Joho the Blog: UI Worst Practice #1065: Company-Centric Metadata

December 12, 2003

UI Worst Practice #1065: Company-Centric Metadata

When you install a program in Windows, it will (with rare exception) install itself into the Program Files directory. Many programs first create a folder for themselves named after the company that developed the application, so "The Blow Up the Baddies Game" game gets installed into a folder called "Universal Gaming Corporation."

Similarly, grocery stores cluster cereals by manufacturer, not by type: Post Corn Flakes is many boxes removed from General Mills Corn Flakes. Not only does this make it hard to find some flavors — where exactly are the Post Toastie Apple Swirl Cluster Bombettes? — it also makes it harder to compare prices.

At the New England Mobile Book Fair, a huge warehouse of books that's not in the least mobile, books are shelved by publisher.

Dare I point out that the user/customer who thinks about her applications by development house, cereals by manufacturer, or books by publisher is rare indeed.

My new bumpersticker:

Metadata Belongs to the People!

Think it'll catch on?

Posted by D. Weinberger at December 12, 2003 11:29 AM

Comments

Sadly no I doubt it, but it won't stop companies from trying, well to them at least...

Posted by: Thomas | December 12, 2003 12:41 PM

No. I don't think so.

Posted by: fp | December 12, 2003 03:10 PM

"...where exactly are the Post Toastie Apple Swirl Cluster Bombettes?"

I've decided that the issue is Who are the people? For example, I've dedided to start a blog and email organization of rich and wealthy people--triple figures only, please (although we will include select $76,000+ liutenants)--in order to organize our suburban towns a little more efficiently. Eventually, we will be able to shape the entire demographic--and all by diddling on this dang keyboard!!!!!!!!!!!

Posted by: B. Nick | December 13, 2003 08:38 AM

I think the issue is, as you indicate in your title, a UI problem. But, I don't know if the issue is coming out of corporation-shaped metadata more specifically than corporation-shaped interfaces in general.

(Having a job in a corporation) what I see is that the company management / processes want everything to fit in its (org chart centric) image, and generally are only satisfied with the design of both user interfaces and underlying data (metadata too) that reinforces its image (e.g., especially the hierarchy and the "silos" that keep otherwise obviously related things separate).

So, for your bumper sticker, I think you could probably say it all like "Markets belong to the people"*

(* hmm, you did say that already, didn't you ;-)

The markets definitely include the user experience in all its parts (e.g., visual design, naviagation design, interaction design and information architecture, and underlying data and metadata). So, we might need a series of bumper stickers . . .

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