FIT3084: Labelling

In the previous lecture:

To assist a user's movement through a body of information ensure:

• they are aware of their current location with respect to the information they are seeking
• they are able to clearly see the path from their current location to their destination

In this lecture:

• Why are labelling systems important?
• What are some effective and creative labelling systems?

References:

• Rosenfeld, L., Morville, P. "Information Architecture for the World Wide Web", O'Reilly, 1998, Chpt 5
  

Why Think About Labelling?

Labelling is something humans do everyday, all the time,

...so you'd hope we'd be pretty good at it by now! (Can you think of anything without labelling it?)

O soft embalmer of the still midnight, Shutting, with careful fingers and benign, Our gloom-pleas'd eyes, embower'd from the light, Enshaded in forgetfulness divine....
So what was John Keats talking about? (...a Sonnet To Sleep) Users don't want to spend time working out what a label really means... labels are not poems!	A tin without a label is like a hyperlink without a title.

What A Labelling System Says About The Information Provider

What are the different messages a user receives from the pairs above?

Using Textual Labels

If you can find a commonly-used/conventional label then half the battle is won.

(Especially when it comes to finding labels to assist navigation!)

Conventional and unconventional labels sometimes benefit from a simple explanation the first time they appear.

From then on (as always)... be consistent (across the entire site, not just within a page) and the following will be readily understood...

Search/Browse | Contact | About

The Web Is Indexed Using Textual Labels

Search engines examine some of a web page's content to determine how it will be classified.

An example for a page containing information on computer graphics and animation...

<meta name="keywords" content="computer graphics, animation, digital cinema" / >

Even a page's title can matter...

<title> Computer Graphics & Computer Animation Book Reviews </title>

Textual Link Labels May Be Incorporated Into Prose

• Ensure that it is clear from the link label where the link will take you.
  

Above you can infer that the link will lead to further information on the noun to which it is linked.

The text flows naturally, despite the links. (Some would argue however that such hyperlinking is not beneficial to the flow of information).

What about these links?

• A label's effectiveness as a navigation tool can be improved if it is used both to navigate to and label some information (for example, as a heading...)
  

Textual Labels May Be Used As Headings

Labels often describe the section (page/paragraph etc.) of information which follows them.

Ensure:

• Consistency in terminology
  
  
  • wording used among labels is uniform and cohesive
    
    
• Consistency in granularity
  
  
  • the content at each level of label is of roughly equal importance
  • levels represented by labels cover a similar depth of the information

Try removing the text content from between headings to highlight any strengths or weaknesses.

Sources For Textual Labelling Systems

• The textbook from which your lecture notes are referenced
  
  
• The labels you created when organizing your site (check these for consistency!)
  
  
• Other websites
  
  
• Controlled vocabularies & thesauri (eg. Yellow Pages categories, library book subjects)
  
  
• The information content (eg. titles of the research papers on a group's site... why not use titles of music CD's?)
  
  
• The search engine query topics entered by users

Using Iconic Labels

Icon, an image used to represent an

Things To Consider When Choosing Between Icons and Text

Designing Icons

• Recognition - speed & accuracy with which an icon's meaning is deduced
  
  
• Remembering - ease of recall of an icon's meaning once learned
  
  
• Discrimination - ease of distinguishing between icons

Sources For Iconic Labels

• Objects

• Properties of objects

• Objects used for performing an operation

• Before and after effects of an operation

• Abstract representations

A B C D 1 2 3 4 ! @ # $ %

• Arbitrary designs
  (These icons may be difficult to learn but once learned may still aid remembering and discrimination)

• Labels may be textual or iconic (or you may combine both!)
  
• Use labels which will be recognized and understood by users
• Use labels to clarify the chosen organization scheme and structure
  
• Use labels consistently

Courseware | Lecture notes

©Copyright Alan Dorin 2008