CHI 97 Electronic Publications: Late-Breaking/Short Talks
How People Use WWW Bookmarks
David Abrams
Dynamic Graphics Project
University of Toronto
Toronto, Ontario M5S 1A4, Canada
abrams@dgp.toronto.edu
Ron Baecker
Dynamic Graphics Project
University of Toronto
Toronto, Ontario M5S 1A4, Canada
rmb@dgp.toronto.edu
ABSTRACT
In this detailed empirical study of WWW browsing
and bookmarks we define a personal information space as having
five basic properties paralleling those of a larger complex information
space. We describe user behavior on the Web and show how a user's
bookmark archive is a personal Web information space.
Keywords
WWW, bookmark, information space, user study, survey,
empirical study
© 1997 Copyright on this material is held by the authors.
INTRODUCTION
Although WWW bookmarks, hotlists, favorites, or personal
URLs are used by over 84% of Web users [2], they routinely have
difficulty using bookmarks. This detailed user study of WWW browsing
and bookmarks [1] identifies the fundamental principles underlying
a complex information space and applies them to a personal Web
information space.
METHODOLOGY
We performed an in-depth analysis of how users mitigate
the problems of the WWW through bookmarks. Our study began with
informal interviews and a survey of 12 users. Next, we conducted
a formal survey of 322 users at the Internet Beyond the Year 2000
conference. We collected and analyzed the bookmark files of 56
users, and analyzed the usage data of 23 users over a 6 week period
(data from [3]). Finally, we surveyed 27 users in a mental maps
study of a user's personal view of the Web.
USER BEHAVIOR ON WWW
Users find localities of interest, create bookmarks
to return to them, and conceptualize their use of bookmarks through
metaphors. This behavior leads to the development of a personal
information space based on the bookmarks collected.
Users Find Localities of Interest
Users revisit groups of related Web pages and there
is a 58% probability that the next page visited is one the user
has already encountered [3]. For example, a variety of local
navigation patterns will emerge while a user visits Web pages
in a cluster of relevant documents [3]. We define a Web locality
as a group of pages having a thematic organization, structural
cues, and links representing explicit semantic relations.
Users Establish Bookmarks to Distinct Web Localities
Bookmarks are used in only 2.7% of all navigation
actions [3], yet they are "essential" to users.
Bookmarks are primarily used to jump between Web localities,
then users employ a variety of methods to navigate within the
new locality. Our analysis of user bookmark files found that
87% of bookmarks point to distinct domain names, independent of
the size of the bookmark archive. In addition, bookmarks serve
as launching points for hypertext exploration and local navigation
patterns emerge after using a bookmark.
Users Conceptualize WWW Access Through Metaphors
Users conceptualize the use of bookmarks and browsing
with four metaphors. First, users mark/tag Web pages by
actively assigning distinctive labels through bookmarks (identification).
Second, users pull Web pages out of hypertext into their
collection of bookmarks (collection). Third, users travel
through cyberspace and return to sites via bookmarks (movement).
In the fourth metaphor, users recall previous episodes
associated with pages they have stored in their bookmark archives
(episodes).
Users Build an Archive from Bookmarks
Users create a personal archive out of the bookmarks
they have collected. In the ideal environment, users cost-tune
their environment so that frequently used items are easily accessible,
while less used items are stored further away. A time series
analysis showed that bookmarks are created and often not used
for months.
WWW AS A COMPLEX INFORMATION SPACE
Users of a complex information space like the WWW
are (1) overloaded with information. This medium is (2)
polluted with redundant, erroneous and low quality information.
It progresses toward disorder according to the principle of (3)
entropy. It has (4) no aggregate structure which
organizes distinct Web localities. Users have (5) no global
view of the entire WWW from which to forage for relevant pages.
Users employ a personal information space to counteract
these five problems of a complex information space. (1) They
prevent information overload by incrementally building a small
archive. (2) They avoid pollution by selecting only useful items
and creating a known source of high value. (3) They reduce entropy
through maintenance and they organize only when necessary. (4)
They add structure by cost-tuning their information environment.
(5) They compensate for the lack of a global view by creating
their own personal view.
PERSONAL WEB INFORMATION SPACE
A Web user's bookmark archive is a personal information
space with five basic properties each of which addresses a unique
problem indigenous to a complex information space.
Users Start Small and Build Incrementally (overload)
Users gradually buildup a small sized archive where
68% of users have 11 to 100 bookmarks. Bookmarks are added in
small clusters and over 93% of users create 0 to 5 bookmarks each
browsing session. The growth rate of a user's bookmark archive
is linear (r = 0.9958, P < 0.001) over the first
year and can be described by:
where N is the number of bookmarks in the
archive and T is the number of days since the first bookmark
was created.
Users Select Only Useful Items (pollution)
A bookmark archive serves as a known source of valuable
Web sites because users select items according to five criteria:
general usefulness, quality, personal interest, frequency of use,
and potential future use. Over 95% of users with 20 or more items
have at least one search engine in their archive. When bookmarking
a query engine (e.g. Lycos) users bookmark the page for entering
queries. In contrast, they tend to bookmark selected parts of
the hierarchy when using a meta-index (e.g. Yahoo). They rarely
bookmark the search results page.
We generated an extensive taxonomy of bookmark
use based on user comments. Bookmarks enable users to avoid
managing URLs, are used as a "mnemonic device"
and an inter-session history mechanism. Users collect groups
of related bookmarks in order to author a Web page out of those
URLs and give presentations.
Users Add Value Through Organization (entropy)
Users expend effort to manage their personal information
space, but tend to organize only when necessary. 99% of users
with less than 35 bookmarks have 0 folders. Once the user's archive
grows beyond 35, the approximate number of items that we currently
can see in a pull-down menu, the number of folders correlates
directly with the number of bookmarks (r2= 0.60),
which is significant (F1,26 = 38.52,
P <0.0001). A larger archive requires more organization
and the poor scalability of current tools force users to find
new ways to organize bookmarks. Users with more bookmarks employ
more sophisticated means of organizing. We identified five primary
organizational methods: 8% manually re-arrange a list, 29% create
a set of folders, 23% generate a hierarchy of folders within folders,
3% off-load to an external database or bookmark management program,
and 2% author Web pages. 37% of users do not organize their bookmarks.
Sporadic-filers, 46% of
respondents, schedule a special clean-up session to organize
their bookmarks. End-of-session filers, 6%, set aside
time after each session to organize. In contrast, creation-time
filers, 21%, store each bookmark in its place just after interpreting
its contents.
Users Structure for Retrieval (no aggregate structure)
The structure of a user's personal archive facilitates
efficient retrieval based on expected use. Users encounter significant
problems while managing a semantic hierarchy, naming folders,
maintaining a stable ontology, and retrieving bookmarks from the
semantic hierarchy (e.g. "what folder did I put it in?").
Representation issues hinder retrieval because the titles of
bookmarks are often not descriptive.
Users Establish a Personal View (no global-view)
We asked a group of experienced users to each draw
a mental map of the WWW. Abstract landmarks were prevalent in
70.4% of the 27 drawings collected from a sample of 72 people.
51.9% of the mental maps included a reference to search which
suggests that many users' experience with the Web is mediated
through search engines. Users separated "My Bookmarks"
from the "cloud of unmapped resources" which appeared
in many drawings. Users develop a personal, gestalt view of the
Web through use.
CONCLUSION
A user's bookmark archive is a personal information
space with five principles paralleling those of a complex information
space. As a user's bookmark archive grows, it can begin to exhibit
the properties of a complex information space. Users are continually
challenged with maintaining an effective personal Web information
space. Our future research will apply these results to the design
of more usable Web browsers and bookmark management tools.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Special thanks to Mark Chignell for many provocative
discussions about this research. Linda Tauscher provided us usage
data and Bruce Homer helped with the analysis.
REFERENCES
1. Abrams, D. Human Factors of Personal Web Information
Spaces. MSC Thesis, University of Toronto, 1997.
2. Pitkow, J. GVU's 5th WWW User Survey, 1996. http://www.cc.gatech.edu/gvu/user_surveys/survey-04-1996/
3. Tauscher, L. and Greenberg, S.
Revisitation patterns in world wide web navigation, in Proceedings of CHI '97 (Altanta GA, March
1997), ACM Press.
CHI 97 Electronic Publications: Late-Breaking/Short Talks
