links for 2009-02-21

Very visual application of FAIL meme

"If you ask web professionals what their interpretation of the phrase information architecture is, you will get a wide variety of responses. A search engine optimization (SEO) professional might launch into some grand scheme about indexation and PageRank sculpting. A web developer usually views information architecture in terms of fields in a database—how each field (information) will be used on different web pages."

"When albums splurge out online before the official release date, normally you could not contain the angers of the record company...but what about if the it's the label itself that bungles? Let's say, for example, that Universal managed to botch the release of its biggest album this year, U2's No Line On The Horizon? 'UMG’s Australian branch is being blamed for accidentally leaking the album, offering high quality downloads for purchase from their digital music site Getmusic.au. The downloads, which were being sold roughly two weeks before the album’s February 27th Irish release date, were available for about two hours before the error was noticed'". Not. Funny. Enough.

Cinemas around Europe have been selling tickets for live screenings of The Cure's NME show at the O2 next week - but Universal has pulled them: "YELMO CINES are very sorry to inform that 'More2screen', the suppliers of the signal for the O2 Arena broadcast scheduled for Thursday 26th February in a number of cinemas in Europe, communicated yesterday the unilateral cancellation of the broadcast by Universal Records."

ITV's television football coverage attracts a lot of derision, even when it isn't playing adverts out at the wrong time. This, however, looks smart and promising, and throws down a bit of a gauntlet. A footie Twitter feed from the BBC staffed by Cheese and Fletcher, or a Guardian account being run by Ingle and Glendenning could both be great.

"TimeSpace is an interactive map that allows you to navigate articles, photos, video and commentary from around the globe. Discover news hot-spots where coverage is clustered. Use the timeline to illustrate peaks in coverage, and customize your news searches to a particular day or specific hour. (Many Washington Post stories appear at midnight; others are published throughout the day as news happens)". Great map, but looks like the 'everything in the paper gets pushed live to the web at midnight' model spoils the timeline a little