May 3, 2007:  The No-Knead Approach to Information Architecture (#4 of 5)


The longest in my five-part series, and too long to reproduce here:


http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/05/the_noknead_approach_to
_inform_3.html

I think this one has a nifty little chart that you might skip down to.


BLOUG PERMALINK
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/05/the_noknead_approach_to
_inform_3.html


CRASS AND COMMERCIAL
Wondering if you're doing card-sorting the right way?  Then you might want
to keep up with Donna Maurer's forthcoming book on the topic.  Check it out
here:  http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/books/cardsorting/

May 8, 2007:  Google Analytics redesigned


Greetings from the Emetrics Summit [1]!  Earlier today, Google's Brett
Crosby and Jeff Veen unveiled Google Analytics' [2] new design and
architecture.  It looks fantastic; I'm really looking forward to trying it
out.  If you like MeasureMap, you're really going to love what Jeff and his
team have accomplished.  GA accounts are gradually being switched over to
the new design; if yours still hasn't changed over, you can take a tour of
the new design here.

Next on their list, I hope:  get cracking on supporting local site search
analytics... [3]


BLOUG PERMALINK & COMMENTS
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/05/google_analytics_redesi
gned.html

LINKS
[1] http://www.emetrics.org/2007/sanfrancisco/
[2] http://services.google.com/analytics/tour/index_en-US.html
[3] http://services.google.com/analytics/tour/index_en-US.html

May 15, 2007:  I could use your help...


...testing book design.  Seriously!

How can we use UX methods to create better books?  More at the Rosenfeld
Media site:
http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/announcements/2007/05/testing_the_design_of_th
e_book.php#more


BLOUG PERMALINK & COMMENTS
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/05/i_could_use_your_help.h
tml

IGNORE THIS AD
My last enterprise IA of the spring--and maybe ever!--takes place in Atlanta
on May 31:  http://louisrosenfeld.com/presentations/seminars/eia/

May 22, 2007:  Upcoming talks in Chicago


I'll be speaking at a couple of great events in Chicago in August and
September:

   * An Event Apart [1]:  August 27-28, Chicago Marriott Downtown

   * IIT's Design Research Conference [2] (formerly known as "about, with, &
for"):  September 21-22, Museum of Contemporary Art

At AEA, I'll present on search analytics.  At DRC, I'll talk about using UX
methodology to build a UX business (can you guess which one?).

I'm also 99% certain I'll also attend another Chicago event this fall, DUX
2007 [3] (November 5-7).


BLOUG PERMALINK & COMMENTS
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/05/upcoming_talks_in_chica
go.html

LINKS
[1] http://www.aneventapart.com/events/chicago07/
[2] http://www.id.iit.edu/events/drc/2007/index.html
[3] http://dux2007.org/

May 23, 2007:  Smart Experience launches


Victor Lombardi recently launched his new company, Smart Experience [1] (in
beta at the moment).  The blurb from the main page:

   "Smart Experience offers Internet, mobile, and software classes, with more
interesting topics, more experienced teachers, and sessions that are as fun
as they are educational. Smart Experience is a place where you can tell us
what classes you want to take, and what classes you want to teach."

I really like what Victor is doing.  Obviously, its main goal is to supply
UX education to practitioners in the New York City area.  But Victor is
really in the business of building an intelligent, innovative infrastructure
that:

   * Enables the market to profile its own educational needs
   * Enables teachers to try out concepts before committing to teaching them
   * Provides a calendar for publicizing courses
   * Markets courses locally
   * Negotiates and provides local teaching venues
   * Provides a legal infrastructure to resolve intellectual property issues
around teaching materials
   * Provides a business model to collect payments and rationally share risks
and rewards between Smart Experience and teachers

Smart Experience is essentially a broker of dialogues between teachers and
learners at different levels, starting with sharing thoughts on rough
topics, and ending with an actual course (with students, a teacher, course
materials, and a venue).

Victor, whether he realizes is or not, is now officially an
infrastructuralist [2]...  Best wishes, Victor; I'm really looking forward
to watching Smart Experience grow!


BLOUG PERMALINK & COMMENTS
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/05/smart_experience_launch
es.html

LINKS
[1] http://smartexperience.org/
[2] http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/03/selftag.html

June 6, 2007:  CFPs for DUX 2007 and IA Summit 2008


Wow.  We're already seeing Calls for Papers for 2008 conferences; here are a
couple CFPs of note:

DUX 2007--Designing for User Experience
   Chicago, Illinois, USA; November 5-7, 2007
   CFP Deadline:  July 13, 2007
   CFP:  http://dux2007.com/participate/call.php

Information Architecture Summit 2008 -- Research Track
   Miami, Florida, USA; April 10-14, 2008
   CFP Deadline:  November, 2007
   CFP details to be posted later this year at http://www.iasummit.org ; in
the meantime, contact Research Track Chair Grant Campbell (gcampbel [at]
uwo.ca) for information


BLOUG PERMALINK & COMMENTS
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/06/cfps_for_dux_2007_and_i
a_summi.html

CRASS AND COMMERCIAL
Indi Young's book on mental models will be coming out soon.  Want to be
notified when it's available?  Sign up here:
http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/books/mental-models/

June 22, 2007:  Fall seminar dates and locations


For some reason, Steve Krug and I got a jump start on planning our fall
seminar schedule.  Steve will be teaching a new seminar:  an entire day
dedicated "to low-cost/no-cost do-it-yourself usability testing".  (The
description is coming to his site [1] "real soon now".)  If the description
isn't yet certain, the quality and value will be; you should never, ever
pass up a chance to be in the same classroom with Steve.

Rosenfeld spelled backward is "Dlefnesor," which just happened to be the
name of a large, lumbering dinosaur known for patiently awaiting its
favorite meal, pine sap.  (No, they didn't survive for long.)  OK, so maybe
I am a dinosaur, but I am going to continue teaching my enterprise IA
seminar [2] for one more season.  I'll probably teach something new (like,
um, this search analytics stuff [3]) in the spring, but I'm not quite ready
to teach a new class, and besides:  the enterprise IA attendees seem to
really like the seminar.  So there.

OK, the dates and locations:

     * Chicago:  September 20 (Steve) / September 21 (Lou)
     * Seattle:  October 25 (Lou) / October 26 (Steve)
     * Washington, DC:  November 15 (Lou) / November 16 (Steve)

Prices, early registration dates, discounts, and other details are available
here. [4]  My seminar's web-based registration system is up and running, but
I don't have a PDF registration form yet.  Soon.

And hope to see you soon in one of those fine cities.


BLOUG PERMALINK & COMMENTS
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/06/fall_seminar_dates_and_
locatio.html

LINKS
[1] http://www.sensible.com/workshops.html
[2] http://louisrosenfeld.com/eia/
[3] http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/books/searchanalytics/
[4] http://louisrosenfeld.com/eia/

July 9, 2007:  Usability of search:  research?


Avi Rappoport, search guru, maintainer of SearchTools.com, [1] and Friend of
Lou, asks:

   "I'm putting together a talk on "Good Practices for Search UI" for the
Enterprise Search Summit West [2] (November 6-7 in San Jose), and am having
a hard time finding any actual search usability research.  Have you done any
work on the topic lately?  Do you know who might be in this field and
available to participate?

   "I'm looking for really practical work, such as whether users get
disconcerted by very large results numbers, how long the match words in
context should be, how to display zone-limited search and whether to revert
to universal search after a zone, how to display Search Suggestions (Best
Bets) separate from or included with organic search results, and so on."

It's a great question. Any ideas for Avi?


BLOUG PERMALINK & COMMENTS
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/07/usability_of_search_res
earch.html

LINKS
[1] http://searchtools.com/
[2] http://www.enterprisesearchsummit.com/

August 9, 2007:  UX consciousness among the analysts


just posted an item on the Rosenfeld Media site that you might find worth a
quick read.  I'm trying to gauge how conscious of user experience (and all
of its component fields) the Forresters and Gartners of the world are.  I
think I came up with some interesting data, and maybe my conclusions aren't
half bad either. Anyway, would love feedback; please check it out.


BLOUG PERMALINK & COMMENTS
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/08/ux_consciousness_among_
the_ana.html

LINK
[1]
http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/announcements/2007/08/user_experience_and_the_
analys.php

August 10, 2007:  Bloglines:  humility engine


And you thought it would just be a tool for keeping up.  But let those 153
feeds [1] go for a week?  Man, you'll return to a hard lesson in humility.

I spent a few hours over the past few days sampling, among many others,
David Weinberger's humanity  [2], Steve Portigal's humor [3], Dan Roam's
visual virtuosity [4], Jan Chipchase's observational virtuosity [5], Jon
Udell's overall curiosity [6], and Kate Remen-Wait's recipes [7].  So many
incredible people writing and doing amazing things, all slamming you at once
with their general greatness.

I feel very, very small right now.

Thanks, Bloglines.


BLOUG PERMALINK & COMMENTS
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/08/bloglines_and_humility.
html

LINKS MENTIONED
[1] http://www.bloglines.com/public/LouisRosenfeld
[2] http://www.hyperorg.com/blogger/
[3] http://www.portigal.com/
[4] http://digitalroam.typepad.com/digital_roam/
[5] http://www.janchipchase.com/
[6] http://blog.jonudell.net/
[7] http://4obsessions.blogspot.com/

CRASS & COMMERCIAL
My enterprise IA seminars take place this fall in Chicago, Seattle, and
Washington DC; register here (and don't miss the early bird discount!):
http://louisrosenfeld.com/eia/

August 23, 2007:  Lou:  EIA adieu


Hmmm, the vowels really ganged up on the consonants in that title...

I'm now 95% certain that this fall will be the last time I'll be offering my
enterprise information architecture seminar [1].  It's not that I think
we've figured out all of the challenges in fixing large organizations'
information architectures.  Not in the least; EIA, along with multi-lingual,
multi-regional, multi-cultural IA [2], are the largest remaining IA
frontiers.  If anything, enterprise challenges are going to continue to grow
as our information grows and ROTs (becomes Redundant, Outdated, and
Trivial).

My reasons for discontinuing the seminar are purely personal; over the past
five years I've taught it about 35 times, and while that degree of practice
can put one in a really comfortable place, I'd like a new challenge.  I've
found that challenge with internal search analytics--which, BTW, could be
the enterprise information architect's best friend--and I plan on teaching a
search analytics seminar during the first part of 2008 (which should time
nicely with the book's publication [3]).

Steve Krug and I will continue touring together, and he already has changed
his seminar; starting this September, he'll be teaching low-cost/no-cost
do-it-yourself usability testing [4].  I'd be very sad if I didn't get to
spend time with Steve five or six times a year.

Speaking of our upcoming schedule [5], the first deadline for an early bird
discount is around the corner (September 5).  Here are all the dates and
locations:

     * Chicago, IL:  September 21 (early registration by September 5)
     * Seattle, WA:  October 21 (early registration by September 28)
     * Washington, DC:  November 21 (early registration by October 19)

So if you've always wanted to attend my EIA seminar, this is likely your
last chance.  And yes, because it's a good seminar and because Iris
occasionally needs a new pair of shoes, I'll continue teaching in-house EIA
seminars on request.

PS  While we're on the subject of EIA, here's some really good reading [6,
7] from Boxes and Arrows.


BLOUG PERMALINK & COMMENTS
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/08/lou_eia_adieu.html

LINKS
[1] http://louisrosenfeld.com/presentations/seminars/eia/
[2] http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/000246.html
[3] http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/books/searchanalytics/
[4] http://www.sensible.com/workshops.html
[5] http://louisrosenfeld.com/presentations/seminars/eia/
[6] http://www.boxesandarrows.com/view/enterprise
[7] http://www.boxesandarrows.com/view/enterprise-ia

August 24, 2007:  Conferences and interviews


I'll be speaking at Jeffrey Zeldman and Eric Meyer's An Event Apart [1] in
Chicago on Monday.  I've heard fantastic things about their past events, and
am really excited to be attending, much less presenting (this time, on
internal search analytics [2]).  Eric and Jeffrey were kind enough to
interview me [3]; it's nice and short.  I also was interviewed recently by
SearchCIO [4]; it's free if you're willing to scale the huge registration
wall (why do they do this?).

Here are some more great events coming 'round the bend:

   * September 21-22:  EuroIA (Barcelona, Spain) [5]  Ricardo Baeza-Yates, of
Yahoo! and the University of Chile, keynotes.

   * October 4-5:  IDEA Conference (New York, NY) [6]  Alex Wright, author of
"Glut," and David Weinberger, whose newest book is "Everything is
Miscellaneous," are on the program.

   * November 5-7:  DUX'07 [7]  Boing Boing's David Pescovitz, "Everyware"
author Adam Greenfield, and Brooklyn's own Steven Johnson will speak.

And:  Victor Lombardi is pulling off amazing feats here in NYC with his new
school, SmartExperience.org.  Check out the lineup [8] for his first batch
of classes; it's very, very impressive.


BLOUG PERMALINK & COMMENTS
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/08/conferences_and_intervi
ews.html

LINKS
[1] http://www.aneventapart.com/
[2] http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/books/searchanalytics/
[3]
http://www.aneventapart.com/news/2007/08/better_know_a_speaker_lou_rosenfeld
.php
[4] http://searchcio.bitpipe.com/data/document.do?res_id=1184963243_888
[5] http://www.euroia.org/
[6] http://ideaconference.org/
[7] http://www.dux2007.com/
[8] http://smartexperience.org/

KEEP UP WITH MY UPCOMING BOOK ON SEARCH ANALYTICS
Web site:  http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/books/searchanalytics/
RSS:  http://feeds.rosenfeldmedia.com/searchanalytics/

September 11, 2007:  UX consciousness among business magazines


As a follow up to my look at "UX consciousness" among analyst firms [1], I
just posted a look at what aspects of UX some major business magazines focus
on.  Read all about it [2] on the Rosenfeld Media site and see what
magazines you should be reading.


BLOUG PERMALINK & COMMENTS
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/09/ux_consciousness_among_
busines_1.html

LINKS
[1]
http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/announcements/2007/08/user_experience_and_the_
analys.php
[2]
http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/announcements/2007/09/user_experience_in_busin
ess_ma.php


CRASS AND COMMERCIAL
Last chance to take my seminar on how to design information architectures
for enterprise environments!  I'm packing it in after this fall's stops in
Chicago, Seattle, and Washington, DC:  http://www.louisrosenfeld.com/eia

September 18, 2007:  Three talks in Chicago this week (one free)


I'm headed to Chicago Thursday morning for three talks in three days:

   * Thursday:  Assuming my flight isn't late, I'll be facilitating a noon
brown bag discussion on what makes a good UX book, and you're invited (this
one is free).  The IIT's Institute of Design is kind enough to host us; come
by the Nathan Room, on the 6th floor at 350 North LaSalle.  We'll do some
show-and-tell:  bring your favorite and not-so-favorite books you use for
your work, and be prepared to discuss what you like, what you don't, and
why.  I've run a few such brown bags so far, and I'll describe a bit of what
I've learned, as well as giving a short demo of UX Zeitgeist [1].

   * Friday:  My last Chicago enterprise information architecture seminar
[2]. Still some seats available!

   * Saturday:  I'll be speaking at IIT's Design Research Conference [3]
(formerly About, With, and For).  I'll be presenting [4] on how I've used,
and occasionally misused, design thinking to build Rosenfeld Media [5].

Hope to see you this week in Chicago!


BLOUG PERMALINK & COMMENTS
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/09/three_talks_in_chicago_
this_we.html

LINKS
[1] http://uxzeitgeist.com/
[2] http://www.louisrosenfeld.com/eia
[3] http://trex.id.iit.edu/events/drc/2007/index.html
[4] http://trex.id.iit.edu/events/drc/2007/speakerbio/lourosenfeld.html
[5] http://rosenfeldmedia.com/

September 24, 2007:  Seminar slides


Courtesy of the most wonderful SlideShare.net [1], here [2] are my fall
enterprise IA slides.  Feel free to peruse all 239 slides (ah, what FUN!)

This Friday (September 28) is the early registration deadline for Seattle
(October 25).  DC takes place November 15, and the early registration
deadline is October 19.



BLOUG PERMALINK & COMMENTS
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/09/seminar_slides.html

LINKS
[1] http://www.slideshare.net/
[2]
http://www.slideshare.net/lrosenfeld/enterprise-information-architecture-bec
ause-users-dont-care-about-your-org-chart

September 25, 2007:  More slides (these on consuming canine cuisine)


These are from a short presentation [1] I gave last week at the IIT's
Institute of Design's wonderful Design Research Conference [2].  I discussed
such questions as how to improve on book design, how to determine what
topics to publish, and how to ensure that the books match the promise of
their proposals.

It was an enjoyable experience, considering I was only able to attend about
a third of the sessions.  It was a little odd to talk about my own company
[3], although we are applying design thinking (and design methods) to
solving our business problems.  Anyway, the slides are there, including a
sneak preview of our first book's [4] cover design.


BLOUG PERMLINK & COMMENTS
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/09/more_slides_these_on_co
nsuming.html

LINKS
[1]
http://www.slideshare.net/lrosenfeld/easting-our-own-dog-food-using-ux-metho
ds-to-build-a-ux-business
[2] http://trex.id.iit.edu/events/drc/2007/mission.html
[3] http://rosenfeldmedia.com/
[4] http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/books/mental-models/

September 27, 2007:  Two nourishing new sites


Dan Willis, one of the planet's most delightfully cranky UX people, has
launched a new blog named, naturally, UX Crank [1].  Practical tips,
lovingly illustrated, with a hint of vinegar of the most expensive balsamic
variety.

Khoi Vinh and Liz Danzico's new venture, A Brief Message [2], provides a
weekly dose of design advice from some heavy hitters.  Stop by for a sip of
the impressive, deceivingly simple design, stay for 200 or fewer nourishing
words, and leave a comment as a tip.  Most everyone else does!


BLOUG PERMALINK & COMMENTS
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/09/two_nourishing_new_site
s.html

LINKS
[1] http://www.dswillis.com/uxcrank/
[2] http://abriefmessage.com

CRASS AND COMMERCIAL
Last two enterprise IA seminars ever!  Seattle, DC:
http://www.louisrosenfeld.com/eia

September 28, 2007:  Bad beard diaries


This is what I get for doing a video interview while on vacation.

Bud Gibson of Eastern Michigan University interviewed me for his Michigan
Innovators series [1] while we were on a short vacation in Ann Arbor last
month.  (That sounds weird:  "vacation in Ann Arbor".  But it was great.)
Bud was quite effective in getting me to spill my guts about Rosenfeld
Media's plans to dominate the world of publishing.  Or, at least, UX book
publishing.  It's all here [2] (the third of three parts hasn't come out
just yet).

Next time someone interviews me, I'll remember to trim the beard first.  And
maybe put on a nice shirt.


BLOUG PERMALINK & COMMENTS
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/09/bad_beard_diaries.html

LINKS
[1] http://michiganinnovators.org
[2] http://michiganinnovators.org/home/companies/rosenfeld_media/

October 1, 2007:  Using search analytics to make better metadata


Just posted a draft chapter [1] on how internal search analytics can help
improve metadata development on our book site over at the Rosenfeld Media
universe.  All feedback welcomed and greatly appreciated...


BLOUG PERMALINK
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/10/using_search_analytics_
to_make.html

LINKS
[1]
http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/books/searchanalytics/blog/sample_chapter_sear
ch_analytic/

CRASS AND COMMERCIAL
The first Rosenfeld Media book is about six weeks out from being available;
subscribe to its RSS link so you'll be the first on your block to get your
hands on it:  http://feeds.rosenfeldmedia.com/mental-models/

October 2, 2007:  Come to CanUX


I'll be speaking next month at CanUX, [1] the Canadian User Experience event
(Banff, November 25-27) organized by my pals from nForm. [2]  I've been
promised that it's intimate, useful, reasonably priced, and incredibly
enjoyable.  And you'd be hard-pressed to find a reason to dislike Banff.

Here are the details; note the discount code for, well, a nice discount:

   "CanUX is not your typical conference.  It's small (limited to 70
participants), it's in a beautiful retreat-like setting at the Banff Centre,
and the program is designed to encourage creativity, exploration and group
participation alongside hands-on UX learning.  This year our speakers
include Lou Rosenfeld, Brad Nemer, Kes and Sue Sampanthar, Derek
Featherstone and Jess McMullin.  The Banff Leadership Arts Ensemble will
also join us (their sessions have been the highlight of previous years).

   "It'd be great if you could come--you'll get a $50 discount on
registration by using the promo code CANUXBLOG.  You can register online at
canux2007.com/registration.  Note that the registration costs include
accommodations and meals... quelle bargain!"


BLOUG PERMALINK & COMMENTS
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/10/come_to_canux.html


LINKS
[1] http://canux2007.com/
[2] http://nform.ca/
[3] http://canux2007.com/registration

October 5, 2007:  Please help us test our first book!


I'm excited.  On Thursday October 11, we're going to test the design of
Rosenfeld Media's [1] first book [2]!

Naturally, we could use a few volunteers.  Are you in New York City?  Would
you consider it?  Would a $50 Amazon gift certificate help seal the deal?
(Not to mention testing... A BOOK!)

All the information you need is here [3]; hope we'll see you next week.


BLOUG PERMALINK & COMMENTS
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/10/please_help_us_test_our
_first.html

LINKS
[1] http://rosenfeldmedia.com/
[2] http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/books/mental-models/
[3]
http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/announcements/2007/10/test_our_first_book_in_m
anhatt.php

CRASS AND COMMERCIAL
My farewell seminar tour has two final dates:  Seattle (October 25) and
Washington, DC (November 15).  Still some seats left:
http://www.louisrosenfeld.com/eia

November 6, 2007:  Geni.com and Griots


I'm at DUX,[1] and spent part of the morning talking with Kevin Brooks,[2] a
story-teller who works for Motorola, and Suzanne Currie, a design researcher
at Medtronic.  Kevin was telling us about the concept of the griot [3]:
West African story-tellers who maintain oral traditions for, among other
things, families.  It got me thinking about how we tell family stories
today, and Geni.com [4] immediately sprang to mind.

Geni is a fantastic tool.  You can use it to enter and visually manage your
family tree information.  And if you enter your family members' email
addresses, they receive invitations to add their own family trees.
Naturally, the trees are connected, which is where things get really
interesting.

For example, I've added 50 people to my tree, and those relatives have in
turn added another 108.  It's really quite fun to meander through my family
tree map and learn something about those 108 people who I'm somehow related
to but didn't know about: (view page at [5])

The index of last names also is fascinating, if nothing else for its ethnic
richness: (view page at [6])

But here's where story-telling could really help.  Geni is almost like an
analytics application:  it tells us the story's *what*, but not *why*.  Why
did this family tree come to be shaped this way?  Geni gets us part of the
way there--quite admirably--but it doesn't really tell us a family's story.

What could Geni do to support the telling of family stories in a more
narrative fashion?  Could the support a griot toolset?  Or partner with
modern day griots?

Once again, DUX--or at least the conversations between sessions--really got
me thinking...


BLOUG PERMALINK
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/11/genicom_and_griots_1.ht
ml

LINKS
[1] http://dux2007.org/
[2] http://www.media.mit.edu/~brooks
[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Griot
[4] http://www.geni.com
[5] http://www.geni.com/tree/index/31408
[6] http://www.geni.com/tree/names/31408

November 7, 2007:  Publishing house as open platform?


Another inspiration courtesy of DUX [1]...

Adam Greenfield, author of Everyware [2], gave yesterday's excellent
afternoon keynote.  Adam used the term "ecology" quite liberally, suggesting
that designers of all sorts move away from designing products and services
and think more holistically, designing comprehensive ecologies, platforms
(and, dare I say it, experiences).

I love talks like Adam's.  For one reason, I already agree--in fact, I
consider myself to be something of an "infrastructuralist" [3]--and I see
the things I've helped build--Argus Associates, the IA Institute [4], and
now Rosenfeld Media [5], as essentially infrastructures or platforms for
smart people to use to shape, sell, and share their ideas and expertise.
But Adam makes this case for holistic platform design so much better than I
ever could hope to.  He also uses great visual examples, an ability that,
sadly, will be forever beyond my grasp.

Adam's best example of systematic design is Nike+ [6].  Nike combines
running shoes with an accompanying web site and your iPod to flesh out an
elegantly-designed ecology for its keystone species (and target audience),
runners.

But, as Adam points out, the design is flawed:  Nike+ is a closed platform,
its continued existence subject to the whims of the company's future
business decisions.  It would be much more likely to survive and improve if
it was opened up to other players (e.g., Facebook, the Roomba, and recently
Apple with its iPhone).

In all my mumbo-jumbo about being an infrastructuralist, it never occurred
to me to consider opening up the Rosenfeld Media publishing platform.  Maybe
I've been too down in the weeds (hey, we're hoping to get our first book [7]
to the printer next week!), but that's no excuse.  But what exactly would it
mean for a publishing house to work as an open platform?

It's arguable that vanity presses already are open platforms.  We could say
the same thing about print-on-demand service provider LuLu.com. [8]  We
could even claim that the Internet is an open publishing platform.  But none
of those examples do what traditional publishers do:  offer the added value
of true editorial services, such as review and selection.

Is there an example of a traditional publisher that offers an open platform
which includes the editorial component?  If not, can you imagine one?

I think this could be fun...


BLOUG PERMALINK
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/11/publishing_house_as_ope
n_platf.html

LINKS
[1] http://www.dux2007.org
[2] http://www.studies-observations.com/everyware/
[3] http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2007/03/selftag.html
[4] http://iainstitute.org
[5] http://rosenfeldmedia.com
[6] http://nikeplus.nike.com/nikeplus/
[7] http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/books/mental-models/
[8] http://www.lulu.com/

November 28, 2007:  User Experience Network picks up steam


We've relaunched the UXnet web site, [1] with some major improvements.
We've made it far easier for our dozens of UXnet "local ambassadors" to
profile the UX activities and landscape in their local areas [2].
Subsequently, the events calendar [3] has grown substantially.  The site's
news area [4] has been going strong for a while now through the efforts of
Mark Vanderbeeken and Whitney Quesenbery.  Thanks to the new design, the
site's content and overall activity have really taken a great leap forward.
And we're not done yet; more good changes are on the way.

So, if you've had a "wait-and-see" attitude about UXnet (and I wouldn't
blame you if you did), this is a good time to take another look.  And if
you're interested in participating as an "ambassador" for your area, we want
you [5].

This is a great time to acknowledge the hard work of many volunteers,
especially Keith Instone, who squeezed much of the relaunch into his tight
schedule.  Keith is an incredible team player and hard worker who, in his
positive and low-key way, successfully collaborates with a diverse
collection of backgrounds and egos.  Keith really is the model of what a
user experience professional should be.  So it's not surprising that UXnet
has named its volunteer award [6] after him.  Thank you, Keith!


BLOUG PERMALINK
http://tinyurl.com/33olc6

LINKS
[1] http://uxnet.org/
[2] http://uxnet.org/locales
[3] http://uxnet.org/calendar
[4] http://uxnet.org/news
[5] http://uxnet.org/locales/joinus
[6] http://uxnet.org/about/awards

February 9, 2008:  Finally!


After two long years, Rosenfeld Media [1] is a real, bona fide publisher.
More importantly, as a loyal Bloug reader, you can purchase our first book,
*Mental Models: Aligning design strategy with human behavior,*[2] by Indi
Young, with a 10% discount from the Rosenfeld Media site (use code
BLOUG01MM). You'll receive Indi's excellent book, illustrated and
beautifully printed in full color on high quality paper with a sewn binding.

But that's not all! You'll also receive a digital version, optimized for
on-screen use. Now a searchable and readable version will go where your
laptop goes.

But that's not all! We're providing loads of complimentary content on Indi's
book site. [2]

But that's not all! Both print and digital books have been tested by real
live users, supervised by real live UX experts. (We'll be sharing our
results this spring in one of your favorite UX magazines.) So we're putting
our money where are mouth is.

But that's still not all! If you purchase directly from the Rosenfeld Media
site, [2] you'll help us make more money. (You can purchase it from Amazon,
but it'll take longer to arrive, you won't receive the digital version of
the book, nor will you be able to take advantage of the discount code, so
why would you want to do that?) Why should you care if we make more money?
Well, you'll help the only publisher dedicated to UX thrive, survive, and
bring you more books. [3] And you'll also help us pay for the UX Zeitgeist
service [4], ready to formally open its doors next month.

We're thrilled to have made it this far. And we hope you'll give us, and
Indi's book, a try. (Did I mention the 30-day, 100% money-back guarantee?)
There are plenty of bugs left to iron out, and I hope you'll ask questions
and let us know what needs to be fixed on our customer forum. [5]

Thanks for reading and thanks for your support!


PERMALINK
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2008/02/finally.html

LINKS
[1] http://rosenfeldmedia.com/
[2] http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/books/mental-models/
[3] http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/publications/
[4] http://uxzeitgeist.com
[5] http://getsatisfaction.com/rosenfeldmedia


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

February 13, 2008:  Spend the day with me in Sunnyvale


Let me take a break from publishing news [1] to let you know that I'll
be teaching a new day-long workshop on site search analytics, the
topic of the book [2] I'm (still) working on. The inaugural edition of
"Site Search Analytics for a Better User Experience" [3] is being
hosted by my friends at Involution Studios [4] in Sunnyvale,
California on March 18 (10am-6pm).

Involution's Master Academy [5] takes an interesting approach with its
seminars, limiting attendance to nine participants. I've heard great
buzz about the quality of Involution's seminars, and they've got some
excellent speakers on their spring agenda (Luke Wroblewski, Steve
Portigal, Dirk Knemeyer, and Andre Herasimchuk). So you might consider
their other offerings as well.

I'll be announcing two more dates for later in the spring shortly, but
the Sunnyvale date will be the smallest and the only one on the west
coast. More on this new workshop soon; hope to see you this spring!


PERMALINK
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2008/02/spend_the_day_with_me_in_su\
nny.html

LINKS
[1] http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2008/02/finally.html
[2] http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/books/searchanalytics/
[3] http://involutionstudios.com/?p=111&cat=8
[4] http://involutionstudios.com/
[5] http://involutionstudios.com/?cat=8

CRASS AND COMMERCIAL
Purchase Rosenfeld Media's first book (Indi Young's "Mental Models")
at a 10% discount; use code BLOUG01MM on the Rosenfeld Media site:
http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/books/mental-models/ )

February 14, 2008:  My new workshop: "Site Search Analytics for a
Better User Experience"


You'll note from the title that I'm planning to make the case that
site search analytics—understanding what users search within your site
(as opposed to SEO)—is a critically important user research method.  I
also believe that, for various reasons, it's under-valued by the user
experience community.  With this workshop [1] and with the book, [2] I
aim to change that.

I'm hoping to get your feedback on what you'd like to learn in a
day-long workshop on site search analytics; I'll blog about this soon.
  But for now, here are the details:
   * SUNNYVALE, CA (March 18, 2008):  I'm teaching this first one
through the Involution Master Academy.  [3]  The price is lower ($699)
and it's limited to nine attendees. You can register on the Involution
site. [4]
   * BOSTON, MA (April 4, 2008) and CHICAGO,  IL (May 15, 2008):  these
run $895 per workshop ($795 for early registration).  Steve Krug will
be teaching his new workshop on do-it-yourself usability in the same
venues, and you can attend both days (they're consecutive) at a
discount.  Register via my site. [1]

All the information about the workshop, including the description, is here. [1]

It's exciting—and, honestly, a bit intimidating—for me to start a new
workshop after 5+ years of teaching my enterprise information
architecture seminar.  So if nothing else, sign up just to witness and
laugh at me as I try to function in my most nervous and broken-down
state. ;-)


PERMALINK
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2008/02/my_new_workshop_site_search\
_an.html

LINKS
[1] http://louisrosenfeld.com/presentations/seminars/site_search_analytics/
[2] http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/books/searchanalytics/
[3] http://involutionstudios.com/?cat=8
[4] http://involutionstudios.com/?p=111&cat=8

February 20, 2008:  Findability at the intersection of user experience
and web analytics


I guess I still do occasionally write about information architecture.
:-)  Here's [1] an article that was just published in Adobe's Think
Tank. It starts out on the left bank of findability, swerves through
the foothills of user experience, and ends up squarely on web
analytics' turf.  Thanks to David Womack for his fantastic editorial
help.


PERMALINK
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2008/02/findability_at_the_intersec\
tio.html

LINKS
[1] http://www.adobe.com/designcenter/thinktank/rosenfeld.html

CRASS AND COMMERCIAL
So far Rosenfeld Media's first book, Indi Young's "Mental Models," is
selling really well.  Check it out for yourself; take 10% your
purchase by using discount code #BLOUG01MM here:
http://rosenfeldmedia.com/books/mental-models/

February 21, 2008:  Digital book design


Since going live with Rosenfeld Media's first book [1], we've been
getting some love for our digital edition's design.  This edition
isn't just the PDF of what we sent to the printer; it was designed
specially for on-screen use.  Large typeface, easy to scroll through,
good use of the PDF reader software's capabilities, and a bunch more
features...  While it's not perfect, we did a fair bit of testing on
it, so we're happy to hear mostly positive feedback.

Even when we don't deserve credit. Jorge Arango blogged [2] that our
digital design was formatted perfectly for his Sony Reader.  I'm not
sure I've ever seen a real live Sony Reader (although I did check out
a Kindle recently).  But lucky us, here is Indi's book nestled snugly
on Jorge's Reader:

(you email Bloug readers can check out the image at Jorge's site:
http://www.jarango.com/en/blog/2008/02/17/rosenfeld-media-mental-models/)

Eureka!

PERMALINK
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2008/02/digital_book_design.html

LINKS
[1] http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/books/mental-models/
[2] http://www.jarango.com/en/blog/2008/02/17/rosenfeld-media-mental-models/

February 28, 2008:  Site Search Analytics workshop outline


Here's the outline of what I plan to cover in my new workshop. [1]
Does this sound like what you'd expect to be covered in a workshop
about using site search analytics to improve UX design?  Anything
missing?  Anything seem extraneous?

To entice you to give it some thought, I'll send a copy of Indi
Young's new Mental Models book [2] or a signed polar bear v3 [3] to
the three most helpful commenters who post feedback before Monday,
March 3.

OK, here 'tis...

1)  What is Site Search Analytics (SSA)?
       A brief primer on what the data is and what we can learn from
it.  Cover search log anatomy, introduce samples of common reports.
Explore Zipf distribution (long tail, short head, middle torso).
2)  The Point of SSA
       Overview of methods for determining what users want, and how SSA
is different from and complementary with traditional methods.
Demonstrate the value of data-driven analysis for designers.
3)  SSA Demonstration
       Introduce generic questions that can be asked of any data set.
Live demonstration of basic analytics to indicate sessions, patterns,
and failures.
4)  Technical Stuff:  the nuts and bolts of SSA
       The three ways queries are captured.  Comparison of reports from
a variety of tools (search engine, web analytics).
5)  Exercise/Discussion: Pattern Analysis
       Hands-on analysis to determine frequent queries, query
categories, metadata values and attributes, and content types.  Plumb
the impact of seasonality/time.
6)  Improving Navigation and Metadata
       Using SSA to generate metadata attributes and types, determine
synonyms, popular terms, major categories.  Improve contextual
navigation.
7)  Exercise/Discussion:  Failure Analysis
       Analyze failures (e.g., common failed queries, navigational
failures) to diagnose problems, suggest possible fixes or follow-up
research.
8)  Improving Content
       Tuning content and titling to improve findability.  Identify and
plug content gaps.  Determine common content types.
9)  Exercise/Discussion:  Session Analysis
       Identifying and sampling sessions.  Looking for patterns within
sessions, and learning from the changes that commonly take place
during sessions.
10 Improving Search
       Interface design improvements to query entry UI, search results
presentation, and search refinement UI.
11) SSA and UX methodology
       How SSA fills a quantitative hole within typically qualitative
UX methodologies.  Show how SSA can improve task analysis, personas,
and other traditional UX methods.
12) Advanced Topics/Discussion
       As time permits, discuss SSA's impact on business strategy, when
and how to sample the Long Tail, and how to get SSA embedded within
your organization.

PERMALINK
http://louisrosenfeld.com/home/bloug_archive/2008/02/site_search_analytics_works\
hop.html

LINKS
[1] http://louisrosenfeld.com/ssa
[2] http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/books/mental-models/
[3] http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/infoarch3/index.html

INTERESTED?  COME TO THE WORKSHOP!
Dates/locations/registration here:  http://louisrosenfeld.com/ssa