When the American Medical Association decided to offer its complete collection of journals in a searchable, full-text format, it asked Dynamic Diagrams to help plan, design, and implement the site. The new site, featuring the AMA's flagship publication, JAMA, along with its ten Archives Journals, launched in September 1999.

Early in the process we recognized that the site would be used by clinicians and students with specific informational needs. Documents had to be easily located, yet carefully differentiated by journal. All had to be integrated with online tools such as full-text search and the National Library of Medicine's PubMed offering. Finally, the site architecture had to support future content and special features.

Our analysis focused on creating a common, extensible architecture for all the content and features of the site. We emphasized making the structure as flat as possible so that most documents could be reached in just several mouse-clicks, whether through a search or a table of contents. By creating and obtaining agreement on the information architecture for the site, we streamlined the visual design process that followed.

The design features a coherent look and feel — from the site's home page to the windows that present individual tables and figures. From any publication or article, carefully weighted menu bars provide one-click access to the site's shared resources and special features without confusing users.