[Sigia-l] Being considerate of others (Off Topic Posts)

[Alexander Johannesen]

Hi,

On 3/9/06, Stewart Dean <stew8dean at hotmail.com> wrote:
> Okay - good question, I should clarify but I should also say I don't want to
> start another existentialist crisis about what IAs do thread.

How about a discussion, then? :)

> As an IA my role is to create structure, define functionality and create UI
> schemas.

Yes, good, good, but I do exactly that as a GUI developer, or app
designer, or project manager, or project owner. Structure,
functionality and UI permutes many fields. What's so special about
IA's? I think you've forgotten the 'I'. :)

> User experience is beyond the scope of IA and user interface design
> is a part of it.

'Hell no' to the first part, and 'sure' for the other. :) An IA can
well define the very essens of what an UX ends up being. It comes down
to the people involved, how they interact and how they structure their
solution. I'm afraid it ain't as easy to define your scope and apply
it to the world; scope is the hardest question to answer sometimes,
and in the field of IA especially. In *my* world, and IA structures
the scope of the information a solution requires; again, a rather
arbitrary definition, and especially given that 'scope' almost always
has something to do with UX and UCD.

> Now I get bombarded by user experience stuff on different topics form
> different angles and dip into different areas when I need to.

Could it be that your definition of what an IA is all about is
different from the definition of other people?

> What I'd like
> to see here is more stuff on the structuring of user experience here, be it
> information, entertainment, experiential or functional. What has been
> appearing a lot recently are quite old 'that's cool stuff' that I've already
> got a few weeks ago from several other sources.

Ah, so the complaint is that you've already seen it. Well, I'm sorry
we're so slow here. :)

> I don't want Listera booted but less noise and more stuff about IA - that is
> the structuring of user experiences - would be preferable.  Interface stuff
> as it relates to the creation of, say, a Web 2.0 application is fine and
> would be on topic.  For example what people think of www.live.com ?

I think the name sucks. Not sure that was IA specific, but hey. :)

> My feeling is that information architecture has existed long enough for
> poeple to know it's rough perameters and what is relevant and pressing, it's
> just frustrating to see most of the discussion here off topic when there is
> so much left undiscussed.
>
> In short more signal and less noise.

Hmm, there is a huge problem here in the sense that IA is a field that
dips its toe into many waters, has fingers in many pies, enjoys too
many parties, knows too many people, and hence got fewer genuine
friends.

Sorry to seem blunt, but if people feel there is a lack of IA to any
given topic, why not add to the discussion by asking IA directed
questions or add IA directed commentary? That way we'll know more
about what IA means to you, and you will feel happier for it. This is
a community, after all, and we all win.


Alex
--
"Ultimately, all things are known because you want to believe you know."
                                                         - Frank Herbert
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