Information Architecture

The best web sites start with careful planning, and avoid the "Winchester Mystery House" style of on-the-fly architecture.

One significant difference between the introductory web class (320/741) and this class is that in the introductory class we focus on how to build pages while in this class we talk about how to build sites. That's what we'll talk about this week: how to effectively organize and present a set of information online in a way that's useful to the intended audience.

Readings on Information Architecture

• The Myth of User-Centered Information Architecture and Information Architecture is not Usability, from Digital Web Magazine
• Webmonkey's Information Architecture Tutorial
• Information Architecture the Adaptive Path Way: An Interview with Indi Young
• Web Site Architecture 101