Information Architecture for the World Wide Web

by Morville, Peter

• ISBN13: 9780596527341
• ISBN10: 0596527349
• Edition: 3rd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-11-27
• Publisher: Oreilly & Associates Inc

Summary

The scale of web site design has grown so that what was once comparable to decorating a room is now comparable to designing buildings or even cities. Designing sites so that people can find their way around is an ever-growing challenge as sites contain more and more information. In the past, "Information Architecture for the World Wide Web" has helped developers establish consistent and usable structures for their sites and their information. This edition of the classic primer on web site design and navigation is updated with recent examples, new scenarios, and new information on best practices. Readers will learn how to present large volumes of information to visitors who need to find what they're looking for quickly. With topics that range from aesthetics to mechanics, this book explains how to create interfaces that users can understand easily.

Author Biography

1. Peter Morville

   Peter Morville is president of Semantic Studios, an information architecture, user experience, and findability consultancy. For over a decade, he has advised such clients as AT&T, IBM, Microsoft, Harvard Business School, Internet2, Procter & Gamble, Vanguard, and Yahoo. Peter is best known as a founding father of information architecture, having co-authored the field's best-selling book, "Information Architecture for the World Wide Web". Peter serves on the faculty at the University of Michigan's School of Information and on the advisory board of the Information Architecture Institute. He delivers keynotes and seminars at international events, and his work has been featured in major publications including Business Week, The Economist, Fortune, and The Wall Street Journal.

2. Louis Rosenfeld

   Lou Rosenfeld is an independent information architecture consultant. He has been instrumental in helping establish the field of information architecture, and in articulating the role and value of librarianship within the field. Lou played a leading role in organizing and programming the first three information architecture conferences (both ASIS&T Summits and IA 2000). He also presents and moderates at such venues as CHI, COMDEX, Intranets, and the web design conferences produced by Miller Freeman, C|net and Thunder Lizard. He teaches tutorials as part of the Nielsen Norman Group User Experience Conference.

Table of Contents

Foreword	p. xi
Preface	p. xiii
Introducing Information Architecture
Defining Information Architecture	p. 3
A Definition	p. 4
Tablets, Scrolls, Books, and Libraries	p. 6
Explaining IA to Others	p. 8
What Isn't Information Architecture?	p. 9
Why Information Architecture Matters	p. 11
Bringing Our Work to Life	p. 12
Practicing Information Architecture	p. 16
Do We Need Information Architects?	p. 17
Who's Qualified to Practice Information Architecture?	p. 18
Information Architecture Specialists	p. 23
Practicing Information Architecture in the Real World	p. 24
What Lies Ahead	p. 28
User Needs and Behaviors	p. 30
The "Too-Simple" Information Model	p. 31
Information Needs	p. 33
Information-Seeking Behaviors	p. 35
Learning About Information Needs and Information-Seeking Behaviors	p. 38
Basic Principles of Information Architecture
The Anatomy of an Information Architecture	p. 41
Visualizing Information Architecture	p. 41
Information Architecture Components	p. 49
Organization Systems	p. 53
Challenges of Organizing Information	p. 54
Organizing Web Sites and Intranets	p. 58
Organization Schemes	p. 59
Organization Structures	p. 69
Social Classification	p. 77
Creating Cohesive Organization Systems	p. 80
Labeling Systems	p. 82
Why You Should Care About Labeling	p. 83
Varieties of Labels	p. 86
Designing Labels	p. 98
Navigation Systems	p. 115
Types of Navigation Systems	p. 116
Gray Matters	p. 117
Browser Navigation Features	p. 117
Building Context	p. 118
Improving Flexibility	p. 120
Embedded Navigation Systems	p. 122
Supplemental Navigation Systems	p. 131
Advanced Navigation Approaches	p. 139
Search Systems	p. 145
Does Your Site Need Search?	p. 145
Search System Anatomy	p. 149
Search Is Not an IT Thing	p. 150
Choosing What to Search	p. 151
Search Algorithms	p. 158
Query Builders	p. 161
Presenting Results	p. 163
Designing the Search Interface	p. 178
Where to Learn More	p. 191
Thesauri, Controlled Vocabularies, and Metadata	p. 193
Metadata	p. 194
Controlled Vocabularies	p. 194
Technical Lingo	p. 204
A Thesaurus in Action	p. 206
Types of Thesauri	p. 209
Thesaurus Standards	p. 213
Semantic Relationships	p. 215
Preferred Terms	p. 217
Polyhierarchy	p. 219
Faceted Classification	p. 221
Process and Methodology
Research	p. 231
Process Overview	p. 232
A Research Framework	p. 233
Context	p. 234
Content	p. 239
Users	p. 246
Participant Definition and Recruiting	p. 251
User Research Sessions	p. 254
In Defense of Research	p. 261
Strategy	p. 264
What Is an Information Architecture Strategy?	p. 265
Strategies Under Attack	p. 266
From Research to Strategy	p. 268
Developing the Strategy	p. 269
Work Products and Deliverables	p. 273
The Strategy Report	p. 279
The Project Plan	p. 288
Presentations	p. 288
Design and Documentation	p. 291
Guidelines for Diagramming an Information Architecture	p. 292
Communicating Visually	p. 294
Blueprints	p. 296
Wireframes	p. 307
Content Mapping and Inventory	p. 313
Content Models	p. 317
Controlled Vocabularies	p. 324
Design Collaboration	p. 326
Putting It All Together: Information Architecture Style Guides	p. 329
Information Architecture in Practice
Education	p. 335
Transition in Education	p. 336
A World of Choice	p. 336
But Do I Need a Degree?	p. 337
The State of the Field	p. 338
Ethics	p. 340
Ethical Considerations	p. 341
Shaping the Future	p. 344
Building an Information Architecture Team	p. 345
Destructive Acts of Creation	p. 346
Fast and Slow Layers	p. 347
Project Versus Program	p. 348
Buy or Rent	p. 349
Do We Really Need to Hire Professionals?	p. 350
The Dream Team	p. 352
Tools and Software	p. 354
A Time of Change	p. 354
Categories in Chaos	p. 355
Questions to Ask	p. 361
Information Architecture in the Organization
Making the Case for Information Architecture	p. 365
You Must Sell	p. 365
The Two Kinds of People in the World	p. 366
Running the Numbers	p. 367
Talking to the Reactionaries	p. 371
Other Case-Making Techniques	p. 373
The Information Architecture Value Checklist	p. 376
A Final Note	p. 377
Business Strategy	p. 378
The Origins of Strategy	p. 379
Defining Business Strategy	p. 380
Strategic Fit	p. 382
Exposing Gaps in Business Strategy	p. 384
One Best Way	p. 385
Many Good Ways	p. 385
Understanding Our Elephant	p. 387
Competitive Advantage	p. 389
The End of the Beginning	p. 390
Information Architecture for the Enterprise	p. 392
Information Architecture, Meet the Enterprise	p. 392
What's the Goal of EIA?	p. 394
Designing an Enterprise Information Architecture	p. 397
EIA Strategy and Operations	p. 411
Doing the Work and Paying the Bills	p. 416
Timing Is Everything: A Phased Rollout	p. 421
A Framework for Moving Forward	p. 426
Case Studies
MSWeb: An Enterprise Intranet	p. 429
Challenges for the User	p. 430
Challenges for the Information Architect	p. 431
We Like Taxonomies, Whatever They Are	p. 432
Benefits to Users	p. 454
What's Next	p. 458
MSWeb's Achievement	p. 459
evolt.org: An Online Community	p. 460
evolt.org in a Nutshell	p. 461
Architecting an Online Community	p. 461
The Participation Economy	p. 462
How Information Architecture Fits In	p. 471
The "Un-Information Architecture"	p. 474
Essential Resources	p. 475
Index	p. 487
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