Structuring Personal Information Collections

这项研究项目的目标是更好地了解人们如何管理越来越多的个人信息，人们在这样做时会遇到什么问题，以及人们为了更好地“管理”而需要的支持--不仅是信息，还有需要这些信息的各种活动。研究的重点是结构在个人信息收集管理中所起的作用。结构化信息的努力在各种外部表示(ER)中找到表达，例如文件夹层次结构、数字项的物理堆和类似分组、用户分配的属性/值组合、注释、文件和文件夹名等。但是，人们对ER随时间发展的方式以及它们在个人信息管理(PIM)中所扮演的角色知之甚少。这项研究包括一系列纵向研究，涉及使用各种信息收集的不同人员。在某些情况下，人们可以使用原型工具。原型技术探索了这样一种可能性，即更好地支持ER的创建(或获取)、维护和使用也可以在个人信息中产生重要的集成。这项研究与支持信息素养和将个人信息管理作为一项核心能力的教育倡议相联系。结果将通过一个已建立的网站(http://kftf.ischool.washington.edu/publications.asp)和各种文章广泛传播。研究将促进对PIM理解的基本进步，从而不仅在个人生产力方面，而且在整体生活质量方面也会有所改善。

The goal of this research project is to understand better how people manage ever-larger collections of their personal information, the problems people encounter as they do so, and the support people need in order to "manage" better - not only the information but also the various activities for which the information is needed. The research is focused on the role that structure plays in the management of personal information collections. Efforts to structure information find expression in various external representations (ERs) such as folder hierarchies, physical piles and analogous groupings of digital items, user-assigned property/value combinations, annotations, file and folder names, etc. But the ways in which ERs develop over time and the roles they play in personal information management (PIM) are poorly understood. The research includes a series of longitudinal studies involving a diversity of people working with various information collections. People in some conditions have access to prototype tools. Prototyping explores the possibility that better support for the creation (or acquisition), maintenance and use of an ER can also produce important integrations in personal information. The research is linked to educational initiatives to support information literacy and the management of personal information as a core competency. Results will be widely disseminated through an established Web site (http://kftf.ischool.washington.edu/publications.asp) and through various articles. Research will promote basic advances in the understanding of PIM leading to improvements, not only in personal productivity, but also in overall quality of life.