Publications

Search Patterns: Design for Discovery
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. This new book explores design patterns that apply across the categories of web, e-commerce, enterprise, desktop, mobile, social, and realtime search and discovery. Co-authored by Peter Morville and Jeffery Callender, and published by O'Reilly Media.

Ambient Findability
This provocative book explores search, wayfinding, information interaction, marketing, literacy, librarianship, authority, psychology, and culture at the crossroads of ubiquitous computing and the Internet. Written by Peter Morville, and published by O'Reilly Media.

Information Architecture for the World Wide Web
Available in English, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Russian, and Spanish, this is the definitive book on the topic. Co-authored by Peter Morville and Louis Rosenfeld, and published by O'Reilly Media.

The Internet Searcher's Handbook
This book teaches you how to find what you're looking for on the Web both practically and philosophically. Written by Peter Morville, Lou Rosenfeld, and Joseph Janes, and published by Neal-Schuman.

Columns

Semantics is Peter Morville's irregularly irreverent column about information architecture and findability.

Strange Connections was a regular feature of the Argus Center for Information Architecture from 2000 to 2001. It explored the evolving definition of information architecture.

Web Architect was a column in Songline Studio's Web Review magazine from 1995 to 1999. It offered a humorous yet practical exploration of information architecture topics.

Articles, Interviews and Resources

Understanding Information Architecture. Prezi. (02/28/12)
story, structure, time, nonlinear, context, maze, labyrinth

The System of Information Architecture. Journal of IA. (01/30/12)
systems thinking, new loops, leverage, feedback, understanding

User Experience Russia Interview. Parts 1 and 2. (07/06/11)
web strategy, self-driving cars, polar bear, cross-channel

Foreword. Designing Search. (05/13/11)
ecommerce, search, bazaar, meatspace, multi-channel

Foreword. Pervasive Information Architecture. (04/04/11)
cross-channel, user experience, resmini, rosati, ubiquitous

UIE Book Club. Interviewed by Jared Spool. (12/07/10)
search, browse, switching sides, making the case, 5by5

Design Critique. Interviewed by Timothy Keirnan. (11/10/10)
search, wayfinding, paradox of the active user, marathon

Ubiquitous Information Architecture. IDEA 2010 Slides. (10/01/10)
intertwingularity, multi-channel, cross-sensory, synthetic synesthesia

No Shortcuts to Findability. Federal Computer Week. (06/28/10)
smithsonian, library of congress, findability, multi-channel

Search Interview. Project Information Literacy. (06/01/10)
search, presearch, learning, decision making, education

Faceted Navigation (Book Excerpt). A List Apart. (04/20/10)
adaptive facets, scented widgets, transitions, minimal disruption

The Bridgeline Interview. Interviewed by Marc Garrett. (04/19/10)
faceted, parametric, semantic, reference interview, java

The Johnny Holland Interview. Interviewed by Brad Nunnally. (03/29/10)
interaction, gestures, grunts, maps, search, discovery

The Web's Fun and Wicked Problem. O'Reilly Radar. (02/19/10)
averted vision, augmented reality, information literacy, spime

Leveraging Search Patterns. Interviewed by Jared Spool. (02/05/10)
best first, advanced search, faceted navigation, spoolcast

Search & Discovery Patterns. UIE Virtual Seminar. (01/12/10)
autosuggest, breadbox, context, discovery, endeca

The Future of Search. Interviewed by Byron Gordon. (12/08/09)
information architecture, search, findability, butterfly book

Search & Findability. Interviewed by Jeff Woelker. (10/26/09)
empathy, iphone, search patterns, augmented reality

Foreword. When Search Meets Web Usability. (04/04/09)
slippery rocks, thundering waters, seo, usability

Foreword. Web Style Guide, 3rd Edition. (01/15/09)
style, friendship, loyalty, universal usability

Riding the Web 2.0 Wave. Interview. Shanghai Talk. (11/1/07)
china, co-creation, tagging, syndication, mashups

Still Tomorrow's Technology. Release 2.0. (8/1/07)
infoviz, information visualization, free beer tomorrow

Real-World Search Engines. Interview. Wall Street Journal. (7/20/07)
gps, rfid, gadgets, gizmos, loc8tor

A Crazy Librarian. Michigan Innovators. (7/4/07)
libraries, culture, participation, ubicomp

Ambient Findability and the Future of Search. Google. (6/21/07)
surface, street view, iphone, everyzing

UX Zeitgeist Mindshare Index. Rosenfeld Media. (4/4/07)
user experience, mindshare, uxerati, web 2.0, mashup

Organizing Web Sites & Intranets. Computerworld. (2/7/07)
taxonomies, metadata, structures, schemes

Meet the Enterprise Web. CMS Watch. (2/5/07)
eia, enterprise information architecture, centralization

Foreword. Ergodesign e Arquitetura de Informação. (8/1/06)
information architects, brazil, education, community

Ambient Findability, Live Online at The Washington Post. (7/19/06)
metrics, myspace, cyborg monkeys, semantic web

Why Information Architecture Matters, CIO Insight (6/22/06)
findability, credibility, authority, satisfaction

A Garden of Forking Paths, ASIS&T Bulletin. (2/1/06)
book, maze, labyrinth, transmedia, everyware

The New Sense of Place, OnPoint on NPR (1/3/06)
geoweb, maps, mashups, long haul trucking

Ubiquitous Findable Objects (11/17/05)
gps, rfid, spychips, alien technology, mososo

The Impact of Ambient Findability, Business Week (11/9/05)
undesign, unfindable, undesirable, memory, lemur

Libraries at the Crossroads of Ubiquitous Computing and the Internet
delicious library, alexandria, google print, internet archive

Boxes & Arrows Interview (10/31/05)
apophenia, safari, satisficing, everyware

Tagsonomy Interview (10/19/05)
authority, social software, wikipedia, tagging

Twenty to Watch in 2005
cmswatch, peter morville, #11, bright light

Ambient Findability, Digital Web Magazine (7/21/04)
trust, informed decisions, intertwingularity, libraries

The Information Architecture Library (4/21/04)
information architecture, articles, books, blogs

The User Experience Cosmos (1/15/04)
cartesian model, instructional design, information architecture

A Brief History of Information Architecture, Preface (10/13/03)
history, ia, wurman, false memory, long bets

The Support Economy, SIGCHI Bulletin Book Review (3/01/03)
customer-centered design, capitalism, sanctuary

Archiving Experience Design, AIGA Loop (12/30/02)
history, education, pong, snow crash, user experience

Interview with Peter and Lou, Digital Web (12/12/02)
big ia, little ia, roi, aifia, optimism

Mapping the Userati (12/02/02)
co-occurrence, citation analysis, jakob nielsen, brenda laurel

Dynamic Duo of Information Architecture, WebWord (10/18/02)
reductionism, selling ia, brand, pet peeves

Google Needs People, O'Reilly Network (10/11/02)
google news, pagerank, humans, algorithms, golem

since1968 interview (10/04/02)
argus, times square, google, small-shop developers

Building the Beast, Boxes & Arrows interview (9/09/02)
yosemite, beef jerky, argus, café mocha, library science

Web Reference, interview by Andy King (8/29/02)
second edition, frank-and-beans economy, findability

FucinaWeb, interview in English and Italian (8/23/02)
second edition, information architecture

Foreword for Blueprints for the Web (8/01/02)
wodtke, navigation, canoes, wayfinding, seamarks

The Age of Findability, first published on Boxes & Arrows (4/29/02)
airports, boxes, usability, findable objects, wayfinding

Software for Information Architects, ACIA (2/19/02)
automated classification, search engines, thesaurus management

Big Architect, Little Architect, ACIA (7/27/00)
primordial soup, information architecture roles, specialization

A New Recipe for VirtualGourmet.com , Business Week (12/3/99)
thesaurus, salmon, frogdesign, synonyms, lox

Information, Architecture, and Usability, Web Review (3/12/99)
christopher alexander, pattern languages, phototropism

Worst Web Faux Pas, Macworld (2/1/99)
navigation, categorization, overwhelming main pages

Building a Synonymous Search Index, Web Review (10/30/98)
thesaurus construction, six steps, pulchritudinous

O'Reilly's Information Architects, Amazon.com Interview (5/1/98)
boot camp, memory palaces, hierarchy, hypertext

Search Patterns

A fresh colorful book by Peter Morville and Jeffery Callender about the present and future of search and discovery.

“I love this book! I now know that search is one of the coolest ways around of looking at the world.”

Dan Roam

“Search Patterns is a delight to read -- very thoughtful and thought provoking. It's the most comprehensive survey of designing effective search experiences I've seen.”

Irene Au

“Search Patterns is a playful guide to the practical concerns of search interface design. It contains a bonanza of screenshots and illustrations that capture the best of today's design practices and presents a fresh perspective on the broader role of search and discovery.”

Marti Hearst

“It's not often I come across a book that asks profound questions about a fundamental human activity, and then proceeds to answer those questions with practical observations and suggestions. Search Patterns is an expedition into the heart of the web and human cognition, and for me it was a delightful journey that delivered scores of insights.”

Dave Gray

“Search is swiftly transforming everything we know, yet people don't understand how mavens design search: by stacking breadcrumbs, scenting widgets, and keeping eyeballs on the engine. I urge you to put your eyeballs on this unique and important book.”

Bruce Sterling

“As one who searches a lot (and often ends up frustrated), Search Patterns is a revelation.”

Nigel Holmes

“Search Patterns is a fabulous must-have book! Inside, you'll learn the whys and wheres of practically every modern search design trick and technique.”

Jared Spool

Ambient Findability

Peter Morville’s prophetic best-seller about business and life at the crossroads of ubiquitous computing and the Internet.

“I envy the young scholar who finds this inventive book. The future isn't just unwritten – it's unsearched.”

Bruce Sterling

“A lively, enjoyable and informative tour of a topic that’s only going to become more important.”

David Weinberger

“Search engine marketing is the hottest thing in Internet business, and deservedly so. This book puts SEM into a broader context and provides deeper insights into human behavior.”

Jakob Nielsen

“From one of the fathers of the discipline of information architecture come penetrating observations on why findability is elusive and how the act of seeking changes us.”

Steve Papa

“Peter Morville explores the possibilities of a world where everything can always be found — and the challenges in getting there — in this wide-ranging, thought-provoking book.”

Jesse James Garrett

“Skillfully weaving together information science research with his own extensive experience, he develops for the reader a feeling for the near future when information is truly findable all around us. There are immense implications, and Morville’s lively and humorous writing brings them home.”

Marcia J. Bates

“I’ve always known that Peter Morville was smart. After reading Ambient Findability, I now know he’s (as we say in Boston) wicked smart.”

Jared Spool

“In Ambient Findability, Peter Morville has put his mind and keyboard on the pulse of the electronic noosphere. This is a must read for everyone and a practical guide for designers.”

Gary Marchionini

“Myriad examples from rich and varied domains and a valuable idea on nearly every page. Fun to read, too!”

Joseph Janes

Information Architecture

Peter Morville and Louis Rosenfeld wrote the international best-seller that launched the field of information architecture.

“If you own nothing but the shirt on your back, sell your shirt and get this book.”

John Rhodes

“Restores information management to its rightful place in management thinking.”

Dave Snowden

“The world will be a better place when web designers read this book.”

Bonnie Nardi

“The definitive text for the emerging profession of information architecture.”

Gary Marchionini

“The most useful book on web design on the market.”

Jakob Nielsen

“Anyone involved in web site development ought to read this book.”

Peter Merholz

“Delivers what you need to be an architect of the wired world.”

Bob Boiko

“Hands down, the single most useful book about web site design.”

Steve Krug

“An essential resource for information architects and their managers.”

Mary Lee Kennedy

Contact

Semantic Studios
109 Catherine Street
Ann Arbor, MI 48104 USA

734.347.2826 voice
734.661.5265 fax

morville@semanticstudios.com