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::: Assignments

Project and LRO Assignments

Project 1: Critical Analysis and Re-design of a Web Site
project 1 overview
site inventory and analysis
site prototype
final re-design
Project 2: Designing with CSS
project 2 overview
designing your new professional site
designing your portfolio
creating your CSS journal
Project 3: Designing with the CSS Zen Garden
project 3 overview
project 3 comments and final thoughts
Learning Record Online
Midterm Description

Daily Assignments

For Monday, 22 November

Bobby van der Sluis:
One hard lesson I have learned is that you should never ever start any design without a good and clear concept.

Please read carefully the following short blog-entry discussions of these designers' design experiences with CSS Zen Garden, paying particular attention to each designer's process:

When complete, please make a list of the 5 or so Zen Garden designs you especially like and the 5 you don't care for. From that list of 10, make a list of 3-5 features that you'd like to try to incorporate into your design and 3-5 that you're certain you don't want to.

Then, come up with two pencil sketches of your design per group member. For example, if you have two people in your group, you should have 4 pencil sketches. Complete these sketches individually and bring them to class with you, along with your lists of likes and dislikes. In class you'll meet with your group to come up with a pencil sketch that unites your ideas.

Please also bring to class (either online or print) images that are thinking about using in your site. All images will need to be scanned into the computer by Wednesday (as will your final pencil sketch), so if you have time this weekend, get a head start and scan in any image that is not already online. I recommend scanning at 300dpi (and if the image is a photo, saving it as *.jpg, and if its something other than a photo, saving it as *.gif); you can always lower the resolution later.

For Friday, 19 November

In class on Wednesday, two packets were handed out: one containing the sample css zen garden html code, the other containing the style sheets for two CSS Zen Garden Designs: Tranquille and South of the Border (see what South of the Border looks like). If you were not in class -- or do not have the documents -- please print them out on your own.

For Friday, I would like you to complete the following (hopefully with your partner[s]):

For Wednesday, 17 November

This assignment will get us started on the Zen Garden project. Please complete the following by classtime on Wednesday:

In class, you will meet with your partner(s) to finalize the theme you've chosen and announce it to the class

For Wednesday, 3 November

Please read in Meyer chapters 7 - 9, which cover css boxes, padding and borders, and backgrounds. Chapter 7 is a very important chapter so please pay careful attention.

Please also bring with you image that is 125px by 738px. We will be using it in the second part of the CSS layout tutorial, which we started last week. So, please also make sure you have your "test.html" and "stylesheet.css" files with you. If you were not in class last Wednesday, you can create the "test.html" and "stylesheet.css" files by following tutorial at Building a Basic CSS Layout.

For Monday, 1 November

Please read in Meyer chapters 3 - 6, which cover the "cascade" in Cascading Style Sheets, values, fonts, and text.

For the assignment, please add to the "test.html" file that we created in class on Wednesday the following:

Add to the "stylesheet.css" file that we created in class on Wednesday styles for the above listed HTML:

If you were not in class on Wednesday, you can create the "test.html" and "stylesheet.css" files by following tutorial at Building a Basic CSS Layout.

Please do not include any images at this time. Post a link to "test.html" off your current "index.html" page by 10:00 am Monday 1 November.

For Friday, 29 October

Please read What are Web Standards and Why Should I Use Them? and in Meyer: Preface, Chapters 1 and 2. Read the Web Standards article first.

For Wednesday, 27 October

Please read in Clark, Chapters 7 and 8, which cover texts, links, and navigation. In chapter 7, please be sure to read 123-128 even if you are familiar with HTML.

For the assignment, please add the following to your "index.html" page: TITLE tags to all images and links, ALT text to all images, a correct DOCTYPE and language, skip to navigation links (if you think they are necessary), and ACCESSKEYS for the 3 most popular links off the page. Have this completed by 10:00am on Wednesday.

For Monday, 25 October

Please read in Clark, Chapters 5 and 6, which cover setting up an accessible page and dealing with images.

For the assignment, I would like you to find 5 images of varying complexity (two of them should be the ones you created for Project 1). If you consider an image containing only the word "home" to be simple, the image of the fish or turtle on this web page to be moderately complex, and a "Landscape with the Fall of Icarus" by Breughal to be complex, you can understand what is meant by "varying complexity." (See W.H. Auden's poem, "Musee des Beaux Arts" in response to painting, if you'd like.) Please use the ideas discussed in Chapter 6 to write ALT text for each image. Choose two of the most complex images, and write long descriptions for them, and code them in the manner discussed in the text. Put all of the images in one HTML page, constructed as described in chapter 5, and link it off your home page. We'll discuss them on Monday.

For Friday, 22 October

We can call this assignment "My Two Days without a Mouse" because I would like you to spend the next two days -- between class Wednesday and class Friday -- without using your mouse (or laptop touchpad). This means whenever you are browsing the web, building web pages, or anything else on the computer that does not require you to have something completed for school or work (although it would be great to see if you could complete an assignment or task without the mouse, too).

I'd like you to comment on your mouse-less computing experiences on the discussion forum by 10:00 am Friday, 22 October. Your commentary should describe the task you were attempting, the problems you faced, and whether or not you were able to complete the task. Discuss how it felt not to have the mouse at your disposal and how that changes your idea of computer use.

Please read in Clark, Chapters 1-4, Appendix A (read chapter 3 first).

For Wednesday, 13 October

Please complete chapters 9, 10, 11 and 12 in Adobe Photoshop cs Classroom in a Book by 6:00pm on Wednesday (we will not be working on this in class). These are the last of the Photoshop assignments

There is no specific assignment for Friday, October 8 or Monday, October 11. Those of you who have not completed the 2 Neilson assignments that where to be posted on the Discussion Forum may find this weekend to be a good time to get those postings completed.

Other than that, please use the time to work on your projects. I may have email when I am in Virginia, so please email me any questions you have.

For Monday, 4 October & Wednesday, 6 October

Please read Goto and Colter: Chapter 5. for Monday, 4 October.

Please complete chapters 6, 7, and 8 in Adobe Photoshop cs Classroom in a Book by classtime on Wednesday, 6 October. Follow the directions for saving files and uploading fonts described below.

For Wednesday, 29 September

Please complete chapters 3, 4, and 5 in Adobe Photoshop cs Classroom in a Book by classtime on Wednesday, 29 September. We will not be working on these files in class on Wednesday. Follow the directions for saving files and uploading fonts described below.

For Friday, 24 September

Please read and complete chapters 1 and 2 in Adobe Photoshop cs Classroom in a Book by 10:00 pm, Thursday 23 September. If you do not own a copy of Photoshop CS, you can complete the assignment in Parlin 6. Open hours are M-TH 9-6; F 9-3.

I have placed all of the lessons files in the teacher folder so you do not need to install them on computers in the CWRL. If you are completing the assignment on a computer that is not part of the CWRL, you will need to install the files yourself. Note that you must be using Photoshop CS -- no other version will work. You can see how to install the files yourself on page 3.

The book is going to ask you to save over some of the files. Please do not save over them. Instead, save all files to the Desktop, and then drag them into your own folder in the "photoshop-work" folder in the teacher folder. Please put your work in the correct folder. These folders are not be accessible from home. (Note: I am aware that the completed files are included in the Adobe lesson folders, and have left them there so you can see how you are progessing in each project.)

On page 3 you will also see instructions for installing the Adobe fonts suggested for completion of the assignments. I have placed the required fonts folder ("CIB Font Installer") in the teacher folder. All you need to do is drag and drop the folder in: C:\Program Files\Common Files\Adobe\Fonts. This must be completed before you open Photoshop CS. If you have already opened it, just close it down and start it up again after you install the fonts. (Note: Until those fonts are on the server permanently, you will need to complete this step each time you complete the book lessons.

For Friday, 17 September

Please read Neilson: Chapters 3 and 9, and post a response to the following topic on the Neilson Readings 2 Forum Topic:

Discuss the content of the registrar site and how you think it might change as a result of Neilson's discussion of content in relation to usability in chapters 3 and 9.

Please post your response by 10:00 pm, Thursday, 16 September.

Postings should be equal to one page, double space, in Mocrosoft Word, Times New Roman, font size 12, one inch margins.

Please also note that next week we will starting to learn Photoshop, so if you have not yet ordered Adobe Photoshop CS Classroom in a Book, and you don't want to pay bookstore prices, you are running out of time. . . .

For Wednesday, 15 September

Please read Neilson: Chapter 2, Chapter 4, pages 162 - 224, and post a response to the following topic on the Neilson Readings 1 Forum Topic:

Using the Neilson's theories on usability, discuss the usability of the UT registrar site versus the usability of one other university registrar site. Please do not use the same site as the other members of your group, but think critically about certain aspects you may be focusing on, or are most interested in. Your posting is due by 10:00 pm, 14 September. You may also use the ideas in the suggested Alertbox reading listed on the inventory analysis page or the online readings section of the course Web site.

Please meet with your group members to work on Project 1. Please post any questions to the Project 1 Questions forum topic.

For Monday, 13 September

Please read in Neilson: Prologue and Chapter 1., and in Goto: Chapter 4. While not required, I suggest you read in Goto: Chapter 8 "Testing for Usability," as it mkes a nice companion to Neilson and will help you think about the idea of perhaps doing some user testing if you feel you have the time.

Group agendas (or schedules) are due at the beginning of class, so please meet with your group this weekend to determine your group's schedule and have one member of your group post the schedule to the Project 1 Schedules forum by 10:00pm Sunday, 12 September.

You may also want to start working on your project over the weekend, using some of the tools described in Web Re-Design, thinking about the web site in terms of Neilson's ideas on usability.

For Friday, 10 September

Please design your own personal home page (file name: "index.html"), and upload it to your WebSpace account as described in Introduction to HTML Part II. Please also bring a copy of web page (with all related files) with you to class. Your home page can be modelled on the sample home page we discussed in class, and must contain at the very least the following features:

All images that you use on your web page, if they are not your own, can only be used with permission of the artist or photographer, unless otherwise noted. You can download free images from stock.xcnhg and FreeFoto without getting permission from the photographer. istockphoto has images for $1.50 or less.

Please download and use HTML-kit if you have a PC at home or Taco if you have a Mac at home. They are free HTML editors.

Do not use a WYSiWYG, like Dreamweaver or Frontpage. You must code the page by hand using HTML-kit, Taco, or related HTML editor.

Please read in Goto Chapter 3.

For Friday, 3 September

Please read the Introduction, Chapter 1 and 2, in Web ReDesign: Workflow that Works, by Kelly Goto and Emily Colter. These chapters will introduce you to the book and the redesign process that will inform the work we will do in Project 1. After reading the chapters, post a response to the forum topic entitled, What is it about the web . . . ? Responses should be equivalent to 1/2 page of single space text.

Start working on Parts A1 and A2, and two Observations for your Learning Record. These are due on Friday, 10 September, but its good to get a head start on at least Parts A1 and A2. As a way to familiarize yourself with the Learning Record Online application, please take the Guided Tour for Students. After taking the tour, please log in to the Learning Record. You should have received your password via email. Use the email address the password was sent to.

Several of you have yet to sign up for the course email list or complete the first assignment: 5 questions about the Learning Record posted to the Learning Record Discussion forum. See below assignments for details. Even if you registered late and/or were not able to find the classroom on the first few days, you are still required to complete the work.

For Wednesday, 1 September

Please read "Getting Started with HTML" and "More Advanced Features" by Dave Raggett, and "Intro to HTML" by WebMonkey. These are short essays that will introduce you to HTML and what HTML looks like. We'll get started coding HTML in class.

For Monday, 30 August

Please make sure you have all the required materials listed on the syllabus. Read computer classroom etiquette (pop-up will open).

If you do not already have a UT email account, you are required to have one for this course. You are required to have a UT email account because yahoo, hotmail, and other web-based emails do not have the ability to handle the size of the attachment files we will be using in the course. They also regularly filter out as spam important emails from tools we will be using; if you do not have a UT email account, you will not get the necessary information. You can register for UT email at http://mail.utexas.edu, by following the instructions. (Note: When selecting a username, choose one that will professionally represent you. Employers who are receiving your resume via email who take more seriously one like, 'jsmith@mail.utexas.edu' than 'designman@mail.utexas.edu.')

Join the Class Listserve. To join, send a blank email (no message and no subject) to join-sts311-wolff@lists.cwrl.utexas.edu. You will then get a confirmation email from the system, which you simply have to reply to. After that, you will be on the list. Note: You must use a UT email address, or you will not get the email back from the system.

Register for the Class Forums. When you get to the page, select "Register" at the top right. Agree that you are over 13 years old. Enter your username, email address, and password. Your username must be in the following format: "firstname_lastname" (for example, bill_wolff). Your email address must be your UT email address. I repeat: Your username must be in the following format: "firstname_lastname" (for example, bill_wolff). Your email address must be your UT email address. I will explain the various user settings at a later date. After you sumbit your registration you will get an email from the forum containing your username and password. If you do not have a UT email address, you will not receive this email. Press that link immediately, or you will not be able to access the forum.

Read through the Learning Record information web site, especially the pages for students, and the Guided Tour for Students. Then come up with 5 written questions you have about the Learning Record process. Post your questions to the course Learning Record Discussion Topic by 10:00 pm, Sunday, 29 August (there is a forum on the Learning Record site; please do not use that one). We will be using your questions to frame our discussion of the LRO on Monday.

I know this a lot of registrations, but they have to be done, and done early. Their functions in the class will become clearer as you use them. Have a great extended weekend!