University Web Forum 27 June 2007 Mini Masterclass Information Architecture A crash course Presenter: Georg Hibberd

University Web Forum 27 June 2007

Mini MasterclassMini Masterclass

Information ArchitectureInformation Architecture

A crash courseA crash course

Presenter: Georg Hibberd


• What it is• Why we need it• Basic principles• Designing an IA• Pitfalls and problems

OverviewOverview


• Continually being redefined

• A mix of info management / software interface design / cataloging and some other stuff

What is it?What is it?


• Structuring information

• Arrange it in a website to provide easy access

• Arrange in CMS to allow easy maintenance and pretty URLs

What it involvesWhat it involves


• What are the aims of your unit?

• What does your unit see as the role of the site?

• How willing/able are you to support it?

1. Organisational needs1. Organisational needs


• Who is/are your audience(s)

• What tasks are they trying to achieve

• Develop personas

2. Audience needs2. Audience needs


Role based IA: divided at the top level by audience type

Task based IA: divided at the top level by task type

Role or task basedRole or task based


1. Many audiences, many tasks = role based

2. Many audiences, few tasks = task based

3. Few audiences, few tasks = task based

Which one?Which one?


• No hard and fast rules or definitive designs• Each design will be contextual• Some basic guidelines can be used but expect

tweaking• Design for growth

It just has to be usableIt just has to be usable


• Design for the audience, not the structure of your organisation

• Never assume that your audience knows as much as you do

• Think about the experience of the user across the entire uni, not just with your unit

3. Try to ignore political pressure3. Try to ignore political pressure


Tools for designingTools for designing

- Pens, paper and post-it notes

- Whiteboards

- Anything that can be changed easily


• Content spreadsheets

Documenting your designDocumenting your design



• Wireframes


• White sites




1. Tunnel vision– Ask opinion of others if stuck– Run finished design past carefully chosen

colleagues– Remember your audience– Test with audience members constantly

Pitfalls and problemsPitfalls and problems


2. Selling your design– Use evidence (statistics, search logs, user

studies, other successful websites)– Learn to compromise– Have faith in your design– Know when to let go

Pitfalls and problemsPitfalls and problems


Learn moreLearn more

• Information architecture for the World Wide WebLouis Rosenfeld and Peter Morville Full text available through Library catalogue


Learn moreLearn more

Let others do the searching for you:

• http://del.icio.us/tag/ia

Documents

University Web Forum 27 June 2007 Mini Masterclass Information Architecture A crash course Presenter: Georg Hibberd