seeking input from the collective brain...

[electricland]

I'm looking for sites that do a good job of organizing large quantities of more or less related content. We're currently trying to update our archive page and our site navigation generally (currently it's a big ol' mess, to put it bluntly). So... examples please! How do you like to find content that's related to what you were looking for? Have any examples I should look at? What sites do you find yourself clicking merrily from link to link, always finding new and interesting information, until you look up and discover you've been there an hour? Counter-examples work too, but I'm really interested in getting examples of well-done information design and navigation.

All suggestions appreciated. This is for work, y'know. I hope that request makes sense, it's late.

Comments

[llnaughty.livejournal.com]

probably wikipedia (especially your description of clicking from link to link), but i dunno how organized you'd find it. ;-)

[rolypolypony.livejournal.com]

I don't have any examples of what I like, but I _hate_ the set-up of wikipedia - I can't deal w/ links in a paragraph/sentence like that - I get too distracted by the links and never finish what I'm trying to read.

I like lists.

1) blah blah blah
a) blah blah blah
b) blah blah blah
1) Blah blah blah
2) bbb
c)bbb

2) bbb

Something like that - nice and structured! :)

[rolypolypony.livejournal.com]

(bah - forgot to format - a) and b) and c) should be indented under 1, and the 1 and 2 under b should be indented under b!)

[llnaughty.livejournal.com]

i don't mind the links in paragraph because i use firefox and avantbrowser so i can do tabbed browsing. so as i read things, i click on links which loads in a background tab and then i continue reading my original topic without getting on tangents and then i go to my open tabs and read the tangental topics that i opened before.

[rolypolypony.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I use Firefox too, but for the same reason I hate having more than 2 emails in my inbox, I can't deal w/ having more than 2 tabs open, which just isn't enough for the layout of wikipedia.

I just like very _clean_ organization, and even the look of wikipedia distracts me from what I'm reading.

(this is not to say that I don't like wikipedia and find is useful, I'd just like it more and find it easier to use if it worked w/ my brain better :) )

[electricland.livejournal.com]

I know what you mean - I sometimes find Wikipedia pretty overwhelming! But it satisfies my information-junkie urges, and it's an interesting way to present the info.

[electricland.livejournal.com]

Good suggestion! I'm more looking for ideas at the moment... so that was handy.

[talisker.livejournal.com]

http://everything2.org/
http://www.slashdot.org/

[electricland.livejournal.com]

Everything2 = CRAZINESS!

Wowee!

[talisker.livejournal.com]

yes, but it has everything ;)

[llnaughty.livejournal.com]

http://www.televisionwithoutpity.com/

i think in many instances "well organized" and "clicking and reading for hours" are antithetical...

[electricland.livejournal.com]

aha! good suggestion.

and yes, you are very right.