Flash Animation

Visual Identity
Graphic Design I
Graphic Design II

WEB

Organizing Information: Step 2

Information gathered from Site Definition, is then organized and designed to be transparent in step two. It does not show up, other than users know how to easily find the information that is presented on your web site.

This is a critical step that most people forget because it is not obvious. However, we can make the analogy of building a house, you don't see the joists or the rafter, but they are there. You would certainly not want to build a house without them.

What is designed at this step, is HOW the user interacts with your web site. The path that the user takes to find what they are looking for. How they navigate through and use your web site informs the visual design of it.

This is a very different part of design than choosing what colors will be used on a web page. This is a subtle but important distinction to make and one not to be overlooked.

The organization of information is enhanced by graphic design or impaired by it. Questions to consider at step two:

How is your site going to be organized?
How are viewers going to get around on your site?

How will users interact with your web site?
What do they see first, next, then next, etc?

Navigation, or how a user gets around your web site depends on what information is to appear on your site. We decide which information is included and important, developing a hierarchy or information structure. What order the information gets presented, and what information goes where, and on what page, before it get visually designed graphic design.

Please understand, information must be considered first, BEFORE the visual design of the web site is designed.

A definition from Information Architecture for the World Wide Web, Designing Large-Scale Web Sites (2nd edition) by Louis Rosenfeld, Peter Morville

The combination of organization, labeling, and navigation schemes within an information system.

The structural design of an information space to facilitate task completion and intuitive access to content.

The art and science of structuring and classifying web sites and intranet's to help people find and manage information

For more in-depth Web site usability discussion go to
http://developer.netscape.com/viewsource/meads_usb.htm

Usability involves navigation and task guidance; readability; comprehension; and presentation speed. Unfortunately, usability is equated with graphic design. It is not graphic design, it is about designing information so that users can easily find and make use of the information you want them to have. This second step of organizing information, is often overlooked which can result in increased costs of time and money.

A site map web page comes out of this step, and is published as part of your web site. I recommend providing users a site map for your web site.

Next is Visual Design or step three of your web site.

Outline of *sequential steps for designing a web site

1. Site Definition -defining and planning your web site

2. Organize Information -identifying content and structuring information

3. Visual Design -graphic design, illustrations, photographs, images

4. Site Construction -software choices, html and test files

5. Site Marketing - determined by the Client

6. Delivery - uploading html files to your server

*steps may be repeated and revisited as the web site develops

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