Clasificaciones Facetadas y Metadatos (I): Conceptos Básicos

Los metadatos son información relativa a otra información. Al definir un grupo de metadatos para un objeto dado, estamos describiendo el objeto en cuestión, lo estamos caracterizando. Por ejemplo, HTML permite definir metadatos para una página web a través de su etiqueta . Esos metadatos (author, keywords...) caracterizan la página, describen su contenido. Los metadatos, utilizados tradicionalmente en el entorno bibliotecario, están resultando de gran utilidad en la Web, tanto en Sistemas de Recuperación de Información (back-end) como en Sistemas de Navegación (front-end).

Hassan Montero, Yusef and Francisco Jesus Martin Fernandez. Nosolousabilidad.com (2002). (Spanish) Articles>Information Design>Metadata

Clasificaciones Facetadas y Metadatos (y II): XFML

XFML (eXchangeable Faceted Metadata Language), creado por Peter Van Dijck, es un lenguaje o vocabulario con sintaxis XML para definir, distribuir e intercambiar metadatos en forma de taxonomías o clasificaciones facetadas.

Hassan Montero, Yusef and Francisco Jesus Martin Fernandez. Nosolousabilidad.com. (Spanish) Design>Information Design>Metadata>XFML

La Classificazione Come Investimento Nella Qualità dell'Informazione

La classificazione rappresenta un investimento che comporta dei costi nel breve termine, ma che dà anche notevoli frutti nel lungo termine (se impostata correttamente). Fra i sistemi di classificazione, quello a faccette (o multidimensionale) è sicuramente il più potente e versatile (nonostante gli schemi affermatisi come standard nella maggioranza delle biblioteche sono assai distanti da quello a faccette).

Gnoli, Claudio. AIB (2003). (Italian) Articles>Information Design>Metadata

Classificazioni per il Web

Dopo aver esplorato i principali modelli di classificazione elaborati dalla biblioteconomia, l'articolo si sofferma sulla classificazione a faccette (Faceted Classification), illustrandone le possibili applicazioni al web e i gli indubbi vantaggi che ne derivano.

Marino, Vittorio. AIB (2004). (Italian) Design>Web Design>Information Design

CMS Wiki

CMS Wiki is a knowledge base for Content Management.

CMS Wiki. Resources>Content Management>Information Design>Content Strategy

Cognitive Psychology and Information Architecture: From Theory to Practice

What do cognitive psychology and information architecture have in common? Actually there is a good deal of common ground between the two disciplines. Certainly, having a background in cognitive psychology supports the practice of information architecture, and it is precisely those interconnections and support that will be explored.

Withrow, Jason and Mark Geljon. Boxes and Arrows (2003). Articles>Information Design>User Centered Design>Cognitive Psychology

The Cognitive Style of PowerPoint: Slides Are Not All Evil    

This article first reviews three shortcomings in Tufte’s argument, then summarizes the booklet’s well-taken points, before offering guidelines for effective slides, no matter the tool. These guidelines and some of the analysis are based on more than 150 in-depth discussions of slides I have conducted with engineers, scientists, executives, and other professionals at workshops.

Doumont, Jean-luc. Technical Communication Online (2005). Design>Information Design>Presentations

Coherence, Context, Relevance: Special Deliverable

There are a lot of things that make deliverables good: coherence, context and relevance hardly constitute a comprehensive list. But by focusing on techniques that achieve coherence, context and relevance, information architects can address the challenges of starting a document, focusing the document and explaining its value.

Brown, Dan. Boxes and Arrows (2002). Articles>Information Design>Rhetoric

Combining the Print and Online Media Offers Synergies

Companies had decades of experience in using printed materials to persuade readers to contact them, whether by phone, mail, or in person. This model of interaction with customers had worked so well and so predictably that we simply moved it online, largely unmodified. That was by no means wrong, but as Web technology and our comprehension of that technology both evolved, the approach proved limiting.

Hart, Geoffrey J.S. Geoff-Hart.com (2001). Articles>Document Design>Information Design

Coming of Age

It seems like a lifetime ago when I asked my boss if I could adopt the title 'Information Architect.' After all, according to Richard Saul Wurman's definition, that is what I was. He laughed at me and said Information Architect isn’t a title, or a role. It’s not a job. That conversation took place only four years ago.

Malone, Erin. Boxes and Arrows (2002). Careers>Information Design

Commercializing the Semantic Web

The Semantic Web really is an attempt to reconceptualize and reengineer AI for the Web. Discusses the path forward for successfully selling and developing Semantic Web technology into industry.

Clark, Kendall Grant. XML.com (2003). Design>Information Design>Metadata>XML

Communicating Effectively With Interaction    

The ability to build interactions that support, enable, and improve communication is a valuable skill for help developers, Web-site designers, multimedia content developers, information-rich user interface designers-anyone who designs and develops information to be used online. This paper presents the basics of interaction design for information products and describes some basic underlying human factors and user-interface design principles.

Ames, Andrea L. ACM SIGDOC (2001). Presentations>Information Design>User Centered Design>Multimedia

Compiling Hamlets

Rene Pawlitzek continues to advance the Hamlets framework, which extends Java servlets and enforces the separation of content and presentation. In this article, he proposes a new refinement: a method of compiling Hamlet templates that can improve application performance.

Pawlitzek, Rene. IBM (2006). Articles>Information Design>Server Side Includes>Java

Complexity In Indexing Systems -- Abandonment And Failure: Implications For Organizing The Internet

The past hundred years have seen the development of numerous systems for the structured representation of knowledge and information, including hierarchical classification systems with notation as well as alphabetical indexing systems with sophisticated features for the representation of term relationships. The reasons for the lack of widespread adoption of these systems, particularly in the United States, are discussed. The suggested structure for indexing the Internet or other large electronic collections of documents is based on that of book indexes: specific headings with coined modifications.

Weinberg, Bella Hass. ASIST (1996). Articles>Indexing>Information Design

Complexity Theory as a Way of Understanding our Role in the World-Wide Web

Complexity theory offers a way of understanding our role within the World Wide Web. Postulating a rhetorical object based on object-oriented analysis and design, we can harness a number of ideas from complexity theory to gain a new perspective on the Web. This paper reviews a number of complexity ideas that may help technical communicators grapple with the exponential growth in the volume of inter-related and interacting rhetorical objects on the Web, viewing the rhetorical situation as the result of the law of increasing returns, which has brought us through a phase transition to a new environment, with its own emergent properties, creating new roles for writers, and new work for managers.

Price, Jonathan R. Communication Circle, The (1999). Articles>Information Design>Theory>Web Design

Confessions of a Gardener: A Review of Information Ecologies    

This review of Information Ecologies places the text in the mediating tradition that seeks a middle ground between rigid technological determinism and indifferent value neutrality. The biological metaphors for situated technology use make interesting reading,but the stories may not be compelling evidence that users really can shape technological change from the local level.

Hart-Davidson, William. Journal of Computer Documentation (2000). Articles>Information Design>TC

Conflicting Standards for Designing Data Displays: Following, Flouting, and Reconciling Them    

Standards for designing data displays—for example, bar graphs, line graphs, pie charts, scatter plots—can be classified into four types: Conventional—emphasis on imitating generic forms that meet readers’ expectations. Perceptual—emphasis on optimizing reader behavior in accessing data visually. Informational—emphasis on transferring information clearly and concisely from designer to reader. Aesthetic—emphasis on taste, cultural values, and expressive elements. While each of these standards has merit, and some overlap occurs among them, they often conflict with each other, leaving the information designer in a quandary as to which standard to follow. Designers can resolve this dilemma by allowing the rhetorical situation—the readers of the display, its purpose, the context in which they use it—to guide the design process, telling designers when to follow, blend, or flout the standards.

Kostelnick, Charles. Technical Communication Online (1998). Design>Information Design>Technical Illustration>Charts and Graphs

Connecting the MySQL GUI Tools to a Remote Server through a Firewall

A large percentage of MySQL users are using MySQL on a web server hosted by an ISP. Most hosting providers block port 3306 (the MySQL server port) at the firewall, preventing outside access to MySQL. This is an important security practice and you should be very concerned if your ISP does not block port 3306. In this article I will demonstrate how to connect the MySQL GUI tools, including MySQL Administrator and MySQL Query Browser, to a remote server using SSH port forwarding. This article will be written with the assumption that the reader is using Microsoft Windows, but the principles presented will be applicable to Linux users.

Hillyer, Mike. VBMySQL.com (2004). Articles>Information Design>Databases>SQL

Connectors for Dashboards and Portals

The building block system includes several types of Connectors that make it possible for designers and architects to link the different areas of a Dashboard together via a consistent, easily understandable navigation model. The system also ensures the resulting information architecture can grow in response to changing needs and content. There's no special stacking hierarchy for the Connectors. However, they do have an official stacking size (most are size 3) in order to keep Dashboards constructed with the building blocks internally consistent.

Lamantia, Joe. Boxes and Arrows (2007). Articles>Web Design>Information Design

Considering Product Usability Along with Information Usability  

In this progression we will examine ways that technical communicators can improve both information usability and product usability. The presentation will center around two major points.

Grice, Roger A. STC Proceedings (1993). Articles>Usability>Information Design

Constructing the Flattened Self: After Postmodernism in Computer Interfaces  

Since this is going to be a wild ride across a some disciplines that don’t normally talk to each other, let me start with a short, structural overview to get everyone situated. I’m going to begin by defining some terms. They’re all relatively simple, common terms, but I’m going to attempt to bring them together in a particular configuration; in order for that configuration to make sense, I need to settle on some loose definitions and, at the same time, make the terms relevant to our discussion. Next--and this is probably the bulk of the talk--I’ll be outlining a geneaology of work, particularly as it relates to interface design. In this history, I’m interested in understanding, from a critical perspective, what happens to work as it increasingly takes place within the computer interface. I’ll say here that the end of this history is where the terms “postmodernism,” “work,” and “interface” come together. Finally, I’ll offer some suggestions—and examples—of ways that we -- as teachers, researchers, designers, communicators -- can begin to deal productively with some of the problems I see with how interfaces are currently being designed and used.

Johnson-Eilola, Johndan. Clarkson University (2000). Articles>Information Design>Hypertext>Theory

Content is King

Not all content is created equal. In fact, the real issue isn't the primacy of content, since no user in their right mind will come to stare at a blank screen labeled Me.com; the real issue is what type of content you're offering.

Hart, Geoffrey J.S. Geoff-Hart.com (2001). Design>Web Design>Information Design

Content Management and Information Architecture

Content management is information architecture writ large.

Boiko, Bob. ASIST (2001). Presentations>Content Management>Information Design>Content Strategy

A Content Management Project Presents Unique Challenges

At a basic level, implementing a content management system (CMS) is like deploying any other large software package. Fundamental project management principles must be followed, along with best practice technical guidelines. Beyond this, however, a CMS project presents a number of unique challenges. These must be recognised and addressed for the project to be successful.

Robertson, James. Step Two (2003). Design>Content Management>Information Design>Content Strategy

Content Organization  

After ensuring that content is useful, well-written, and in a format that is suitable for the Web, it is important to ensure that the information is clearly organized. In some cases, the content on a site can be organized in multiple ways to accommodate multiple audiences. Organizing content includes putting critical information near the top of the site, grouping related elements, and ensuring that all necessary information is available without slowing the user with unneeded information. Content should be formatted to facilitate scanning, and to enable quick understanding.

Usability.gov (2006). Design>Information Design>Web Design>Writing