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LibGuides Best Practices

A LibGuide about LibGuides

Recommended Maintenance

Preventative steps to reduce maintenance burden

  • Save template boxes and reusable content in the a reusable boxes storage guide for commonly re/used boxes (lists, tips, search boxes [widgets], etc.).
  • Whenever possible, make corrections/additions to items on your reusable boxes storage guide instead of to individual guides so changes will be immediately applied to all mapped boxes
  • If you regularly copy one guide to make others, ensure that the guide you copy is separate from your reusable boxes guide.
  • Ensure that databases (in reusable boxes and anywhere else) are linked from the Database Assets library so that updates to the Database A-Z list will automatically update on your guides as well.
  • Copy/reuse from the place closest to the original element and not from derivative locations.
  • Avoid placing links in Rich Text Field content - use Links content area instead

Every 6 Months

  • Check for and repair broken links
  • Unpublish guides for courses not running in the following semester
  • Delete guides for courses not expected to run in the foreseeable future
  • Refresh guides (or reused boxes) with new material or functionality
  • Review guides’ subject and type categories for any misplaced entries

Annually

  • Review LibGuides Standards & Best Practices guide
  • Review all published guides
  • Delete guides that have remained unpublished since last review
  • Refresh subject guides (or reused boxes) with new material or functionality
  • Ensure that course guides include current assignment/course based material
  • Add new relevant material or functionality
  • Review and update names, guide types, and friendly URLs to be consistent with naming conventions

Link Checker

Click on     Tools  > Link Checker 

You can check for broken links on your guides by regularly checking the Link Checker report.

How to use the Link Checker: 

  • View only your broken links - select yourself in the Owner column
  • Click to test the "broken" links 
  • Open the edit icon to see the asset and fix immediately on all mapped links.

Tips: 

  • Some links will report as broken but they are not! If you check your broken links regularly, you get to know which ones are not actually broken. You can dismiss links from the report or add them to the Exclusions list so they are not checked again. 
  • Deep links are more likely to break: use links at the website or main content level when possible
  • The link checker cannot check links in Rich Text content
  • If you delete a link from your guide, it will still be in the Assets list.

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