[finders] A Polar Bear for Christmas

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November 27, 2006: A Polar Bear for Christmas

http://www.findability.org/archives/000147.php

The third edition of Information Architecture for the World Wide Web written
by Louis Rosenfeld and Peter Morville (that's me) is in stock at Amazon.
You've gotta love the description from the O'Reilly marketing folks:

"The post-Ajaxian Web 2.0 world of wikis, folksonomies, and mashups makes
well-planned information architecture even more essential."

In celebration, here's a sneak peek at the preface:

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The mind is slow to unlearn what it learnt early. - Seneca

Since 1994, when we first began organizing web sites, we have enjoyed a rare
opportunity to participate in the birth of a new discipline. In the early
days, we were pioneers and evangelists, exhorting web designers to learn
about library science, even as we struggled to apply traditional principles
in a new medium. To improve our craft, we embraced relevant fields such as
human-computer interaction, integrating user research and usability
engineering into the process. And to spread the word, we spoke at
conferences, wrote the Web Architect column, and in 1998, published the
first "polar bear" book on information architecture.

In the intervening years, it's been exciting to see information architecture
mature into an established profession and an international community of
practice. We have all learned so much from our work and from one another.
And therein lies one of our biggest challenges. As our body of knowledge
grows deeper, our discipline becomes more resistant to change. Individually
and collectively, we find it harder to unlearn.

And yet, unlearn we must, for technology relentlessly transforms the playing
field, changing not just the answers but the questions as well. In a
post-Ajaxian Web 2.0 world of wikis, folksonomies, and mashups, how do we
structure for co-creation? How do we document the rich interfaces of web
applications? How do we design for multiple platforms and mobile devices?
What has changed, and what remains the same?

In writing the third edition, it was these questions that kept us awake at
night. There are no easy answers. We have done our best to balance old and
new. We have addressed emerging technologies while maintaining a focus on
fundamentals. And, we have tried to emphasize goals and approaches over
specific tactics or technologies. In this way, we hope to provide not only
knowledge about information architecture, but a framework that will enable
you to learn and unlearn over an extended period of time.

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As a member of UXNet, the polar bear is deeply, devoutly interfaith by
nature, so whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, or Kwanzaa, this is
the perfect gift for your favorite information architect, interaction
designer, or web developer.

Act Now While Supplies (And Free Shipping) Last. Happy Holidays!