Today's web sites have moved far beyond "brochureware." They are larger and more complex, have great strategic value to their sponsors, and their users are busier and less forgiving. Designers, information architects, and web site managers are required to juggle vast amounts of information, frequent changes, new technologies, and sometimes even multiple objectives, making some web sites look like a fast-growing but poorly planned city-roads everywhere, but impossible to navigate. Well-planned information architecture has never been as essential as it is now. Information Architecture for the World Wide Web, 2nd Edition, shows you how to blend aesthetics and mechanics for distinctive, cohesive web sites that work. Most books on web development concentrate on either the graphics or the technical issues of a site. This book focuses on the framework that holds the two together. This edition contains more than 75% new material. You'll find updated chapters on organization, labeling, navigation, and searching; and a new chapter on thesauri, controlled vocabularies and metadata will help you understand the interconnectedness of these systems. The authors have expanded the methodology chapters to include a more interdisciplinary collection of tools and techniques. They've also complemented the top-down strategies of the first edition with bottom-up approaches that enable distributed, emergent solutions. A whole new section addresses the opportunities and challenges of practicing information architecture, while another section discusses how that work impacts and is influenced by the broader organizational context. New case studies provide models for creating enterprise intranet portals and online communities. Finally, you'll find pointers to a wealth of essential information architecture resources, many of which did not exist a few years ago. By applying the principles outlined in this completely updated classic, you'll build web sites and intranets that are easier to navigate and appealing to your users, as well as scalable and simple to maintain. Information Architecture for the World Wide Web, 2nd Edition is a treasure trove of ideas and practical advice for anyone involved in building or maintaining a large, complex web site or intranet.

Amazon.com® Reader Reviews (Ranked by Helpfulness)

Average Amazon.com® Rating:  Based on 110 Ratings

Useless for techies - 2009-11-13
Reviewer Rating:
I'm a developer building a company-internal website and I'm struggling to organize all the information it will contain. I bought this book hoping to ease that struggle. What I found is for a technical person like me, this book was so useless that it has compelled me to write my first Amazon review in years.

I planned to read it cover to cover. After 50 pages I realized that I haven't really read anything at all yet. So far it's been ridiculously verbose, rambling, and content-free. So I gave up and started skimming.

I couldn't find much better in the remaining pages. Page after page of touchy-feely gobbledygook that has not helped me organize information at all.

There are more useless diagrams in this book than I've ever seen before. For example, the term "synonym ring" is defined as a group of words with the same meaning. Does it really take a diagram with a bunch of arrows in a circle to explain that? (Figure 9-2)

To explain the concept of equivalence we have another diagram: "A=B" inside a circle. (Figure 9-21) Does such a diagram really enhance anybody's understanding of the concept of equivalence? Why does this diagram even exist in the first place?

Maybe some business or consultant type might get something out of this book. For a developer, run away. Fast.

Too Little Useful Information - 2009-03-20
Reviewer Rating:
Lot of text, nicely written, easy read, finished the book in one hour.

Not much useful

Gained almost nothing from the book. where can I get my money back ?

Excellent Resource - 2009-12-15
Reviewer Rating:
This is one of the most complete and thorough resources on the topic of Information Architecture. As relevant today as when it was written. A must read for Web Developers and other folks whose work it is to design, produce and publish web sites.

A Poorly Organized Book About Organizing Information - 2009-11-05
Reviewer Rating:
Morville and Rosenfeld managed to sum up a very complex and difficult topic into about 500 pages of text. The humorous authors took an interesting approach to help readers understand the world of information architecture. Starting with the basics and working their way to the complicated material, Morville and Rosenfeld teach readers how to organize information on the web to make websites readable, searchable, usable and of course informative. They guide readers through a step by step process showing them what to do and why to do it in order to make their website more profitable.

The two authors made learning this complex, ambiguous topic simple by providing readers with plenty of familiar anecdotes, charts, examples and analogies. They draw readers in by talking to them as if they were there in person, and then take their time to explain each subject.

However, the organization of this book made it difficult to read. The sections jumped from definition of concepts, to elements of concepts and then to a step by step guide to information architecture. I often found myself confused and having to look back to remember what they were talking about. This made the how to confusing.

All in all, this book was able to tell me what to do and why I should do it when crafting the information of my website. But I still don't know how...

a required text for my graduate seminar in IA at UCLA - 2009-10-13
Reviewer Rating:
This book is the "Aha!" for many librarians ready to bring their game to the 21st century. Lou and Peter have created a solid introduction to the practice and profession of information architecture. Along with Dan Brown's book on deliverables (Communicating Design) and Peter Block's book (Flawless Consulting), this is the required reading for my graduate seminar in Information Architecture at UCLA's library school. And we read the entire thing in the first three weeks.

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