Information architecture organizes content and functions so users can predict where to find them and understand where they are.

A useful structure groups items by distinctions meaningful to the task rather than by the software's internal modules. Categories should be mutually understandable enough that users do not need to search every branch.

Navigation should answer three questions:

• where am I?
• what can I reach from here?
• how can I return or move elsewhere?

Clear labels are usually more valuable than clever names. Hierarchies can simplify large spaces, but deep nesting makes destinations harder to discover and increases the cost of choosing a wrong branch.

Search and navigation solve different problems. Search is effective when users can name what they want; browsing is valuable when they need to discover what exists.

Good information architecture makes the structure of the domain visible enough that users can form reliable expectations about where actions and information belong.