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Information architecture is the process of visually mapping
a web site or web application from the perspective of that
system's end-user.
Information Architecture can begin as early as the requirements
gathering stage of an engagement and can aid in the estimation
of an engagement's scope.
Defining a systems users, then defining those user's goals
and then further defining the exact tasks is the process
by which a sitemap begins to take shape. Other factors can
include competitive landscape analysis, observations of
real-world workflow and best-case observations of existing
sites and applications.
Sitemaps can be physical or operational. Physical sitemaps
are high level overviews of system components. Operational
sitemaps are more detailed navigational maps showing individual
screens and the relationships between them.
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