Considering a May slot

[Robb]

Hi everyone,

I just found you, and I think the idea is fantastic. I'm a law
student and a Rails programmer, and I have a big project I've been
working on that I could use some feedback on. Some of you might have
heard that last year, the Oregon legislature decided to allow public
use of the Oregon Revised Statutes. So I've built a new site to
present the ORS in a modern, searchable format.

There are a lot of design challenges with something like this: Mostly
the vast amount of information to present: 60,000 or so web pages.
I'd be down for talking about any layer of the app: from the
database / infrastructure design to the look and feel.

http://www.OregonLaws.org/

Thanks,
Robb

[Bram Pitoyo]

I love what you did with the site in terms of design, and particularly
your attention to detail!

http://blog.oregonlaws.org/2009/04/navigation-bar-design-verdana-vs-trebuchet-ms-vs-helvetica-neue/

[Robb]

Thanks, Bram!

The site has been challenging: it's primarily a reference work, which
I have to keep reminding myself: i.e., keep it legible, uncluttered,
and remember that less is more. Most people use it to quickly find
the piece of info they need, and then they move on.

A small portion of people (mostly law students) will browse and read
the site, and that presents its own set of design issues...

Robb

On Apr 29, 1:00 pm, Bram Pitoyo <brampit...@gmail.com> wrote:
> I love what you did with the site in terms of design, and particularly  
> your attention to detail!
>

> http://blog.oregonlaws.org/2009/04/navigation-bar-design-verdana-vs-t...

[Bram Pitoyo]

I would be interested to know how a law student, both interested and
are masterly on the subject, would approach the site when they browse
around? They would obviously have a different viewing pattern when
compared to users like me.

–Bram

[Robb]

Bram Pitoyo wrote:
> I would be interested to know how a law student, both interested and  
> are masterly on the subject, would approach the site when they browse  
> around? They would obviously have a different viewing pattern when  
> compared to users like me.
>

This is pretty much how I was thinking of starting my presentation; by
walking through a legal research task. Here's a typical one: Under
Oregon state law, is extreme emotional disturbance a defense to
aggravated murder?

[Bram Pitoyo]

> Here's a typical one: Under Oregon state law, is extreme emotional
> disturbance a defense to aggravated murder?

And then see how the site performs under such research situation (ie.
how quickly can the user find what she wants?) To me, that sounds like
the right way to do a test.

I’m also curious if you have done user tests with law students and
researcher?

–Bram

[Robb]

I wrote:
> > Here's a typical [use case]: Under Oregon state law, is extreme emotional  

> > disturbance a defense to aggravated murder?
>

Bram wrote:
> And then see how the site performs under such research situation (ie.  
> how quickly can the user find what she wants?) To me, that sounds like  
> the right way to do a test.
>
> I’m also curious if you have done user tests with law students and  
> researcher?
>

Hi Bram,

I totally agree with you --- this would be a great method to apply to
testing the site. I haven't done anything like that, yet. Here's the
context:

I began the site in February, and work on it in my part time. A
couple of my friends and I use it for class and other research: when
we find a bug, or a problem, I fix it. I also get feedback from a
couple of law librarians, and in response to those, I fix and/or
redesign. That's been the methodology so far. :-) Often, this would
produce random junk, but since I'm a law student as well, it's worked
out so far: I'm very focused on getting my tasks (use cases) done.
So I see it as a development by continuous prototyping.

In the long run, I'll have collaborators and more time for it.

By the way, about the legal research task: A complicating factor is
the problem domain (the law) itself: (1) Most of the time, the answer
is, "it depends", for a variety of reasons. The real answer isn't
"yes", or "no", but "how do I best argue [yes/no]?" (2) The statute
is often just a starting point for researching a problem. Case law
needs to be considered, etc. This varies depending on the area of
law.

Thanks for your interest and feedback!
Robb

[Bram Pitoyo]

Did you have a background or education in design? The site seems to me
like it has a functional aesthetic to it.

[Robb]

On Apr 30, 12:04 pm, Bram Pitoyo <brampit...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Did you have a background or education in design? The site seems to me  
> like it has a functional aesthetic to it.

I've been a software developer for 10 years or so, and have always
been interested in print and web design, typography, color theory, etc.