Information Architecture: Explained

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Information Architecture Explained
John Sutton, Sr. Information Architect
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Information Architects (IAs) attempt to classify
and organize information to help users find the
information they need.
What is an Information Architect?
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Where do IAs come from?

• Communications
• Computer Science
• Library Science
• Education
• Graphic Arts
• Business
• Etc

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IA was born from Library Science
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Was Melvil Dewey an IA?

• Dewey Decimal System and their accompanying card
  catalogs

000 Computer science, information, and general
works 100 Philosophy and psychology 200
Religion 300 Social sciences 400 Language
500 Science 600 Technology 700 Arts and
recreation 800 Literature 900 History and
geography
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The Dewey Decimal System is easyright?
All depends on who you are and how you think
Also requires trainingso not so good if you
dont have access to training
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IA is not grounded in fact and set in stone

• We use theoretical approach
• We attempt to understand user behavior, know best
  practices, and know the user
• We attempt to align the information based on user
  needs
• We test our theory out with real users and adapt
  where necessary

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IAs work in a variety of media delivery types

• Newspapers and magazines
• Mobile devices
• Voice activated response systems
• Desktop applications
• Web
• Just to name a few

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We at Navigation Arts focus on the Web

• Enterprise Content (Intra/Extranets)
• Marketing (a.k.a. Brochure-ware)
• E-Commerce
• Portals
• Rich Internet Applications
• Micro sites

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So what does an IA for the web produce?
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We love concepts!
We use these to communicate the possible
organization of a site
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We dig site maps!
Use these to communicate the navigational and
page structure, and identify gaps in content
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Wireframes are super cool
Use these to communicate the layout of all
unique page types and define content types
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and sometimes prototypes
When interactions are involved, IAs construct
prototypes to communicate dynamic content
elements and transitions
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So, how do IAs play with others?
IAs lead the charge on concept, but
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We should not be the only voice on the project
Developers and Designers bring invaluable
experience to any project
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Through collaboration ideas are generated and
refined, the designer gets more time to think,
and developer gets more time to plan and prepare.
We should not be the only voice on the project
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working, talking, and thinking together
An optimal product is derived from
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Other issues of the day

• Folksonomy Social Tagging
• Controlled Vocabulary
• Designing for SEO
• Designing-in Accessibility