Information Architecture for the World Wide Web, Second Edition

Organization of This Book

This book is divided into six sections and twenty-one chapters, progressing from fundamentals to advanced topics. It breaks down as follows.

Part I, provides an overview of information architecture for those new to the field and experienced practitioners alike, and comprises the following chapters:

Chapter 1

This chapter offers definitions and analogies, shows how information architecture relates to other fields, and explains why it matters at all.

Chapter 2

This chapter discusses the qualities and skills essential to the professional information architect, and explains where and when the work should happen.

Chapter 3

This chapter sets the stage for information architecture design by helping us better understand how people interact with information.

Part II, includes chapters on the fundamental components of an architecture, illustrating the interconnected nature of these systems. It comprises the following chapters:

Chapter 4

This chapter helps you visualize the nuts and bolts of an architecture, and introduces the systems covered in subsequent chapters.

Chapter 5

This chapter describes ways to structure and organize sites to meet business goals and user needs.

Chapter 6

This chapter presents approaches for creating consistent, effective, and descriptive labels for a site.

Chapter 7

This chapter explores the design of browsing systems that help users understand where they are and where they can go within a site.

Chapter 8

This chapter covers the nuts and bolts of searching systems, and describes approaches to indexing and the design of search result interfaces that can improve overall performance.

Chapter 9

This chapter shows how vocabulary control can connect these systems and improve the user experience.

Part III, covers the tools, techniques, and methods to take you from research to strategy and design to implementation of an information architecture. It comprises the following chapters:

Chapter 10

This chapter explains the discovery process necessary to create a foundation of understanding.

Chapter 11

This chapter presents a framework and methodology for defining the direction and scope of your information architecture.

Chapter 12

This chapter introduces the deliverables and processes required to bring your information architecture to life.

Part IV, is a series of short essays that provide practical tips and philosophical advice for those doing the work of information architecture, and comprises the following chapters:

Chapter 13

This chapter explains how to enter the field and how to keep learning, drawing from traditional and novel educational forums.

Chapter 14

This chapter exposes the moral dilemmas inherent in information architecture practice.

Chapter 15

This chapter introduces the specialist roles beginning to emerge within the field, and addresses the transition from performing short-term projects to building sustainable programs.

Chapter 16

This chapter covers a diverse set of software applications and technologies that can assist information architects and power information architectures.

Part V, addresses the business context of practicing and promoting information architecture, and comprises the following chapters:

Chapter 17

This chapter provides guidance for those who must sell the value of information architecture to clients and colleagues.

Chapter 18

This chapter notes similarities and dependencies between the fields of information architecture and business strategy, explaining how we can work toward competitive advantage.

Chapter 19

This chapter lays out a broad entrepreneurial framework for supporting the creation of information architecture services to serve the organization over a long period of time.

Part VI, describes the evolution of two large and very different information architectures, illustrating best practices along the way. It comprises the following two chapters:

Chapter 20

This chapter presents the story of how a small team at one of the world’s most powerful corporations has been able to create a successful and sustainable intranet information architecture.

Chapter 21

This chapter shows how a well-designed participation economy can produce an emergent information architecture that can be used and maintained by a distributed community of volunteers.

Appendix A is a selective list of pointers to the most useful information architecture resources available today.