[Sigia-l] Discovering IA

[John Fullerton]

> including at least one book to avoid:
>    http://IAwiki.net/BadIABooks 

That got my attention :)

So I did some research.

Online Communities: Designing Usability and Supporting Sociability
by Jennifer Preece (Author)

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0471805998/ 

8 five star reviews
1 positive 4-star
3 fairly negative reviews

book quote copied from amazon.com (just to give an idea of the writing,
not necessarily the general subject of the book)

In the last thirty years, Americans' participation in social societies,
such as parent teacher associations, local civic groups, political
organizations, choral societies, local sports clubs and even
church-related societies has been declining dramatically (Putnam, 1995,
p. 66). For example, between 1960 and 1990, voter turnout declined by a
one-fourth. Most startling, Robert Putnam reports that "more Americans
are bowling today than ever before, but bowling in organized leagues has
plummeted in the last decade or so" (Putnam, 1995, p. 69). That is, more
Americans are choosing to bowl alone rather than socialize with others.
Even apparent countertrends turn out not to be as optimistic as they
might at first appear. For instance, though membership in
environmentally oriented societies, such as Sierra Club, and women's
groups is on the increase, analysis reveals that activity is confined to
paying fees. Few people take part in any face-to-face meetings.
Similarly, through there are more support groups of various kinds than
ever before, Putnam reports that the purpose of such groups appears to
be for people to talk about themselves in the presence of the group, not
to participate in a community. (p. 22)

one book endorsement

Howard Rheingold, Author of "The Virtual Community"
Anyone interested in growing virtual communities would benefit from
this well-researched and well-thought-out exposition of the human
interface and social issues underlying virtual community design. Jenny
Preece provides an important perspective on social cyberspace that has
not been available before -- the social infrastructure provided by
thoughtful user interface design."

Have a nice day
John Paul Fullerton
j-fullerton at tamu.edu