The Accidental Taxonomist

by Heather Hedden

The Accidental Taxonomist is the most comprehensive guide available to the art and science of building information taxonomies. Heather Hedden one of today s leading writers, instructors, and consultants on indexing and taxonomy topics walks readers through the process, displaying her trademark ability to present highly technical information in straightforward, comprehensible English. Drawing on numerous real-world examples, Hedden explains how to create terms and relationships, select taxonomy management software, design taxonomies for human versus automated indexing, manage enterprise taxonomy projects, and adapt taxonomies to various user interfaces. The result is a practical and essential guide for information professionals who need to effectively create or manage taxonomies, controlled vocabularies, and thesauri.

Genres: Nonfiction, Design, Library Science, Textbooks, Business, Unfinished, School

442 pages, Paperback

First published May 3, 2010

Reviews

[Darin Stewart · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author quotes me several times and the book is deadly dull. There must be some way to reconcile those two facts while still preserving my own ego.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

I changed my rating and review of this book after letting it simmer for a few years.

This book is a great reference and particularly at the time of writing, was an incredible help for anyone looking to transition into taxonomy from a different place in their library science career. Now it's a bit more mature of a field but I think much of this is still really relevant.

My main qualm is as others have said, the focus on tools & software which, to be fair, haven't changed all THAT much over the years, but still end up feeling dated. I'd like to see a bit more in the practical realm of both how to build taxonomies and maybe more importantly how they're implemented. But can't complain too much, this is still THE textbook particularly if you're looking to transition into taxonomy after school (as opposed to being in a position where you can learn it in school like these whippersnappers can now ...)

I do think taxonomy is getting to be less and less of an accidental career so I'll be curious to see how this book continues to age, but it's still an important reference for anyone considering this field.

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's hilarious to me that people are complaining about this book being boring. I'm sorry, but building a taxonomy is not a day at the beach! No offense to anyone who enjoys building a taxonomy, I have limited experience, which is why I wanted to read this book, but I wouldn't say it's a super fun activity. Anyway, I found this book to be extremely helpful. Particularly, Chapter 10. I didn't feel like the chapter about all the taxonomy building software available was such a good idea, since most of those will be obsolete in a few short years. However, I would still recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in taxonomies. I'm similar to the people the author mentions who have an MLS but no taxonomy experience.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

For those of you complaining that this book is boring, I don't think a career in taxonomy is for you.

It's thorough, informative and structured well for beginners and more advanced taxonomers. This book didn't exist when I was a library student, but I wish it had - I think it should be essential reading for all information management students interested in structuring information.

After all, this is one of the areas in our field that is expanding, when many others are not.

[pearl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Incredibly thorough, approachable, and valuable. Probably overkill for most folks who want to hit the ground running to create a taxonomy, but it provides a solid framework for understanding the problem spaces that come with the process.

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'd give it a 3.5. It is very comprehensive. The real meat IMO is in later chapters. My main complaint is that it's so comprehensive that it becomes overwhelming at times. Instead of addressing maybe the norm/default or one option fully and then bringing in variances later to add layers to the info, the different options are often presented back to back, sometimes in the same paragraph. I found myself quite confused, needing to read things multiple times. It might just be me. I'm quite new to taxonomy work. But I found it difficult to digest some concepts.

[Jim Reprogle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Extremely dull book, but very informative. Use it for reference, not reading material.

[Lisa]

Skimmed I to help me learn about a possible work project. Potentially the most valuable thing I'm taking away from this is that I am not equipped to do this work. We need a SME.

[Autumn Kotsiuba · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good advice for creating indexes, but definitely not a light read. More of a resource.

[Jay French · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good book for learning about taxonomy. Good on the underpinnings, the process, how this taxonomist’s job works. Not so good on real world examples, though. This would have benefited from some case studies to help the reader see how the aspects of taxonomy creation and editing work. Because of this lack of examples, this felt a little unfriendly, like someone just reading the facts. Like the book was aimed at someone who has worked on a taxonomy project and wanted to know more about what they had just a "taste" of. From what I could tell, the facts on taxonomy are provided in more detail in this one place than you are likely to find elsewhere, making this an excellent reference. I was surprised that it didn’t feel all that dated – I suspect the software described hasn’t changed all that much in the past few years, and that wasn’t a major focus of the text anyway. I’d be interested in the author’s take on automatic discovery and indexing of facets for faceted search – she downplays this software capability that has been in use since before the book was written, and she doesn't explain why.

[Robert Bogue · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are dozens of things that I do each day that I didn’t set out to do. I do accounting and billing work without a desire or intent to do it. I do sales and marketing – and neither are at the top of my list of things to do. I accidentally picked these things up when I decided to be an entrepreneur and run my own company well over a decade ago. Working with taxonomies – and becoming a taxonomist – can happen by accident too. That’s why The Accidental Taxonomist is appropriate for someone looking to learn how to create taxonomies. I’ve never heard a child say, “I want to grow up to be a taxonomist.” Despite this, there are those who have taxonomy as a part of their job – whether they intended it to be or not.

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[Rex Libris · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title comes from the circumstances that most people who do taxonomy work had no intention of doing taxonomy work, it is just something that happened upon them. Part of that is the relative rarity of taxonomy work, and part of is just the newness of it.

Given the newness and lack of professional training, the author has attempted to codify what taxonomy work is. She discusses the development of taxonomies, the theory behind it, construction of taxonomies, and the tools for creating them.

Having been doing this kind of work off and on for the past 25 years, I decided to read about what I am supposed to be doing. The book is good as a summary of what taxonomy work is supposed to be. But in practice, taxonomy theory is like the proverbial battle plan: It works well until the first contact with the enemy.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent into to the methods and tools of taxonomists, but very little about the actual work of term selection, editing, and use. So specific to a particular technical environment that some of the material is already out of date (2 1/2 years after publication), and much more will be soon. I read the Kindle version, which suffered from conversion problems with end-of-line hyphenation and some illegible illustrations.

[Joanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

As promised, this book contains lots of practical advice for people who find themselves working with taxonomies, either by design or by accident. I have flagged a number of pages that will be of continuing value to me, and this will definitely be on my bookshelf, if not my desk, at work.

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought this book for my daughter because she is an "accidental taxonomist" - she creates taxonomies to support information/content findability, although that is not her job title. I've read this book and intend to re-read it, as it is a very interesting field to consider.

[Connie Crosby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent look at taxonomy in great detail. Includes theory, practical tips, and discussion of career options. I found this very helpful in some of my recent projects.

[Paul Evans · Rating 3 out of 5]

Had to read for work. Concept is interesting, but the book itself is very dry. This is probably the Bible, though, for anyone who is a taxonomist, accidental or otherwise.

[Mark Boszko · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too much tools and process, not enough practical advice. To put it another way, too much how, and not enough why.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

A clear, concise guide to creating a taxonomy. If that's something you've found yourself roped into, this book is for you.

[Jeff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Clear, concise and well-written!

[Bronwen]

I never finished this. It was for a work project that never got off the ground.