SIGIA-L: Report from IA 2000: Discussion on IA Notation

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At the IA2000 conference in San Diego late last month, ~20 folks gathered to
talk about IA notation. Judging by the fact that many folks stayed for three
hours--some without having had dinner--people seemed to enjoy the
discussion.

The most intriguing takeaway was that there was barely any discussion of IA
notation. However, there was a tremendous amount of interest and energy in
talking about:
 --deliverables that IAs create; and
 --the methodologies and the tools they use to create them.

A very rough sketch of what we discussed is below. For others who attended,
please feel free to add your own comments.

     --SET

Steve Toub
Argus Associates
+1 (734) 822-1221
toub_at_argus-inc.com

Observations
--------------------------
* IAs hungered for an "IA's Guide to Using Visio."

* Most deliverables were 11x17. One person used a large plotter and folks
really thought this was cool.

* For some, rapid prototyping is the heart of what they do. The prototype
defines requirements; the requirements are documented after the prototype
(if time permits).

Types of IA Deliverables
--------------------------
Site structure at a glance
   Diagram: Visio, Inspiration, Top Down, Quark
   Text: Excel

Content inventory
   Excel

Flow charts, task analysis
   Visio, PowerPoint

Wireframes, mockups, "real estates"
   Visio, Illustrator

Page requirements document
   Word

Unresolved Questions on Methodology
--------------------------------------------
A few people shared their design methodology but many questions still
remain. Examples:
* What do most people do?

* Does methodology differ between in house IAs and consultants?

* What is the "right" team configuration?

* What is the "right" way to collaborate?

Unresolved Questions on Tools and Deliverables
-------------------------------------------------------
* How to move this discussion and process forward?

* How and where to share deliverables?

* How to maintain deliverables?

* How to handoff deliverables?

Unresolved Questions on Notation
     (carried over from the Palo Alto session)
--------------------------------------------
* What problem are we trying to solve? (two major categories: communicating
ideas to others and brainstorming to free our ideas)

* What characteristics would a solution have?

* What method would lead to a solution?

* Who has the authority to decide?

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