Information Architecture for the World Wide Web 2ed

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      <p>Authors: Louis Rosenfeld &amp; Peter Morville</p>
      <p>ISBN: <isbn>0-596-00035-9</isbn></p>
      <p>Publisher: O'Reilly </p>
      <p>Reviewed by: Simon Wistow</p>
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    <p> Rather like Apache this book has had two major releases - one at the
    start and oneat the end of the Dot.Com boom and bust cycle. In my <a
    href="ia_for_www.html"> previous</a> I highlighted several problems with
    the first edition of this book. In the meantime I've met the authors
    (and taken them for a curry) and several other high profile practioners
    of the art and even, $god help, ended up speaking at an IA conference as
    a lone bastion of Coding Sanity. </p>
    
    <p>So where has that left us?</p>
    
    <p>A bit of a mixed bag to be honest</p>
    
    <p>The book has been considerably beefed up and now sports 486 info
    packed pages compared to the original's 226. Many of the most serious
    problems that I mentioned previously have been fixed and the 4 years
    between the editions has allowed a certain amount of perspective</p>
    
    <p>The expansion has helped with one my most serious problems in that
    the book sat uncomfortably between tutorial and exhaustive encyclopedia.
    To some extent this is still true but much less so - although not
    perfect this is simulataneously a much easier read from start to 
    finish and a better reference to dip into.
    </p>
    
    <p>All in all I do consider this to be a good replace and, if you're 
    working on an interface of any kind, not just a web page, or are likely 
    to be involved with one professionally then it's a worthwhile book to 
    read. However I do have some problems still.</p>
    
    <p>Whilst this may or may not be the view amongst Information Architects 
    from where I sit they appear to occupy an unenviable middle ground 
    between programmers, usability experts, designers, project managers and 
    a variety of other project stake holders. In some instances they may be 
    fufilling dual roles as both IA <i>and</i> some other job.</p>
    
    <p> As such more information about dealing with other disciplines would
    have been invaluable. In conversations with IAs at a conference the
    knowledge of software engineering was woefully, almost terrifyingly, low
    leading to at least one "OH! That's why we do it like that" moment and a 
    later email thanking me for effectively resolving a long standing 
    problem.</p>
    
    <p>In reality this is as much the fault of her programmers as it was 
    hers but it highlights a need for better understanding between 
    disciplines. As such, it can only do you good as a programmer to read 
    this book.</p> 
    
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    <?xml version="1.0"?>
    
    <page title="Information Architecture for the World Wide Web 2ed" keywords="">
    
    <item>
      <p>Authors: Louis Rosenfeld &amp; Peter Morville</p>
      <p>ISBN: <isbn>0-596-00035-9</isbn></p>
      <p>Publisher: O'Reilly </p>
      <p>Reviewed by: Simon Wistow</p>
    </item>
    
    
    <item>
    
    <p> Rather like Apache this book has had two major releases - one at the
    start and oneat the end of the Dot.Com boom and bust cycle. In my <a
    href="ia_for_www.html"> previous</a> I highlighted several problems with
    the first edition of this book. In the meantime I've met the authors
    (and taken them for a curry) and several other high profile practioners
    of the art and even, $god help, ended up speaking at an IA conference as
    a lone bastion of Coding Sanity. </p>
    
    <p>So where has that left us?</p>
    
    <p>A bit of a mixed bag to be honest</p>
    
    <p>The book has been considerably beefed up and now sports 486 info
    packed pages compared to the original's 226. Many of the most serious
    problems that I mentioned previously have been fixed and the 4 years
    between the editions has allowed a certain amount of perspective</p>
    
    <p>The expansion has helped with one my most serious problems in that
    the book sat uncomfortably between tutorial and exhaustive encyclopedia.
    To some extent this is still true but much less so - although not
    perfect this is simulataneously a much easier read from start to 
    finish and a better reference to dip into.
    </p>
    
    <p>All in all I do consider this to be a good replace and, if you're 
    working on an interface of any kind, not just a web page, or are likely 
    to be involved with one professionally then it's a worthwhile book to 
    read. However I do have some problems still.</p>
    
    <p>Whilst this may or may not be the view amongst Information Architects 
    from where I sit they appear to occupy an unenviable middle ground 
    between programmers, usability experts, designers, project managers and 
    a variety of other project stake holders. In some instances they may be 
    fufilling dual roles as both IA <i>and</i> some other job.</p>
    
    <p> As such more information about dealing with other disciplines would
    have been invaluable. In conversations with IAs at a conference the
    knowledge of software engineering was woefully, almost terrifyingly, low
    leading to at least one "OH! That's why we do it like that" moment and a 
    later email thanking me for effectively resolving a long standing 
    problem.</p>
    
    <p>In reality this is as much the fault of her programmers as it was 
    hers but it highlights a need for better understanding between 
    disciplines. As such, it can only do you good as a programmer to read 
    this book.</p> 
    
    </item>
    </page>