[Sigia-l] Information Architecture 3.0

[David Malouf]

On 11/30/06, richard_dalton at vanguard.com <richard_dalton at vanguard.com> wrote:
>
> sigia-l-bounces at asis.org wrote on 11/30/2006 11:47:10 AM:
>
> > In my experience, interaction design usually falls to people with the
> > I.A. job title. Therefore the AdWords results don't really support
> > your claim, because "information architecture" usually includes
> > "interaction design" by default.
>
> Dave - how do you feel about that? ;-)

I assume you meant me, no?

Wow! this is flame bait, like I've never seen.
Richard, i think you & I have spoken on this topic and you know that I
think that IA fits inside the circle of IxD and not visa versa. Why is
that?
1. I like narrow definitions and even the one that Peter uses in his
article is narrow enough for my needs because all of his definitions
deal with "information".
2. IA as a discipline like IxD is about context of use, but IA unlike
IxD does not really deal with before and after. Time is not a big part
of the tool kit of IA and has not been part of the greater literature.
3. Information is an artifact to be taken through time, manipulated,
created, consumed. How you manipulate it, create it and consume it are
all interactions and in my mind fall under the purview of IxD.
4.  IA in its primary definition is the preparation of information, or
creating dynamic methods, to go through that set of interactions.

I look at it this way. IA is meaningless without IxD, but there are
many IxD type solutions that have nothing to do with information in
the way that IA thinks about the term. Data, yes, but not information.

Now, I did post a bit of a response to Peter's article if people are
interested in reading it here:
http://synapticburn.com/comments.php?id=201_0_1_0_C

I would also like to add that just like typography is a necessary
discipline of its own that is necessary for all graphic designers to
learn, IA is a necessary discipline of its own that all IxDs should
learn if they are working in that context. Like a surgeons specialty.

<putting on asbestos suit now>

-- dave

-- 
David Malouf
dave.ixd at gmail.com
http://synapticburn.com/