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Information experience Labs

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May 12, 2006 - 8:03am — UXer

Just noticed a few "information experience laboratories" in academia:

University of Missouri-Columbia > College of Education > The School of Information Science and Learning Technologies
The mission of the IE Lab is to improve the users’ information experience in web-based information systems through research methodologies that blend traditional usability evaluation with human information behavior research.
University of Texas > School of Information
The Information eXperience Lab is a research facility designed to study human interaction with recorded and encoded information across a wide range of formats. The lab will enable School of Information researchers to make better assessments, predictions, and designs for the information experiences of the future.

Are there other labs using this label?

It is an interesting mix of "information *" (information architecture, information science, ...) and "* experience *" (user experience, experience design, ...). A few years ago I proposed the term as a way to describe an industry (see comments by Dirk), but the idea did not stick.

I have not seen the term used much outside academia either. A quick Googling yields a few things of note:

Any other important uses of the term "information experience" out there? I am sure there are.

Comments

May 14, 2006 - 12:54am — Fred Sampson

Not sure how far up the corporate chain it goes, but in my piece of IBM's Software Group there's a concept of the "Total Information Experience," or TIE. I know, it's not only another TLA, but it uses that most meaningless of marketing buzz words: total. In this case, it means the complete information package that customers encounter: release notes, technotes, installation instructions, documentation, help, marketing collateral, white papers, red papers, the whole enchilada. And some lucky project manager gets to write an integrated information plan that takes all those pieces into account for the year's releases. Not sure how that fits with what you're seeing, tho.

May 15, 2006 - 9:56am — IBMer

Thanks for the information, Fred. There does not seem to be much online about IBM's TIE (yet). Here is the only thing I found so far:

  • At the CIDM Best Practices Conference, Eileen Jones presents on: IBM is now taking the next leap to accomplish our end-game of delivering excellence in the Total Information Experience (TIE). DITA, as an enabling technology is gaining ground both within IBM and throughout the industry. We are now taking our next steps to unite our total IBM information community (all content creators and providers) to define a common IBM information architecture and content standards/guidelines. This is an update on our activities and what lies ahead for us.

IBM has a lot about the total user experience but TIE seems pretty new.

May 13, 2011 - 5:31pm — Karen Muriello

I'm sad to see that this discussion thread lies dormant. In my little corner of the world, at the intersection of information architecture and user experience, I see interaction with large amounts of online information to be a new next test of the Internet. The best example is to consider bodies with Very Large Amounts of Information like governments. Current events have shown us how new media can democratize communication right now. Freedom of Information laws have legislated freedom of access to great bodies of information in this country within the last decade. This access is costly while human beings have to search for paper, and the Internet will be the platform of choice as soon as information can be digitized. Once digitized, we will be challenged to envision intuitive architectures. In Internet parlance, users have become accustomed to terms like "home" and "address," growing comfortable with virtual spaces and subdivisions. A corporate site was more elaborate, suggesting perhaps a building with rooms. But for Very Large Amounts of Information we will imagine CITIES of information, with way-finding signage, sidewalks, shopping bags, self-promotion - all to manage the information experience. So, what was once neglected will surely return en vogue as we create the information planet our children's children will expect.