Design and implementation of a weighted features model for the evaluation of archival websites The case of Spain Cristina Faba Pe ´rez, and Isabel Marı ´a Sanz Caballero Department of Information and Communications, University of Extremadura, Badajoz, Spain Abstract Purpose – The purpose of the present work was to design a comprehensive weighted features model for the specific evaluation of archival websites, and to apply it in practice to the particular population of Spain’s web archives, ranking them in terms of quality based on the features they include. Design/methodology/approach – The design of the weighted features model is based on two parameters: the weight assigned to each feature according to its relevance for information retrieval from archival websites, and the archival website’s degree of compliance with that feature. Findings – The results of the practical application of the model to the case of Spanish web archives showed that, contrary to prior expectation, factors which are intrinsic to the geographical region of Spain that the archive belongs to, such as economic level or degree of commitment to specific archival legislation, do not directly influence its website’s quality ranking. Instead, the authors conclude that the population of archival websites presents its own particular behaviour. Originality/value – There has been a general lack of research specific to the analysis of the features of archival websites. The present work represents a certain advance in this regard in its proposal of a comprehensive weighted model of indicators for the specific evaluation of archival websites. Keywords Evaluation, Archives, Spain, Websites, Weighted features model Paper type Research paper 1. Introduction The internet has become an essential element to announce and inform society about the services and products provided by institutions of all types. Of particular interest to the present study are institutions which include their archives on their websites. During the past quarter of a century, there has been phenomenal growth in archivists’ in-depth application of information technology. The use of technology has favoured the visibility of their archives’ web presence for segments of users who had previously been unaware even of their mere existence (Ma ´s Bleda et al., 2007). In the case of Spain, the first occurrences of archives visible on the web had a limited presence. They were typically a single page, with poorly designed graphics, and often consisted of purely textual information. It was more or less obligatory to look abroad to find more interesting cases of what an archival website should be like. By The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at www.emeraldinsight.com/0264-0473.htm This research has been sponsored by the Regional Government of Extremadura (Spain), the Department for Employment, Business and Innovation, and the European Social Fund as partial contribution to GR10019 groups. Evaluation of archival websites 203 Received 25 July 2012 Revised 29 August 2012 Accepted 9 September 2012 The Electronic Library Vol. 32 No. 2, 2014 pp. 203-220 q Emerald Group Publishing Limited 0264-0473 DOI 10.1108/EL-07-2012-0094