Rack Name
Spice List
OTC Framework Sliders
Spice Selection
No spice selected
Click on a spice jar in the rack above to edit its name and color
Edit Selected Spice
Spice Tips
• Click any spice jar to select and edit it
• Change shelf and position to reorganize your spices
• Moving to an occupied position will swap the spices
• Choose from spectrum-inspired color swatches or enter a custom hex value
• Selected spices show a blue border for easy identification
• Use the Rack tab to explore OTC information architecture theory
The OTC Framework
This tool demonstrates the Evolved OTC Framework: A Dynamic Triad for Information Architecture, which provides three fundamental continua for understanding how information systems organize knowledge and meaning.
Ontology: The "What" of the System
A phenomenological investigation into the "worldhood of the world," seeking the inherent inspiration or "Volume Zero" (as described by Louis I. Kahn) that precedes formal categorization. The inquiry into Dasein ("being there") and the "belonging together" of things.
The "intentional meaning that design infuses in its artifacts, services and systems." The constructed artifact, or "semantic formation," representing the explicit ontological commitment of a system built and placed into the world.
Topology: The "Where" of the System
The concept that "places are distinctively human spaces" emerging from "vocabularies of interests" and "humanly significant concerns," rather than mathematical coordinates. Involves "reading" a place, expressing a "trope" or non-literal, interpretive, poetic meaning.
The "literal, measurable spatial coordinates and systematic positioning." The "topographic discourse" of blueprints and system diagrams—the literal, systematic, and quantitative factum of space.
Choreography: The "When/How" of the System
Emphasizes "development over time, historical progression, and narrative unfolding." Rules are emergent and implicit, defined by continuous adaptation, representing the story, tradition, and narrative flow of a system over time.
Emphasizes "simultaneous relationships, structural patterns, and cross-sectional analysis." Rules are "codified," with explicit, fixed rules that preside over historical change, representing the state, schema, or ruleset at a single moment.
Educational Application
The Spice Rack Organizer makes these abstract theoretical concepts tangible through the familiar domain of kitchen organization. As you adjust the OTC sliders, consider how different positions reflect different approaches to information architecture:
• Ontology: How do you categorize spices? By fundamental properties or constructed systems?
• Topology: How do you organize space? By meaningful relationships or measurable coordinates?
• Choreography: How do you organize time? By narrative flow or systematic structure?
This educational tool demonstrates how information architecture principles apply across domains, from digital interfaces to physical organization systems.