1. Introducing Information Architecture

   1. Chapter 1 Defining Information Architecture

      1. A Definition
      2. Tablets, Scrolls, Books, and Libraries
      3. Explaining IA to Others
      4. What Isn’t Information Architecture?
      5. Why Information Architecture Matters
      6. Bringing Our Work to Life

   2. Chapter 2 Practicing Information Architecture

      1. Do We Need Information Architects?
      2. Who’s Qualified to Practice Information Architecture?
      3. Information Architecture Specialists
      4. Practicing Information Architecture in the Real World
      5. What Lies Ahead

   3. Chapter 3 User Needs and Behaviors

      1. The “Too-Simple” Information Model
      2. Information Needs
      3. Information-Seeking Behaviors
      4. Learning About Information Needs and Information-Seeking Behaviors

2. Basic Principles of Information Architecture

   1. Chapter 4 The Anatomy of an Information Architecture

      1. Visualizing Information Architecture
      2. Information Architecture Components

   2. Chapter 5 Organization Systems

      1. Challenges of Organizing Information
      2. Organizing Web Sites and Intranets
      3. Organization Schemes
      4. Organization Structures
      5. Social Classification
      6. Creating Cohesive Organization Systems

   3. Chapter 6 Labeling Systems

      1. Why You Should Care About Labeling
      2. Varieties of Labels
      3. Designing Labels

   4. Chapter 7 Navigation Systems

      1. Types of Navigation Systems
      2. Gray Matters
      3. Browser Navigation Features
      4. Building Context
      5. Improving Flexibility
      6. Embedded Navigation Systems
      7. Supplemental Navigation Systems
      8. Advanced Navigation Approaches

   5. Chapter 8 Search Systems

      1. Does Your Site Need Search?
      2. Search System Anatomy
      3. Search Is Not an IT Thing
      4. Choosing What to Search
      5. Search Algorithms
      6. Query Builders
      7. Presenting Results
      8. Designing the Search Interface
      9. Where to Learn More

   6. Chapter 9 Thesauri, Controlled Vocabularies, and Metadata

      1. Metadata
      2. Controlled Vocabularies
      3. Technical Lingo
      4. A Thesaurus in Action
      5. Types of Thesauri
      6. Thesaurus Standards
      7. Semantic Relationships
      8. Preferred Terms
      9. Polyhierarchy
      10. Faceted Classification

3. Process and Methodology

   1. Chapter 10 Research

      1. Process Overview
      2. A Research Framework
      3. Context
      4. Content
      5. Users
      6. Participant Definition and Recruiting
      7. User Research Sessions
      8. In Defense of Research

   2. Chapter 11 Strategy

      1. What Is an Information Architecture Strategy?
      2. Strategies Under Attack
      3. From Research to Strategy
      4. Developing the Strategy
      5. Work Products and Deliverables
      6. The Strategy Report
      7. The Project Plan
      8. Presentations

   3. Chapter 12 Design and Documentation

      1. Guidelines for Diagramming an Information Architecture
      2. Communicating Visually
      3. Blueprints
      4. Wireframes
      5. Content Mapping and Inventory
      6. Content Models
      7. Controlled Vocabularies
      8. Design Collaboration
      9. Putting It All Together: Information Architecture Style Guides

4. Information Architecture in Practice

   1. Chapter 13 Education

      1. Transition in Education
      2. A World of Choice
      3. But Do I Need a Degree?
      4. The State of the Field

   2. Chapter 14 Ethics

      1. Ethical Considerations
      2. Shaping the Future

   3. Chapter 15 Building an Information Architecture Team

      1. Destructive Acts of Creation
      2. Fast and Slow Layers
      3. Project Versus Program
      4. Buy or Rent
      5. Do We Really Need to Hire Professionals?
      6. The Dream Team

   4. Chapter 16 Tools and Software

      1. A Time of Change
      2. Categories in Chaos
      3. Questions to Ask

5. Information Architecture in the Organization

   1. Chapter 17 Making the Case for Information Architecture

      1. You Must Sell
      2. The Two Kinds of People in the World
      3. Running the Numbers
      4. Talking to the Reactionaries
      5. Other Case-Making Techniques
      6. The Information Architecture Value Checklist
      7. A Final Note

   2. Chapter 18 Business Strategy

      1. The Origins of Strategy
      2. Defining Business Strategy
      3. Strategic Fit
      4. Exposing Gaps in Business Strategy
      5. One Best Way
      6. Many Good Ways
      7. Understanding Our Elephant
      8. Competitive Advantage
      9. The End of the Beginning

   3. Chapter 19 Information Architecture for the Enterprise

      1. Information Architecture, Meet the Enterprise
      2. What’s the Goal of EIA?
      3. Designing an Enterprise Information Architecture
      4. EIA Strategy and Operations
      5. Doing the Work and Paying the Bills
      6. Timing Is Everything: A Phased Rollout
      7. A Framework for Moving Forward

6. Case Studies

   1. Chapter 20 MSWeb: An Enterprise Intranet

      1. Challenges for the User
      2. Challenges for the Information Architect
      3. We Like Taxonomies, Whatever They Are
      4. Benefits to Users
      5. What’s Next
      6. MSWeb’s Achievement

   2. Chapter 21 evolt.org: An Online Community

      1. evolt.org in a Nutshell
      2. Architecting an Online Community
      3. The Participation Economy
      4. How Information Architecture Fits In
      5. The “Un-Information Architecture”

   3. Appendix 1 Essential Resources

      1. Communities
      2. Directories
      3. Books and Journals
      4. Formal Education
      5. Conferences and Events
      6. Examples, Deliverables, and Tools

1. Colophon

Our look is the result of reader comments, our own experimentation, and feedback from distribution channels. Distinctive covers complement our distinctive approach to technical topics, breathing personality and life into potentially dry subjects.
The animal featured on the cover of Information Architecture for the World Wide Web, Third Edition, is a polar bear (Ursus maritimus). Polar bears live primarily on the icy shores of Greenland and northern North America and Asia. They are very strong swimmers and rarely venture far from the water. The largest land carnivore, male polar bears weigh from 770 to 1,400 pounds. Female polar bears are much smaller, weighing 330 to 550 pounds. The preferred meal of polar bears is ringed seals and bearded seals. When seals are unavailable, the bears will eat fish, reindeer, birds, berries, and trash.
Polar bears are, of course, well adapted to living in the Arctic Circle. Their black skin is covered in thick, water-repellent, white fur. Adult polar bears are protected from the cold by a layer of blubber that is more than four inches thick. They are so well insulated, in fact, that overheating can be a problem. For this reason they move slowly on land, taking frequent breaks. Their large feet spread out their substantial weight, allowing them to walk on thin ice surfaces that animals weighing far less would break through. Because food is available year-round, most polar bears don't hibernate. Pregnant females are the exception, and the tiny one to one and a half pound cubs are born during the hibernation period.
Polar bears have no natural enemies. Their greatest threat comes from hunting, but in the past 15 years, most governments have placed strict limits on hunting polar bears. Their population has more than doubled in that time and is now estimated to be between 21,000 and 28,000. They are not considered to be endangered. They are extremely aggressive and dangerous animals. While many bears actively avoid human contact, polar bears tend to view humans as prey. In encounters between humans and polar bears, the bear almost always wins.
The cover image is from a 19th-century engraving from the Dover Pictorial Archive. The cover font is Adobe ITC Garamond. The text font is Linotype Birka; the heading font is Adobe Myriad Condensed; and the code font is LucasFont's TheSans Mono Condensed. The production editors for Information Architecture for the World Wide Web, eMatter Edition, were Ellie Cutler and Jeff Liggett. Linda Walsh was the product manager. Kathleen Wilson provided design support. Lenny Muellner, Mike Sierra, Erik Ray, and Benn Salter provided technical support. This eMatter Edition was produced with FrameMaker 5.5.6.