Topic Taxonomies Are the Worst
One primary tension in taxonomy construction is between best practices (as defined by various taxonomy standards) and practical (business) requirements.
That is: the tension is between categorization according to *what things are* versus *where people will look for them*.
How can we balance or reconcile these priorities? Can we model our way out of them? And what are the options?
This issue is paramount in Topic taxonomies; Topic or Subject taxonomies are very common and present specific modeling challenges.
People are used to navigating topic-oriented structures. It is common sense to put things where people will find them; however, that does not mean that it’s also Good Taxonomy Practice.
In this talk, I’ll address the difference between Concepts and Topics, outline some of the challenges in building these types of taxonomies, and offer a number of practical solutions for addressing them.
