the future of search

morville@semanticstudios.com

1 Peter Morville, Interaction10

in•for•ma•tion ar•chi•tec•ture n.

•  The structural design of shared information environments.

•  The combination of organization, labeling, search, and navigation systems in web sites and intranets.

•  The art and science of shaping information products and experiences to support usability and findability.

•  An emerging discipline and community of practice focused on bringing principles of design and architecture to the digital landscape.

find·a·bil·i·ty n

The quality of being locatable or navigable.

The degree to which an object is easy to discover or locate.

The degree to which a system or environment supports wayfinding, navigation, and retrieval.

am·bi·ent adj

Surrounding; encircling; enveloping (e.g., ambient air)

the ability to find anyone or anything from anywhere at anytime

YOU ARE HERE

Design for Discovery

Peter Morville & Jeffery Callender

SearchPatterns

“Search is among the most disruptive innovations of our time. It influences what we buy and where we go. It shapes how we learn and what we believe.”

Illustrated by Jeff Callender, Q LTD

Design for Discovery

Peter Morville & Jeffery Callender

SearchPatterns

Most of the complaints we get are due to the way users search; they use the wrong keywords.

Yeah. That's Right. It's

those Stupid Users!

$earch Metrics Home Depot

• Conversion rate increased over 30% in first two weeks. • Double digit increase in average order size.

Cabot Corporation • Technical information downloads increased by 48%. • Email and telephone inquiries reduced by 21%.

Sigma-Aldrich • Increased successful searches from 53% to 83%. • Increased site traffic to the final product detail page by 80%.

“A leading e-commerce site reported a revenue increase of $370 million in the year following launch.”

Source: Endeca

11 Marcia Bates: Berrypicking, Evolving Search (1989)

Search is a… Complex, Adaptive System

Source: Search Patterns (2010)

EngineResults ContentQuery

CreatorsUsers

Interface

GoalsPsychologyBehavior

InteractionA!ordancesLanguage

FeaturesTechnologyAlgorithms

IndexingStructureMetadata

ToolsProcessIncentives

Principles of Design Incremental Construction Progressive Disclosure Immediate Response Predictability Alternate Views Recognition Over Recall Minimal Disruption Direct Manipulation Context of Use

Interface

Information

Incremental Construction Progressive Disclosure one step at a time… more within reach…

Immediate Response Predictability flow requires feedback… feed-forward features and results…

Direct Manipulation Context of Use tapping into muscle memory… the delight is in the details…

Realtime Search

Mobile Search

Kiosk Search

TV Search

There is one timeless way of building.

It is thousands of years old, and the same today as it has always been.

The great traditional buildings of the past, the villages and tents and temples in which man feels at home, have always been made by people who were very close to the center of this way.

It is not possible to make great buildings, or great towns, beautiful places, places where you feel yourself, places where you feel alive, except by following this way.

And, as you will see, this way will lead anyone who looks for it to buildings which are themselves as ancient in their form, as the trees and hills, and as our faces are.

The Timeless Way of Building Christopher Alexander

Window Place (180)

Everybody loves window seats, bay windows, and big windows with low sills and comfortable chairs drawn up to them.

May be part of: • Entrance Room (130)

• Zen View (134) • Light on Two Sides (159) • Street Windows (164)

May contain: • Alcoves (179)

• Low Sill (222) • Built-In Seats (202) • Deep Reveals (223)

A Pattern Language Christopher Alexander et al.

Behavior Patterns Quit

ResultsQuery

Narrow

ResultsQuery Results

Expand

Query ResultsResults

Pearl Growing

Document Results

Thrashing

Query Results

Design Patterns Auto-Complete

Suggestions

DestinationResults

Best First

ResultsQuery

Faceted Navigation

Advanced Search

AND Results

Structured Results

MapQuery

Federated Search

Query Results

28 Because typing (and typos) take time.

Auto-Complete

Suggestions

DestinationResults

Auto-Complete Auto-Suggest

31 In search, results must be simple, fast, and relevant.

Best First

ResultsQuery

Source: Marti Hearst’s Search User Interfaces (2009)

36 Because users don’t know where to look.

Federated Search

Query Results

39 Multiple ways to search (and browse) in combination.

Faceted Navigation

"laptop" > $910 - $1070 > Hewlett Packard > At least 1 GB > 14 - 15 Inch > Bluetooth > 4 - 5 lbs

Structured Results

Actionable Results

Redefining Search

Question Answering

Decision Making

Understanding

Pattern Recognition

What We Search

How We Search

David Rose ambientdevices.com

Spime Search

A smart wine rack that uses RFID to track bottles in the rack and identify ones that fit the selection criteria.

Collectors and restaurants can use WineM racks to search collections

The wine can be dynamically reorganized by any combination of year, region, price, etc.

A handheld device accepts queries, and full-color LED lights transform the rack and bottles into a search results interface. The system even supports faceted navigation.

Multichannel

Source: Subject to Change (2008)

My Shelf

Augmented Reality

•  Hybrid between design, engineering, and marketing.

•  No definitive formulation. •  Considerable uncertainty. •  Complex interdependencies. •  Incomplete, contradictory, and

changing requirements. •  Stakeholders have radically

different world views. •  It’s a project and a process. •  The problem is never solved.

Search is a Wicked Problem

ErasableHow do these qualities interact? Which are most and least important to search? What have we missed? Go ahead. Erase a few. Add your own. This is only a place to start.

User Experience Honeycomb: Searcher’s Edition

UsefulIs it useful? Is search the right solution? Will it help our users achieve their goals? And, given the state of technology, should we revisit our goals? Can search be more?

UsableIs it easy to use with maximum e!ciency and minimal error? Are there a"ordances for novice and expert searchers? Are there gentle slopes to support learning?

DesirableIs it satisfying to use? Does it make people want to search? Does it embody the values and identity of your brand? Does search leverage the power of emotional design?

FindableCan users find your site? Can they find their way around your site? Can they find your content despite your site? Is search aligned with search engine optimization?

AccessibleWill it work for all users? Are features and results accessible to blind and visually impaired users? Can people search from a wide variety of platforms and browsers?

CredibleDoes the design inspire trust? Do the order and display of results convey authority? Will users believe that the top results are the best or most popular or most relevant?

ValuableWhat is the value of search? Does it build the bottom line or advance the mission? Is the user experience aligned with strategy? Can search confer competitive advantage?

IA Therefore I Am Peter Morville morville@semanticstudios.com

Search Patterns http://searchpatterns.org/

Semantic Studios http://semanticstudios.com/

Blog http://findability.org/

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