Press/Journalists

National Archives Web Site to Get A Face Lift
Press Release · Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Washington, DC

Web redesign coming soon! Suggestions welcome - vote this week!

The National Archives and Records Administration is redesigning Archives.gov to be a participatory and user-focused web site. The public and staff have been invited to participate throughout the redesign process. A multi-faceted participatory approach, including online cards sorts and user testing software, was used to gather input to create a comprehensive understanding of how customers would organize the content on Archives.gov. The Archives.gov redesign is now in the design phase.

As part of the effort to provide a web site that is truly of, by, and for the people, this week, everyone is invited to view new Archives.gov homepage designs and provide feedback via the National Archives Redesign Open Government Idea Forum (http://archivesgovredesign.ideascale.com/). This online tool allows users to comment, discuss, and vote on the Archives.gov homepage designs and features.

In addition, designs will be displayed this week at the entrance to the Public Vaults permanent exhibition at the National Archives Building in Washington, DC, and in the Research Room lobbies at the Archives facilities in College Park, MD, and Washington, DC. The public is invited to vote in person at any of these locations through Friday, July 9. The comments and votes will be incorporated during the design reviews and next redesign phases.

"More and more people are turning to the Internet as a primary source of news and information," said Archivist of the United States David S. Ferriero. "It's essential for the National Archives to have a user-friendly online presence.  We hope to reach new audiences while still engaging our long-time users, researchers and visitors.  This redesign – part of the National Archives Flagship Open Government Initiative – reflects the ongoing effort to engage the public and make records of the National Archives easier to find and use."

The National Archives web site will:

  • Focus on historical documents and military service records, which accounts for 81 percent of what visitors seek;
  • Include single topically organized sections focused on the needs of both casual browsers and professional researchers; and
  • Provide easy links to National Archives’ social media sites, including Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, YouTube, and both the Archivist's new AOTUS blog and the NARAtions blog.

For more information on the Archives.gov web site redesign, see http://www.archives.gov/open/redesign/

To comment, suggest, and discuss, see http://archivesgovredesign.ideascale.com/

For more information on Open Government at the National Archives, see: http://www.archives.gov/open

To submit suggestions and feedback to the National Archives web staff, email webprogram@nara.gov

Background
The National Archives public web site was launched as www.nara.gov in 1996 to provide the public with online access to exhibits, finding aids, records management information, and policy documents. In 2001, the web site was revised and renamed www.archives.gov. In turn, this web site was redesigned in 2002 and 2005.

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For Press information, contact the National Archives Public Affairs staff at 202-357-5300.

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