In our final DITA lecture we considered web site design; more specifically information architecture. We considered what makes a good web site by considering what end users love and hate about the web. Our lecturers listed the following:
| Love | Hate |
|---|---|
| Good Design | Can't Find it |
| Aesthetics | Gratuitous Bells and Whistles |
| Big ideas | Inappropriate Tone |
| Utility | Designer-Centredness |
| Findability | Under-Construction |
| Personalisation | No attention to detail |
| Waiting |
Much of this is common sense - for example, people will get frustrated if they cannot find what they need, or if they are overwhelmed with unnecessary graphics. I have certainly been irritated in the past by websites that make you watch (or click a button to skip) a video before going to the main site - especially if you intend to use it a lot.
We considered why it is important to organise information. For you info pros out there, the answer is incredibly obvious, but for the sake of argument let's spell it out. Not organising your information might seem quicker when you create it. A common cry where I work is 'why can't we just put things in our personal drives and be done with it?' The reason is twofold: first, when you come to look for something it will be like searching for a needle in a haystack. Second, if it's on your personal drive, we can't help you as much, because we can't see it. (I risk digressing here to the importance of a nice EDRMS in an organisation, so perhaps I will move on.) If this argument doesn't work, one can point to financial reasons - Jakob Nielsen was quoted in Rosenfeld and Morivlle's book 'Information Architecture' saying, 'low intranet usability costs the world economy $100 billion per year in lost employee productivity' (p.xii). This was back in 2002, so nearly a decade later I suspect this figure is a lot larger.
Organising information on web pages is actually very flexible. For example, it is possible (although perhaps not recommended!) to link an unlimited number of pages. In the 'real world' it is more difficult to do this; if you compare information architecture to architecture (buildings), you would not be able to link a room to an infinite number of rooms. A database is slightly different, as entity relationships tend not to link to a very large number of other entities. (This is due to the requirement for unique identifiers; other tables get added in - see the database blog for more details on this!)
Above we looked at a list where web loves and hates were identified. So how do we avoid falling into these traps? A cynical response, perhaps, is to not let the graphics design team get over excited(!) However, our lecturer pointed out that another trap people fall into is handing over the website design to the geeks, who make it over-technical. To avoid this when developing a web site, it is important to have people from lots of backgrounds on the design team, including: graphic design, technical types (for dealing with databases, programming, etc), project managers and information architects. Information architects generally have a background in information management - for librarians it can be a natural move as it is basically creating a structure, providing labels and making things organised.
When you've got your team you need to consider how you are going to achieve the web loves listed above (and avoid the web hates!). There are lots of guides on the web describing how to put together a good web site (for example, Smashing Magazine and Sharpened Productions). A common theme is to be user focused. It seems obvious, but think about who is using your website, why they are using it, and how they might use it. A general rule of thumb is to avoid making people think too much; navigation should be intuitive. This is where good architecture comes in. An information architect considers the relationships between pages, optimises access to information and of course will know all about indexing! In addition, they will be familiar with consistent labelling, for example not mixing up their nouns and verbs.
So what can we conclude? Good web design isn't just about having lots of graphics and helpful information (although this is still important!). With the expansion of the Web people are increasingly impatient and fast-moving, so good navigation systems and searchable web pages are a must. People visiting your web page shouldn't be forced to think too much, which is possible with consistent labelling. (To think about it another way, people shouldn't be scrutinising your labels too closely, they should just be using them).
Organising information on web pages is actually very flexible. For example, it is possible (although perhaps not recommended!) to link an unlimited number of pages. In the 'real world' it is more difficult to do this; if you compare information architecture to architecture (buildings), you would not be able to link a room to an infinite number of rooms. A database is slightly different, as entity relationships tend not to link to a very large number of other entities. (This is due to the requirement for unique identifiers; other tables get added in - see the database blog for more details on this!)
Above we looked at a list where web loves and hates were identified. So how do we avoid falling into these traps? A cynical response, perhaps, is to not let the graphics design team get over excited(!) However, our lecturer pointed out that another trap people fall into is handing over the website design to the geeks, who make it over-technical. To avoid this when developing a web site, it is important to have people from lots of backgrounds on the design team, including: graphic design, technical types (for dealing with databases, programming, etc), project managers and information architects. Information architects generally have a background in information management - for librarians it can be a natural move as it is basically creating a structure, providing labels and making things organised.
When you've got your team you need to consider how you are going to achieve the web loves listed above (and avoid the web hates!). There are lots of guides on the web describing how to put together a good web site (for example, Smashing Magazine and Sharpened Productions). A common theme is to be user focused. It seems obvious, but think about who is using your website, why they are using it, and how they might use it. A general rule of thumb is to avoid making people think too much; navigation should be intuitive. This is where good architecture comes in. An information architect considers the relationships between pages, optimises access to information and of course will know all about indexing! In addition, they will be familiar with consistent labelling, for example not mixing up their nouns and verbs.
So what can we conclude? Good web design isn't just about having lots of graphics and helpful information (although this is still important!). With the expansion of the Web people are increasingly impatient and fast-moving, so good navigation systems and searchable web pages are a must. People visiting your web page shouldn't be forced to think too much, which is possible with consistent labelling. (To think about it another way, people shouldn't be scrutinising your labels too closely, they should just be using them).
