Conceptual design

Blueprints

What do you mean by blueprint? Blueprints are the architect’s tool of choice for performing the transformation for chaos in to order. Blueprints show the relationship between pages and other content components and can be used to portray organization, navigation and labeling systems. They are often referred to as sitemaps and do in fact have much information common with those supplemental navigation systems. Both the diagram and the navigation system display the shape of the information space information overview, functioning as a condensed map for site developers and users, respectively

High -level Architecture blueprints

High level architecture blueprints are often created by information architects as pat of a top down information architecture process. The very act shaping ideas in to the more structure of a blueprint forces you to become realistic and practical. During the design phase, high level blueprints are most useful for exploring primary organization schemes and approaches. High level blueprints map out the organization and labeling of major areas. Usually beginning with a bird's eye view from the main page of the website.

Creating High -Level Architecture Blue prints

These blueprints can be created by hand, but diagramming software such as Visio or OmniGraffle are preferred. These tools not only help to quickly layout the architecture Blue prints, but can also help with site implementation and administration.

Some Important points:

1).Blueprints focus on major areas and structure of site ignoring many navigation details and page level details.
2).Blueprints are excellent tools for explaining your architectural approaches.
3).Presenting blueprints information person allows you to immediately answer the questions and address client concerns as well as to explore new ideas while they are fresh in your mind and the client's.
4).As you create blueprint it is important to avoid getting locked into a particular type of layout.
5).If a meeting isn't possible, you can accompany blueprints with descriptive test based documents that anticipate and answer the most likely documents.

Keeping Blueprints Simple

As a project moves from strategy to design to implementation, blueprints become more utilitarian. They need be produced and modified quickly and often draw input front increasing number of perspectives, ranging from visual designers to editors to programmers. Those team members need to be able to understand the architecture. So it’s important to develop a simple condensed vocabulary of objects that can explain in a brief legend.