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent) was calculated, and the websites were rank ordered using this score. Quality index scores ranged from 1.68 to 4.64, with 75% of websites scoring at or below 3.27. Test-retest reliability was moderate (n = 24, r = 0.6601, P = .0004). Rank ordering of the websites by quality index allowed identification of the top five highest quality websites. The majority of HSDD websites' quality scores fell in the score range from 1 to 3, indicating room for improvement in the quality of websites that address HSDD. Website evaluation tools utilizing both structural and performance quality criteria may help clinicians to assist their patients in assessing the quality of Internet health information.

An Evaluation of Internet Websites Provided by Radiotherapy Departments

AbstractThe research identifies and evaluates the content and readability of Websites of all radiotherapy departments that provide a Website. As more patients are being referred for radiotherapy treatment each year, the information needs of the public on this subject is growing. Fifty-two per cent of radiotherapy departments within the United Kingdom (UK) and Ireland were identified as providing a Website. These Websites were evaluated, over a period of 2 weeks, using an adapted Website evaluation tool. Five criteria – content, authority, navigation, design and technical aspects – were identified as important aspects of a Website. For each criterion a number of statements were listed and using a Likert scale were marked. Flesch–Kincaid readability tests were used to analyse the readability level of the Websites. Data analysis resulted in the ranking of the Websites. Evaluation scores varied greatly and the readability tests showed 92% of the Websites were written at a level too high for the public. This shows the varying quality of radiotherapy department Websites with scores ranging from 48 to 115, and the varying readability level of these Websites. The research makes suggestions for the improvement of radiotherapy department Websites including the provision of a dedicated Website team within the department, educated in Website design.

A Simulation Model for the Evaluation of the Electrical Power Potential Harnessed by a Marine Current Turbine

<para xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> This paper deals with the development of a Matlab–Simulink model of a marine current turbine system through the modeling of the resource and the rotor. The simulation model has two purposes: performances and dynamic loads evaluation in different operating conditions and control system development for turbine operation based on pitch and speed control. In this case, it is necessary to find a compromise between the simulation model accuracy and the control-loop computational speed. The blade element momentum (BEM) approach is then used for the turbine modeling. As the developed simulation model is intended to be used as a sizing and site evaluation tool for current turbine installations, it has been applied to evaluate the extractable power from the Raz de Sein (Brittany, France). Indeed, tidal current data from the Raz de Sein are used to run the simulation model over various flow regimes and yield the power capture with time. </para>

Zero acquaintance benchmarking at travel destination websites: what is the first impression that national tourism organizations try to make?

AbstractThis paper examines the marketing effectiveness of hospitality and tourism websites. An extensive review of literature on website effectiveness in hospitality and tourism revealed a total of 47 different instruments that have been used to evaluate hospitality and tourism websites. Using the grounded theory technique, a website evaluation tool called the online promotion evaluation instrument was developed with the aim of condensing the 47 existing tools into one benchmarked instrument with applicability across the various hospitality and tourism sectors. The developed online promotion evaluation instrument comprised three main features—aesthetics features (destination visualisation and Web design); informative features (uniqueness, monetary value and cultural promotion); and interactive features (e‐travel planners and online communities). The instrument was tested using a random sample of 25 National Tourism Organization websites worldwide. The results of the instrument development and testing process are presented in this paper with directions for future research in website evaluation. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.

Quantifying quality: Evolution of an instrument to assess website quality

AbstractThe development of accurate, reliable instruments to judge the quality of intellectual works requires an understanding of genre, audience, communication, information organization, and design. In the case of Websites it can be useful to have an instrument to help determine the quality of a Website for any number of reasons: 1) Websites are now reviewed in order to be linked to an organization's own Website, and an assessment instrument can serve as a reviewing tool. 2) Librarians “collect” and catalog Websites as they do other materials, and they need quality standards. 3) Students and others need learning tools so that they can understand how to judge Websites to aid in assessing online information. 4) Novice web developers can use quality touchstones in order to create usable Websites. The presenters of this session have developed a Website evaluation tool that has evolved from a qualitative instrument to a quantitative one. They will show how the instrument developed and how it is used today.

Examination of an evaluation scale for websites as information resources

More and more college students are turning to Web resources for gathering information for their report writing. Many of them, however, use websites inefficiently and seem unaware of their limitations. Existing Website evaluation tools show lack of effectiveness. Furthermore, at present there are only a few website evaluation tools developed in Japan. The purpose of this study is to introduce the process of making an evaluation scale for websites as information resources, and to examine the effectiveness of the scale. A literature review of previous studies has made it clear that evaluation criteria for websites have two main dimensions. They are: (1) information reliability and (2) accessibility to information. The former dimension consists of five sub-dimensions: authority, accuracy/objectivity, coverage, currency/stability, and purpose/audience. For each of the five sub-dimensions and the second main dimension, twenty evaluation items were chosen. A 20-item/6-point Likert-scale Website evaluation scale was then created. Effectiveness of the Website scale was examined using two experiments. In the first experiment, subjects were 110 Japanese college students and 5 specialists. The subjects assessed two kinds of Websites by using the scale. The two Websites were deliberately created so that their quality differed, one of a higher quality, and the other, a lower quality. The results of the experiment have shown the scale to possess a high level of stability, and that individual differences did not have significant effect in Website evaluation. The Website scale was found to be easy-to-use and suitable for most users. In the second experiment, subjects used in the experiments were 91 Japanese college students. The subjects went over the 60 items in the checklist for Website evaluation before and after assessing the Website using the Website scale. The results of the checklist taken before and after the evaluation of website were compared. The result also suggests that the student's consciousness in Website evaluation has risen, and essential skill in evaluating websites as information resources was acquired by using the Website scale. These findings have indicated that the Website scale is indeed an effective tool for persons who use websites as information resources.

Development of a Health Information Web Site Evaluation Categories with Items for Diabetes Mellitus

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to develop a health information web site evaluation categories with items for diabetes mellitus in order to offer verified health information, and to propose directions for development of web sites. METHODS: A preliminary evaluation categories with items was developed using domestic and foreign web site evaluation standards for health information and through a review of the literature. The evaluation categories with items was composed of 'evaluation for web site attributes' and 'evaluation for content information on diabetes mellitus'. Through expert validity tests and a feasibility test of the preliminary tool, the health information Web site evaluation tool for diabetes mellitus was finalized. RESULTS: This evaluation categories with items included 'evaluation for web site attributes' and 'evaluation for content information on diabetes mellitus'. 'Evaluation for web site attributes' included 8 categories with 28 items. The 'evaluation for content information on diabetes mellitus' included 7 categories with 40 items. 'Evaluation component for content' and 'evaluation of category content' included 4 items on 'accuracy', 6 on 'harmfulness' and 3 on 'comprehensibility'. CONCLUSION: From this study guidelines are propose for providing health information for diabetes mellitus, so that health information providers will be able to offer consumers verified good quality health information themselves.

Designing and Using a Consumer Health Web Page

Studies show that people of all ages rely on the Internet for health information and advice. There is an enormous amount of health information, and too much of it is of dubious quality. It is important for consumers to have ready access to high-quality health information and to be equipped with the knowledge to evaluate consumer health Web sites as they “surf the Web. Many people also turn to the local academic medical library or to the public library for health information. Public librarians, who may not be comfortable guiding patrons to Web health information, can benefit from knowing about gateway sites and high-quality general health sites, as well as learning the tools for site evaluation.

Development and Application of a Tool Designed to Evaluate Web Sites Providing Information on Alzheimer's Disease

Informal carers of people with Alzheimer's disease require access to high-quality information, which may be available through the Internet. Tools that have been developed to evaluate the contents of health-related web sites tend to be generic and not specific for diseases or patient groups. The aim of this study was to develop a tool that was specifically designed to evaluate web sites that provide information about Alzheimer's disease for informal carers of people with the disease. The tool was used to evaluate a sample of 15 web sites. The results were compared with those obtained using four generic tools in an earlier study. Several web sites attained high scores using the specific tool, although almost half of the 15 web sites achieved scores of less than 50%. There was a poor correlation between the rankings obtained using the specific tool compared with the generic tool. Web sites generally scored lower using the specific tool compared with one of the generic tools. Further work is required to develop and evaluate the Alzheimer's disease web site evaluation tool to help improve the quality of information available to carers through the Internet.

Evaluation of Websites that Provide Information on Alzheimer's Disease

Good quality health-related information on the Internet is important for patients and their carers, enabling them to take greater responsibility in healthcare decisions. Carers of people with Alzheimer's disease require access to high quality medical, personal, practical and financial information. The Internet contains large quantities of health-related information and potentially has an important role to play in providing information for carers of people with Alzheimer's disease. The aim of the study was to evaluate a sample of Websites that provide information about Alzheimer's disease for carers of people with this condition using a selection of Website evaluation tools. A sample of 15 Websites providing information on Alzheimer's disease were evaluated using each of four evaluation tools. The Websites were ranked according to the scores they achieved with each tool. The correlation coefficient of the rankings of the Websites for each pair of tools was determined. There was a significant correlation between four of the six pairs of evaluation tools. Several Websites were ranked highly across the evaluation tools. The study identified problems in using generic health-information Website evaluation tools for sites providing information about specific diseases. The need to develop specific health-information Website evaluation tools and possibilities of how they might be further refined in the future were highlighted.

Is Your Business Website Effective?

This article presents a model for strategically evaluating an organization's website. Most website evaluation tools concentrate on technical observations like number of clicks to reach a page or time to download. The current model takes an upper-management strategic view of the site: Does it contribute all that it can to the organization's strategic initiatives? The model is organized around five categories of activities of marketing: (1) outgoing communication, (2) incoming communication, (3) customer support, (4) sales transactions, and (5) delivery. Using this model will help ensure an organization that its website is adding optimal value to the organization.

A Proposal to Assess the Service Quality of Online Travel Agencies: An Exploratory Study

ABSTRACT The importance of service quality in improving customer satisfaction and loyalty in traditional business settings has been established through the use of such instruments as SERVQUAL.54 However, these established service quality dimensions, or similar measures, have not been applied to electronic commerce settings. Using online travel services as a case study, an assessment tool, E-QUAL, was developed to evaluate the service quality of electronic commerce businesses from the consumers' perspective. In contrast to the existing Web site evaluation tools that focus on the “coolness” or level of “interactivity” of the site, E-QUAL is based on the proven conceptual framework of the SERVQUAL instrument and is adjusted for the unique attributes of the electronic commerce. The findings have theoretical and managerial implications for assessing quality of service for online companies.

Evaluating and Choosing Web Sites on Women's Health

Abstract This article, in two parts, presents information on the evaluation of Web sites in general and the choice of women's health Web sites in particular. A review of studies and tools for Web site evaluation is followed by a core list of women's health Web sites, from the perspective of the academic health sciences library.

Use of a World Wide Web Site Evaluation Tool in Chemistry.

Material on the World Wide Web may be freely accessed by instructors and students, regardless of its source. Evaluation of such material can be facilitated by use of one of a number of web site evaluation tools. These assess a web site in terms of content and design by adapting established principles in each of these areas. The feasibility of using one such tool, originally developed for the evaluation of medical information sites, in chemistry has been explored. The tool was applied to 37 sites that cover the periodic table. Most of the criteria seemed to be as applicable to chemical sites as to those for which it was designed, and gave useful information on the quality aspects of each site. On the other hand, some of the criteria included for medical sites were inappropriate or too vague in the context of chemical sites, and additional criteria not present in the original tool would have been useful for this application. These observations have been used to construct a modified tool which should be more applicable for World Wide Web sites with chemical content.

Conceptual Construction Process Model

Managers have tried several project‐specific methods to improve declining construction productivity with mixed results. Most solutions have focused on supporting craftsmen in the field. This paper presents a conceptual model of the construction process, defining goals for management and control systems to support the craftsman's needs in the field. This model comprises four generic flow charts with rules that govern them. The first defines the needs of the craftsman. The second specifies the support functions required from a site organization, while the third defines all of the other major site‐related functions. Finally, the limits of site management control are specified. Craft support is the acid test of a functioning system; thus validation of the model focused on the first two flow charts. Analysis of five groups of similar projects showed that the closer a site organization is to the conceptual model, the better its performance. Site evaluation tools are presented.