The Information Architecture

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The Information Architecture of Everyday
Things Jesse James Garrett
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Credit where due
Required reading, even though it has nothing to
do with this talk
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Kirks question
How can I develop my skills when I dont have a
project to work on? I didnt have an answer
then. This talk represents a first step toward
one.
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A quote
The world can be seen as only connections,
nothing else A piece of information is really
only defined by what its related to, and how
its related. There really is little else to
meaning. The structure is everything. Tim
Berners-Lee Weaving the Web
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The secret history of information architecture
Information architecture is as old as human
communication Where theres information, theres
architecture
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Spot the IA
Wheres the information architecture in this
picture?
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Reverse-engineering

• Common practice in the technical world
• Take things apart
• Put them back together
• See what makes them work

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In the beginning
was the datum.
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And then there were two
Now known as data.
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Possibilities emerge
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Added information, added complexity
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Humans are pattern-makers
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Yet another definition
Information architecture is the juxtaposition of
individual pieces of information in order to
convey meaning.
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Harpers Index
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Harpers Index Examples
Number of years since 1776 in which no nation
was at war 0 Age, in months, at which an
infant can distinguish between a bird and an
airplane 9 Estimated number of times an
adult must taste a disliked food before learning
to like it 10
Prison sentence, in years, received in June by an
Oregon activist for setting fire to a car
dealership 23 Percentage of U.S. college
students who say they intend to pursue a foreign
language 57 Chances that a U.S. soldier in
the Vietnam War volunteered 4 in 5
Number of cars destroyed in the fire 3
Percentage who are actually enrolled in a
foreign-language course 8
Chance that a U.S. soldier in World War II did so
1 in 3
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Harpers Index
Percentage of U.S. college students who say they
intend to pursue a foreign language 57
Percentage of U.S. college students who are
enrolled in a foreign-language course 8
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Juxtaposition
Placing pieces of information near each other
implies a relationship If no relationship is
explicitly stated, the user will infer
one Inference relies upon familiarity
Great Composers
Overrated Composers
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart George Gershwin Ludwig
van Beethoven Paul McCartney
Svetlana Petrova Kevin Spencer Jacqueline
McKenzie Wilhelm Bruner
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Implicit architecture
Architecture that is inferred or deduced by the
user Most common form of architecture Not
necessarily intentional
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Explicit architecture
Architecture that is made apparent to the
user Very common for information retrieval
tasks Labels can serve to make architecture
explicit But explicitness doesnt ensure
clarity Example
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Restaurant menu
logo
special combo
everything else
cheesesteaks
sides
drinks
cheesesteak toppings
kids menu
cheesesteak sauces
chips
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Random access

• Every user can jump in at any point in the
  information space
• Examples
• Reference materials
• Magazines
• DVDs

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Linear access

• Every user follows the same path through the
  information space
• Examples
• Most traditional narrative forms (movies,
  novels, plays)
• Magazine articles
• Tutorial or instructional materials

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Nonlinear access

• Each user may follow a different path through the
  information space
• Not necessarily hierarchical
• Examples
• Web sites
• Interactive fiction

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All Things Considered
Two-hour program Precision timing required The
roadmap
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All Things Considered
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All Things Considered
news
news perspective
features
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All Things Considered
news
news perspective
features
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Lands End Catalog
64 pages
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Lands End Catalog
An implicit architecture
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showcase
women
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unisex
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kids
men
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Lands End Catalog
An alternate view
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cool-weather casual
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summer casual
special purpose
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Lands End Catalog
Repetition
page 4
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Lands End Catalog
Repetition
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Lands End Catalog
Reference and redirection
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Lands End Catalog
Reference and redirection
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Ideal sources

• The most interesting architectures spring from
  problems of diversity
• Diversity of information
• Diversity of audience
• Diversity of modes of access
• Diversity of use
• But dont overlook simple problems that have
  simple solutions

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Questions to ask
What problem did they set out to solve? What
constraints were they facing? What could they
have done differently?
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Translating ideas to the Web
Extrapolate general principles Look for patterns
that work independent of subject matter Keep
user behavior in mind
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Pitfalls to avoid
Medium-specific constraints Conventions arent
necessarily best practices The letter of the law
vs. the spirit of the law
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Other examples
Phone bill In-flight magazine Junk
mail Consumer product instructions Television
news programs Citizen Kane
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Book recommendations from the audience
Film Form by Sergei Eisenstein Understanding
Comics and Reinventing Comics by Scott
McCloud Sources of Power by Gary Klein Visual
Thinking by Rudolf Arnheim The Language of
Vision by Gyorgy Kepes Information Design The
Knowledge Architects Toolkit by Graziella Tonfoni
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Thanks!
Jesse James Garrett jjg_at_adaptivepath.com http//
www.jjg.net/ia/