Take another look

Alison Hayman

Search Solutions Unit

Dissemination Divison

February 2011

Statistics Canada

site search

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Objectives

1. Identify some search challenges at Statistics Canada

2. Demonstrate new search features to refine your search

3. Learn from you how to continue improving our search

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Overview

Statistics Canada search challenges Search Solutions Unit Search features and resources Lessons learned Future development

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Statistics Canada search challenges

166, 236

StatCan search challenges

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Census

CANSIM

The Daily

Summary

Tables

DDSM

Economic Accounts Statistics

by Subject

Health Portal

The mandate of the Search Solutions Unit, supported by the search technical team is to

Improve search functionality Monitor and improve metadata Improve integration of resource discovery across site

Our goal is to improve, in incremental and coordinated steps, the design, functionality and utility of search functions on www.statcan.gc.ca. This initiative will, in turn, assist all contributing divisions by providing better access to their content.

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Search Solutions Unit

Manager

Metadata Specialist

Information Specialist

Search Analyst

Search Engine Optimization Specialist

Search features and resources Popular picks Search by category Navigation trail Try also Suggested links HTML, PDF and description More results Advanced search

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Popular picks

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Search by category (Home page)

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Search by category (Faceted search)

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Navigation trail

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Try also (Thesaurus search)

Help with StatCan terminology (thesaurus)

http://www47.statcan.gc.ca/th_r000-eng.htm

Try also (selected terms)

Search strings from logs for more precision

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Suggested links: Auto-updating

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Suggested links: Highlight

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Additional search tools

Expand acronyms cpi converts to “consumer price index”

Subject guides latest information by subject in one location

Search results: HTML, PDF and description

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More results

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Main pages

More results

•Recent news releases (2005 cutoff)• Entry pages • Pages that our users look for most often

•All news releases (The Daily prior to 2005)•All pages of publications, tables, classifications, teacher's kits, etc.•Advanced search

Advanced Search

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Google-like approach

Creates query in simple search

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Search resources

Help: Search the site eTutorials for search Contact us

Module searches• The Daily

• Learning Resources

• Definitions, Data Sources and Methods (DDSM)

• Data Liberation Initiative (DLI)

• Canada Yearbook (CYB) Historical Collection

• Health in Canada Portal

• Customized Services

• Census 2011

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Lessons learned

Show vs tell

test site is worth 1,000 words

Flexibility vs “should” mentality

workarounds as breakthroughs

Opportunism vs despair

new ideas ready when time is right

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Future development

Usability testing of search results page to encourage use of facets

More data tables

No hits, no problem

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Thank you

Alison Hayman

Metadata Specialist

Search Solutions Unit, Dissemination Division, Statistics Canada

alison.hayman@statcan.gc.ca

613-951-2101

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Now it’s your turn to help improve the Statistics Canada Search!

Questions and Feedback