IA Institute Newsletter - November 2008‏

October 31, 2008 04:06 PM

In our biggest issue ever, the Information Architecture Institute (IAI) Newsletter features news about IAI and our partner's sites: Asis&t Bulletin, Boxes and Arrows, and the Web Indexing SIG. We have also added a list of conferences, workshops with great discounts for members and job postings at the end, so scroll down!

In this issue:

* IAI News
* What's New with Our Partners?
* Upcoming Conferences and Workshops
* Job Postings

*****

IAI NEWS - http://www.iainstitute.org

Greetings fellow members,

It’s been a very busy month at the Institute… we had our yearly Board of Directors changing of the guard, and shortly thereafter hosted our third IDEA conference. Read along for the details…

New Board of Directors

In late September we had our yearly election for new Directors. Andrew Hinton, Livia Labate and Russ Unger joined continuing Board members Peter Boersma, Christian Crumlish, Stacy Surla, and myself to constitute the 2008-2009 Board of Directors. We welcome Andrew, Livia and Russ, as we bid farewell—with heartfelt thanks—to outgoing Board members Donna Maurer, Eric Reiss, and Sarah Rice.

During the weeks leading up to the election, we got feedback from members of the Institute urging us to be more open and transparent. The new Board has spent the last month getting organized, and setting forth initiatives to achieve more openness, transparency, and a more participatory ethos in the Institute. You’ll be hearing more from us soon in this regard.

IDEA 2008

In early October, the Institute hosted the third edition of IDEA, our yearly conference about the issues that affect designers of complex information spaces. The conference, which was held in Chicago’s beautiful Harold Washington Library, was our most successful yet: we exceeded last year’s attendance by more than 50%. We also got very positive feedback from conference attendees. Apart from being a valuable opportunity to discuss the issues that affect IAs, IDEA is also an important source of income for the Institute. I’m happy to report that in this regard we were also considerably more successful than last year: profit from was up more than 140% over the 2007 edition.

IDEA 2008 featured a terrific roster of speakers from a wide variety of different fields, including Dave Gray, Jesse James Garrett, Jason Fried, and many others. Boxes and Arrows—one of the sponsors of the conference—has published audio versions of the presentations in their podcast. If you haven’t done so already, I encourage you to check them out at http://www.boxesandarrows.com/view/idea-2008

A very hearty “thank you!” to everyone who helped make the conference a success: speakers, attendees, sponsors, IAI staff, directors, and—most especially—our volunteers. IDEA, like most of the Institute’s initiatives, is a volunteer-driven event. We are very grateful to the volunteers that made the conference possible: Ulrike Anders, Chuck Ashman, Sarah Beckley, Mario Bourque, Teresa Canna, Cindy Chastain, Greg Corrin, Liz Danzico, Gail Gammel, Patricia Garcia, Ian Haider, Whitney Hess, Anna Kalata Wilkins, Laurie Kalmanson, Grace Lau, Linda Nakasone, Yulia Nemchinova, Jeff Parks, Sarah Rice, Sam Spicer, Beck Tench, Russ Unger, Melissa Weaver, Neena Weng, and Noreen Whysel.

To find our more about IDEA 2008, please visit http://ideaconference.org. And stay tuned as we refine our plans for the 2009 edition of the conference.

Cheers,

Jorge Arango
President, IA Institute Board of Directors


*****

WHAT'S NEW WITH OUR PARTNERS
ASIS&T Bulletin, Boxes and Arrows, and Web Indexing SIG

ASIS&T Bulletin - http://www.asis.org/bulletin.html

The current issue of Asis&t's Bulletin features reporting on the current state of standards in information. From Electronic Resource Management to Dublin Core Metadata Initiative, from new international standards in thesauri to the potential use of standards in complex problem solving – this issue will keep you up to date on the important international standards that govern information sharing.

http://www.asis.org/bulletin.html

And you can still visit the special IA issue from August/September at:

http://www.asis.org/Bulletin/Aug-08/AugSep08_Surla.html

***

Boxes and Arrows - http://www.boxesandarrows.com
The definitive source for the complex task of bringing architecture and design to the digital landscape.

We want to thank Boxes and Arrows for sponsoring the IDEA Conference and for making the presentations available on their website as podcasts. Please visit their site to hear IDEA:

"The speakers pushed the boundaries of what it means to design complex information spaces of all kinds. We can all expand our practice by absorbing their experiences and ideas."

http://boxesandarrows.com/view/idea-2008

***

Web Indexing SIG: http://www.web-indexing.org
The Web Indexing SIG (Special Interest Group) promotes the human indexing of Web sites and HTML documents.

There is a new addition to the The Web Indexing SIG's list of articles at http://web-indexing.org/articles.htm. The June issue (vol. 26, no. 2, pp. 71-78) of /The Indexer/ (www.theindexer.org published by the Society of Indexers, UK) contains and article by Ilana Kingsley entitled "The Usability of Academic Library Website Indexes: An Investigation." For a reprint of the full text, contact either the author or the journal's editor, Maureen MacGlashan at editor AT theindexer DOT org

*****

UPCOMING EVENTS - http://iainstitute.org/calendar/
For questions about events or registration discount codes contact Melissa at membership AT iainstitute DOT org.

FREE EVENTS

Paris France IA Meetup
November 02, 2008, 7 pm / 19h
Find new friends, drink a glass, discuss, have fun and create an IA/UCD
community in Paris.

http://iainstitute.org/calendar/000825.php

* * *
First German IA BarCamp
November 14, 2008
Berlin, Germany, 10 am / 10 Uhr

Berlin is holding its first Info Camp in Berlin. A great place to meet people, share information and practice your German! The world's first InfoCamp was held in Seattle in 2007: "InfoCamp Seattle 2007 - a BarCamp conference for information architecture, libraries, user experience design, interaction design, usability, user-centered design, and information science research"

http://iainstitute.org/calendar/000818.php

***
CONFERENCES

Web Directions East
November 17, 2008
Tokyo, Japan

This year's Web Directions East comes to Tokyo, Japan and features a 1 day conference and 2 days of workshops. Through the both conference we well cover, web design, CSS, javascript, UX, User Testing, Information Architecture and web marketing.

IAI members will receive a 10% discount, please contact Melissa at membership AT iainstitute.org for your registration code.

http://iainstitute.org/calendar/000811.php

* * *

Gilbane Conference

Join the discussion with industry experts from leading technology, enterprise IT, analyst, and consulting firms who will keep you engaged and educated on the latest successful strategies, technologies and techniques so you can ensure your organization doesn't get left behind.

IAI members will receive a $200 discount, please contact Melissa at membership AT iainstitute.org for your registration code.

http://iainstitute.org/calendar/000827.php

* * *

CM Pros Fall Summit
December 2, 2008
Boston, MA, USA

Explore the inner processes of the Content Lifecycle stages and how to address the increasingly difficult challenges faced by organizations in controlling the business content they create and receive. The Content Lifecycle concept, analyzing content flows through the critical processes of an enterprise, offers exceptional opportunities for content management professionals to re-think content strategies for today’s difficult economic climate. Interact with senior CMS Practitioners for a revitalizing jolt to your expertise.

IAI members receive $100 off registration. Contact Melissa at membership AT iainstitute DOT for your code. The Gilbane conference is also offering member discounts, visit their page at.

http://iainstitute.org/calendar/000826.php

***
WORKSHOPS

Highlighted Workshop from The Science and Technology Leadership Institute offering a substantial discount to IAI members!

Intelligent Leadership Training for Information Architecture
December 08, 2008
Cambridge, MA
www.scitechleadership.com

The Science and Technology Leadership Institute presents Intelligent Leadership Training For Information Architecture. The most important strategies and skills to lead technical groups and teams, improve awareness and communications, partner more effectively with customers, improve overall leadership performance.

IAI members receive a special discount of $400 off the registration price.

http://iainstitute.org/calendar/000746.php

* * *

Site Search Analytics for a Better User Experience
Lou Rosenfeld Workshop
November 11, 2008

Steve Krug's “Discount Usability Testing” workshop
November 12, 2008
Washington, DC, USA

In this day-long workshop, Lou Rosenfeld—co-author of Information Architecture for the World Wide Web and the forthcoming Search Analytics for your Site: Conversations with your customers—will combine lecture, discussion, and extensive hands-on exercises to cover the basics of site search analytics. He'll show you how spending even an hour a week analyzing your search queries can help tune and improve your site's content, navigation, metadata, and search performance, and expose new opportunities for improving your business strategy.

Attend Steve Krug’s workshop the following day and receive additional discount.

IAI members can use code "IAI2008" to receive a 15% discount for Steve and Lou's workshops (if registering on Lou's site, please use the fax option only).

http://iainstitute.org/calendar/000808.php

* * *

Mental Models: Indi Young Workshop
November 19, 2008

During this two-day intensive master class, Indi will give you a deep understanding of people's motivations and thought-processes, along with the emotional and philosophical landscape in which they are operating. You use mental models to align your design strategy with how people work. This intensive two-day course will help product designers, web designers and business strategists develop digital, physical, and environmental interactions that help people accomplish their goals.

IAI members receive a 10% discount off the full price of the event. Contact membership AT iainstitute DOT org for registration instructions.

http://iainstitute.org/calendar/000799.php

* * *

Smart Experience is offering IA Institute members 10% off these fall workshops contact membership AT iainstitute DOT org for the discount code or login into the IAI Member Center and go to Member Discounts Section for your link.

Web Navigation Design - James Kalbach Workshop
November 25, 9am - 5pm
New York, NY, USA

James Kalbach, author of the 2007 O'Reilly book 'Designing Web Navigation,' teaches his only U.S. workshop this year. This day-long class covers principles of web navigation and methods of navigation design with practical examples and exercises.

http://iainstitute.org/calendar/000795.php

* * *

Guerilla Usability Testing
November 28, 2008
Brighton, UK

Usability tests are an excellent way of discovering problems with a product or service. Commissioning a dedicated usability lab will provide a high degree of scientific rigour but obviously comes at significant cost. Instead of a single academic evaluation, why not bring your testing in-house and run it alongside your design and development process? Two or three quick-and-dirty usability tests will not only provide better results but will also allow you to iterate your product between tests, ultimately leading to a more refined product.

http://iainstitute.org/calendar/000820.php

* * *

Cloud Computing
December 3, 2008
Sydney, Australia

Key Forums presents "Assessing the commercial viability of Cloud Computing to your organisation: Opportunities and cost savings, implications, legal liability, security threats and risks." This conference will kick start your Cloud strategy and will get you up to speed on what the main players, critics and users think about the potential of Cloud Computing. It will give you the opportunity to discuss your issues surrounding Cloud Computing with your peers and our expert panel of speakers.

IAI members receive 10% off the registration fee. Contact Melissa at membership AT iainstitute DOT org for a special discount code.

http://iainstitute.org/calendar/000822.php

*****

IAI JOB POSTINGS

The IAI Job Board lists job postings related to information architecture, as well as information design, interaction design, user experience, and HCI. Visit the job board at http://iainstitute.org/jobboard/

The following are just a sample of recent postings:

Information Architect
Homesite Insurance , Boston, MA, USA
http://iainstitute.org/jobboard/jobs/job.php?id=4244

Business Analyst
Avanade Inc., Washington, DC, USA
http://iainstitute.org/jobboard/jobs/job.php?id=4242

Web Design Project Manager
Roytman Information Services , Columbus, OH, USA
http://iainstitute.org/jobboard/jobs/job.php?id=4238

Information Architecture Specialist
Properazzi.com , Barcelona, BA, ESP
http://iainstitute.org/jobboard/jobs/job.php?id=4228

Job board newsletter archives are available at:
http://lists.iainstitute.org/listinfo.cgi/iai-jobs-iainstitute.org


*****

Comments about this newsletter? Questions? Things you would like to see included in future issues? iai-newsletter-owner AT lists.iainstitute DOT org

Want to subscribe or change your existing subscription?
http://lists.iainstitute.org/listinfo.cgi/iai-newsletter-iainstitute.org

Thanks for reading and we'll be back with another newsletter in about a month!


_______________________________________________

Iai-Newsletter mailing list
Iai-Newsletter[at]lists.iainstitute.org
http://lists.iainstitute.org/listinfo.cgi/iai-newsletter-iainstitute.org