1. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 1 The Information Architecture of Everyday Things Jesse James Garrett

2. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 2 Credit where due Required reading, even though it has nothing to do with this talk

3. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 3 Kirk’s question “How can I develop my skills when I don’t have a project to work on?” I didn’t have an answer then. This talk represents a first step toward one.

4. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 4 A quote “The world can be seen as only connections, nothing else… A piece of information is really only defined by what it’s related to, and how it’s related. There really is little else to meaning. The structure is everything.” — Tim Berners-Lee Weaving the Web

5. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 5 The secret history of information architecture Information architecture is as old as human communication Where there’s information, there’s architecture

6. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 6 Spot the IA Information Architecture Waldo Where’s the information architecture in this picture?

7. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 7 Reverse-engineering Common practice in the technical world: Take things apart Put them back together See what makes them work

8. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 8 In the beginning… …was the datum.

9. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 9 And then there were two Now known as data.

10. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 10 Possibilities emerge

11. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 11 Added information, added complexity

12. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 12 Humans are pattern-makers

13. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 13 Yet another definition Information architecture is the juxtaposition of individual pieces of information in order to convey meaning.

14. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 14 Harper’s Index

15. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 15 Harper’s Index Examples 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 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

16. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 16 Harper’s 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

17. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 17 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 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart George Gershwin Ludwig van Beethoven Paul McCartney Great ComposersOverrated Composers Svetlana Petrova Kevin Spencer Jacqueline McKenzie Wilhelm Bruner

18. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 18 Implicit architecture Architecture that is inferred or deduced by the user Most common form of architecture Not necessarily intentional

19. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 19 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 doesn’t ensure clarity Example: homesolutionsresourceschannels

20. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 20 Restaurant menu cheesesteaks logo sides kids menu special combo cheesesteak toppings cheesesteak sauces everything else chips drinks

21. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 21 Random access Every user can jump in at any point in the information space Examples: Reference materials Magazines DVDs

22. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 22 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

23. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 23 Nonlinear access Each user may follow a different path through the information space Not necessarily hierarchical Examples: Web sites Interactive fiction

24. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 24 All Things Considered Two-hour program Precision timing required “The roadmap”

25. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 25 All Things Considered

26. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 26 All Things Considered news news perspective features

27. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 27 All Things Considered news news perspective features

28. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 28 Lands’ End Catalog 64 pages

29. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 29 Lands’ End Catalog An implicit architecture 64 1 23 1819 3435 1011 2627 4243 5657 45 2021 3637 5051 1213 2829 4445 5859 67 2223 3839 5253 1415 3031 4647 6061 89 2425 4041 5455 1617 3233 4849 6263 showcase kids women unisex men women

30. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 30 Lands’ End Catalog An alternate view 64 1 23 1819 3435 1011 2627 4243 5657 45 2021 3637 5051 1213 2829 4445 5859 67 2223 3839 5253 1415 3031 4647 6061 89 2425 4041 5455 1617 3233 4849 6263 kids cool-weather casual dressy summer casual spring casual special purposeshoes

31. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 31 Lands’ End Catalog Repetition page 4 page 15 page 51

32. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 32 64 1 23 1819 3435 1011 2627 4243 5657 45 2021 3637 5051 1213 2829 4445 5859 67 2223 3839 5253 1415 3031 4647 6061 89 2425 4041 5455 1617 3233 4849 6263 Lands’ End Catalog Repetition

33. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 33 Lands’ End Catalog Reference and redirection

34. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 34 64 1 23 1819 3435 1011 2627 4243 5657 45 2021 3637 5051 1213 2829 4445 5859 67 2223 3839 5253 1415 3031 4647 6061 89 2425 4041 5455 1617 3233 4849 6263 Lands’ End Catalog Reference and redirection

35. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 35 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 don’t overlook simple problems that have simple solutions

36. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 36 Questions to ask What problem did they set out to solve? What constraints were they facing? What could they have done differently?

37. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 37 Translating ideas to the Web Extrapolate general principles Look for patterns that work independent of subject matter Keep user behavior in mind

38. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 38 Pitfalls to avoid Medium-specific constraints Conventions aren’t necessarily best practices The letter of the law vs. the spirit of the law

39. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 39 Other examples Phone bill In-flight magazine Junk mail Consumer product instructions Television news programs “Citizen Kane”

40. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 40 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 Architect’s Toolkit by Graziella Tonfoni

41. 17 March 2002jjg@adaptivepath.com · The IA of Everyday Things · http://www.jjg.net/ia/ 41 Thanks! Jesse James Garrett jjg@adaptivepath.com http://www.jjg.net/ia/