Wednesday October 17, 2007

IA as Civil Engineer

by Nathan Smith in Design

4 comments

While explaining the nuances of enterprise-level information architecture to a client last week, I likened the role of an IA to that of a civil engineer. This notion has been ruminating in my head for awhile, and after bouncing the idea around with a few colleagues, I decided to elaborate on it.

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When wearing the IA hat, I cannot help but think of the classic video game SimCity. The basic goal is to build up the infrastructure of a township, growing it into a sprawling metropolis. One of the aspects that intrigues me is that at any given time, you can sample a cross-section of the satisfaction level in each municipal area. If crime is too high, or if urban public transportation is inadequate, there will be complaints to the government (aka: You).

As a player, the decision is yours to make: Listen to the people and change things for the better, or leave them in a state of disarray and watch your civilization suffer the dire consequences.

These gripes typically result from disproportionate and/or disjointed zoning – the designation of certain sections as residential, commercial or agricultural. With housing too dense, overcrowding will occur and transportation cannot keep up. Without enough jobs, crime will rise. If the food supply is mismanaged, there will be bigger problems still.

As an Information Architect, these same principles apply. If we take time to actually listen to what users have to say, there is quite a bit to be learned in terms of how a site can best facilitate their goals.

In SimCity terms, three things could be improved in the majority of business websites…

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Transportation

Simply put, if people can’t get where they need to go, there is room for improvement in the navigational routes. In user testing, if people tend to wander aimlessly, the fault may not be theirs alone. Perhaps the paths should be re-engineered to be more intuitive. Don’t fall into the trap of structuring a site identically to your org-chart. Think in terms of humans, not data.

One of the best news sites out there is Newsvine. Many thought Mike Davidson was crazy when he announced his intent to build a solid brand in a space already crowded by broadcasting companies. However, by catering to the citizen journalist, it quickly became a reputable destination for accurate and impartial reporting. So much so, that MSNBC recently acquired Newsvine.

Zoning

Not only do sites need to be well organized hierarchically, they should also have a relational taxonomy. Buzzwords aside, we need to make sure that sites have logical groupings of content, so that users can find what they are looking for with minimal effort. Adding a search box is not a suitable remedy for poor information architecture. Though, you should still have one.

This content categorization can (should) also be contextual. At the latest Refresh Dallas meet-up, Jeremy Johnson gave a several examples of how Travelocity offers different information via their WAP and iPhone sites, depending on where travelers are in their journey. After arriving at a destination, tips about that city are provided, such as restaurants and entertainment.

Crime

While law enforcement is obviously not the direct responsibility of a civil engineer, with a little forethought, a city can be laid out to be more conducive to peace (preventing overcrowding, etc). As an IA, this means architecting a site that works for users, rather than against them. It means putting your foot down with the marketing department, and not abiding manipulative practices.

People hate pop-up ads. It’s a fact. This is evidenced by nearly every major browser vendor offering native pop-up blocking. Yet, businesses continue to use these shady methods. Even worse, the nefarious pop-under. In essence, pop-ups are crimes perpetrated against your users.

Another big problem is uninvited (e)mail correspondence. Though we have someone’s personal address, this doesn’t necessarily mean they want to receive all our newsletters and promotional offers. None of us like spam. Your customers don’t either. Let them opt-in if they want to hear from you. Don’t force them to opt-out. Either way, always provide a clear way to unsubscribe.

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Be Civil

The world’s best chess players are able to calculate several moves in advance, projecting possible scenarios. So it is with well executed urban planning. By examining how large-scale problems have been addressed in the physical realm, we gain insight into mitigating otherwise unwieldy digital predicaments. Varying technologies aside, it all just boils down to human factors.

Avoid the tendency to treat site architecture procedurally. Anticipate what users might actually need. You yourself are a user most of the time. Were you in their shoes, what would you need to accomplish? Chances are, you’d want to access information quickly, without having to put up with pointless distractions. Guess what? So do our users. Let’s try to make that happen.

Comments on “IA as Civil Engineer”

1. Matt Heard said:

   There’s another really well fleshed-out treatment of this idea in an old paper from 1999 called Big Ball of Mud. The paper is about software development rather than software design and IA, but its analogies work equally well in both cases.

   The most interesting parts are the descriptions of Shantytowns and Piecemeal Growth, but I wholeheartedly recommend the entire paper, available at http://www.laputan.org/mud.

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2. T.Scott Stromberg said:

   Well written Nathan. I was a huge fan of SimCity and I really like how you weaved the metaphors between the game and Information Architecture; it is a very creative comparison. I use to spend hours creating the cities sub-systems; it’s funny, without water whole neighborhoods would deteriorate. I was always having to switch between the different views to double check my construction, much like we have to do in the design and development processes in information architecture. I have always been a big fan of the comparisons to architecture and information architecture. Nice job on another well-written post.

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3. Ron Hall said:

   Very nice comparison, Nathan. And much like web users, the general citizen never notices when things work right. They happily (and blissfully) experience the city. Never once do they remark how the street signs are well lit or how gracefully the water flows on turning the faucet. But let those systems fail, and you will hear from them or at least from those who stick around.

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4. John Yorchak said:

   I guess it’s human nature that we all tend to notice the world around us a little more when things aren’t working for us, whether it be snow removal or buying stuff online. I suppose we’re the Rodney Dangerfield’s of hitech…the less attention we garner the better. I’d like to think that users appreciate our simple, elegant designs, but I think they just want to get what the need and then move on to something else. Looking forward to your next article.

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