Demystifying Information ArchitecturePatrick Kennedy
“The usability guy says you can’t do that”
Does this sound familiar?
Or maybe it’s more like this?
“You know what you can do with your heuristics?!”
A bit about me
Two-minute resume• Electrical and Computer Systems Engineer• Front and back-end web developer• Team leader and ‘solutions architect’• Information Architect• User Experience consultantIndustry exposure• IT and corporate• Marketing, advertising and media
So you think you can IA?do
“I drew a site map, I’m doing IA!”
So you think you can IA?
“We wireframe everything!”
do
So you think you can IA?
“Usability testing? Yep, we all think it
works great.”
do
So you think you can IA?
“We surveyed what our users want!”
do
So you think you can IA?
“I installed Visio…I am an Information
Architect!”
do
What IA isn’t
Information Architecture is not…• Simply drawing up a sitemap• Simply pumping out masses of ‘wireframes’• Designing for yourselves• Just about navigation• A frivolous expense for ‘Rolls Royce’ projects only• A ‘nice to have’ item on a checklist• Database design (at least not for this session!)
So what is IA?
Information Architecture is…• The practice of designing, for a website or intranet, the:
– Site structure– Navigation– Labelling
• Often a synonym for ‘usability’ or ‘User Centred Design’, which involves:– Understanding users and their needs– Designing with those needs in mind (balanced by business context and
content)– Validating design decisions with user involvement
The basics of IA
Structure
Navigation
Labelling
More broadly…
IA is User Centered Design (UCD)• Which generally speaking, involves:
– Understanding users and their needs (balanced by business context and available/necessary content)
– Designing with those needs in mind– Validating design decisions with user involvement
• Other synonyms include ‘usability’ or ‘user experience’
ResearchUnderstand the audience and context
Solve the problem at hand
Design
Test design against requirements
Validate
A general IA process
ResearchUnderstand the audience and context
Solve the problem at hand
Design
Test design against requirements
Validate
A general IA process
User research techniques
There’s something about Mary
“I want to go on holiday,
somewhere in Australia”
“But I’m not sure where to
go…”
“…or what each city has
to offer”
Other research
“We need to drive traffic to the destination
guides!”
“What content do we already
have?”
ResearchUnderstand the audience and context
Solve the problem at hand
Design
Test design against requirements
Validate
A general IA process
High level design
Designing the travel site
Home
Internationalvacations
Domesticvacations
Guides
Packages
Book now!
Existing knowledge:Travel content lends itself to a geographic categorisation scheme
Want to “holiday” in Australia
Not sure whereWhat is there to
do?
Need to drive traffic to
destination guides
Low level design
Designing the travel siteLogo
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet,consectetuer adipiscing elit.
International vacationsGuide 1 Guide 2Guide 3 Guide 4
Domestic vacationsGuide 5 Guide 6Guide 7 Guide 8
GuidesPackagesBooknow!
Conventions:Users are used to search in the top right hand corner
Want to “holiday” in Australia
Not sure whereWhat is there to
do? SearchContact us
Need to drive traffic to
destination guides
ResearchUnderstand the audience and context
Solve the problem at hand
Design
Test design against requirements
Validate
A general IA process
Validation techniques
Logo
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet,consectetuer adipiscing elit.
International vacationsGuide 1 Guide 2Guide 3 Guide 4
Domestic vacationsGuide 5 Guide 6Guide 7 Guide 8
GuidesPackagesBooknow!
SearchContact us
Feedback from Mary
“Huh? I don’t see a list of places I can go on holiday. Where do
I click?”
Usability testing
“This is more like it! It gives me a list of places I can go to and I can get more
information”
ResearchUnderstand the audience and context
Solve the problem at hand
Design
Test design against requirements
Validate
A general IA process
IA in the broader process
Strategy and scoping Visual design Build Launch
Often IA appears here…
Strategy and scoping Visual design Build Launch
…or here
Strategy and scoping Visual design Build Launch
Research
But this is where it belongs
Strategy and scoping Visual design Build Launch
Design
Validate
IA and agile
Agile development methodologies• Design is shifted earlier in the project• More iterative• Taken the technical development world by storm
Problems• IA seen as rigid and pedantic• And also costly and slow
To fit into an agile environment IA needs to be:• Flexible (both in terms of time and method)• Quicker and less costly• Better integrated into the process (and team)• More guerrilla in approach; ad-hoc expertise when needed• Leverage the iterative nature of agile development for more user contact/input
IA and the new web
Web 2.0 and Rich Internet Applications (RIA)• You will no doubt be familiar with these!• Higher levels of interactivity• Breaking away from the “page model” web• Asynchronous communication with server• Built using Flash, Flex, AJAX, Air, Silverlight, Java etcDifficulties for IA• As with designers and developers, RIAs mean a big shift for IA• Web IA finds this difficult• More akin to software design than web design
Compare the IA for this…
…with the IA for this…
…or this
IA for RIAs
“Traditional” techniques may not work• Particularly in terms of documentation (eg site map and wireframes)• New ways of documenting and communicating IA are needed• Methodologies may need to change also (eg fit in with agile)• Less about strict IA and more about interaction designNew techniques to consider• User task flows, storyboards, early working prototypes• Rapid iterative prototyping; see it working then refine it• ‘Wireflows’ and other hybrid forms of documentation
IA practice is catching up
Different, yet still the same
We’re still talking about UCD• Whilst IA needs to ensure it keeps up with advances in technology and industry
trends, the same basic principles apply• Research, design, validate• It’s just a new way of applying the principles
Web 2.0 is not an excuse for a free-for-all• We don’t want a repeat of lavish and unusable interfaces from early 90s• Be careful of the “if we build it they will come” mentality; websites and applications
still need to have purpose and meet a well defined audience need
What does this mean for you?
Web developers and designers…• Need to allow time for IA (and UCD in general)• Can use IA to help improve what you create• Should get involved in IA (or even start to specialise in it)• Provide valuable input into IA; leverage your experience
across many projects and scenarios• Can be key drivers for IA in the development team• Are well placed to set the standards and influence
colleagues (as with web-standards)• Should play well with others (IA and UX professionals :)
Tips
For success in IA, remember…• There are no simple answers, but there are simple
techniques• Solve each problem at the right stage of the project• Designs should be useful, not just usable• Iteratively sense-check your work with users• Teamwork works best (little “d” design with a
multidisciplinary team)• Always use a ‘blended’ approach (aka triangulation)
Further reading
For a good intro to all things IA related, try:• Don’t Make Me Think by Steve Krug ISBN: 0789723107• The Elements of User Experience by Jesse James Garrett ISBN: 0735712026• The User Is Always Right by Steve Mulder & Ziv Yaar ISBN: 0321434536• Information Architecture for the World Wide Web by Louis Rosenfeld & Peter
Morville ISBN: 0596000359• Boxes and Arrows www.boxesandarrows.com• User Interface Engineering (UIE) www.uie.com
Further reading
For wise thoughts on design documentation, try:• Sketching User Experiences by Bill Buxton ISBN: 0123740371• Communicating Design by Dan Brown ISBN: 0321392353
For the latest in IA for RIAs, try:• Documenting the Design of Rich Internet Applications: A Visual Language for State
by Richard F. Cecilwww.uxmatters.com/MT/archives/000251.php
• The Guided Wireframe Narrative for Rich Internet Applications by Andres Zapatawww.boxesandarrows.com/view/the_guided_wire
In summary
• IA is not something to be scared of!• Designers and developers can use IA to deliver better results• In its most basic form IA is all about structure, navigation and labelling• But more broadly it is UCD, consisting of Research, Design, Validation• Ultimately IA will mean different things in different situations• It’s not something frivolous or stuck at the end of a project• IA is just as important for RIAs and Web 2.0 (perhaps more so)
Questions?
Contact details• Patrick Kennedy• [email protected]• www.gurtle.com/ppov/
• All slides will be on SlideShare:www.slideshare.net/PatrickKennedy
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