The article examines the strengths and limitations of the analogy of information landscapes proposed by Annemaree Lloyd. The analogy offers a novel approach to the conceptualization of the spatial contexts of information practices. Drawing on the ideas of metaphor analysis, the analogy is scrutinized by comparing the similarities between its source domain, that is, natural landscape, and target domain, that is, information landscape. The study identified three main aspects of the analogy: (1) information landscapes as spaces affording the accomplishment of information practices, (2) information landscapes as spaces entwining physical and imaginary qualities and (3) information landscapes as socially constructed spatial contexts of information practices. The findings suggest that the construct of information landscapes represents a spatial analogy in which the properties of the source domain partially elucidate the nature of the contexts of information practices. The analogy works best with regard to similarities between affordances offered by natural landscapes and information landscapes. The major limitation of the analogy deals with difficulties to map physical features of the source domain onto the cognitive and social qualifiers of the target domain.

本文探讨了Annemaree Lloyd提出的信息格局类比的优点和局限性。该类比为信息实践的空间环境概念化提供了一种新颖的方法。利用隐喻分析的思想，通过比较类比的源域（即自然景观）和目标域（即信息景观）之间的相似性，来审查类比。该研究确定了该类比的三个主要方面：（1）信息景观是提供信息实践的空间；（2）信息景观是具有物理和想象品质的空间；（3）信息景观是社会构建的信息实践的空间环境。研究结果表明，信息景观的构建代表了一种空间类比，其中源域的属性部分地阐明了信息实践的环境性质。就自然景观和信息景观提供的能力之间的相似性而言，类比最有效。类比的主要局限性在于难以将源域的物理特征映射到目标域的认知和社会限定词上。