Designing Interfaces, 3rd Edition

Chapter 2. Organizing the Content: Information Architecture and Application Structure

Picking up on the concept of building a foundation from Chapter 1, let’s now take a look at what an information foundation for your software or app might look like. What this means is designing the information architecture—how the data, content, and functionality are organized in a way that makes sense for the people you’re designing for. Specifically, in this chapter we cover the following:

• A definition of information architecture

• How to design the information and task space for comprehension and navigation

• Different methods of organizing content and data for use

• How to organize tools and features for efficient work

• Developing a system of repeatable frameworks or screen types

• Patterns for displaying, accessing, and navigating content and functionality

At this point, you might feel confident that you understand what your users want out of your application or site. You might have written down some typical scenarios that describe how people might use high-level elements of the application to accomplish their goals. You have a clear idea of what value this application adds to people’s lives.

It’s tempting at this stage to want to go directly to designing the screens and components of your interface, working with colors, typography, language, and layouts. If you’re the kind of person who likes to think visually and needs to play with sketches while working out the broad strokes of the ...