MCOM 351 - Web Publishing I (web page design)




MWF, 9:00 - 9:50, Jonas 207 · Fall 2013
Instructor: Paul Kopco
Office:  Jonas 108C
Office Hours:
  • M - Th: 10:00 - 10:50
Phone: 642-6503
email:

Text:

  • Teach Yourself Visually HTML and CSS by Mike Wooldridge and Linda Wooldridge

Supplies:

  • USB flash drive with at least 4GB capacity
  • CD-RW (rewritable CD) or DVD-RW (rewritable DVD)

    Students will be responsible for maintaining current backup copies of all work. Loss of your data due to erasure by others from your working lab computer will not be an acceptable excuse for projects being turned in late or not at all.

Goals:

  • To develop skills in designing Internet web pages by learning how to write HTML and CSS code by hand.
  • To broaden our understanding of the Macintosh computer and graphics software used to prepare images for the web.

Grading Policies:

The following will determine the final grade:

Midterm exam - 20%
Final exam - 30%
Midterm project - 20%
Final project - 30%

As you can see, the midterm exam and project together are worth 40% of your final grade; the final exam and project together are worth 60%. This is based on the idea that you should know more at the end of the course than in the middle.

The midterm and final exams will be based on the chapter review questions which are accessible from the "exam review" tab at the top of this page. The chapters to be covered for the midterm and final exams are designated on the chapter review page. Each exam will consist of a web-based component and a hands-on project component, which will be averaged together for a composite exam grade. The exams are graded starting at 100%, the normal maximum if you answer all the questions correctly.

Participation in class is essential to success in this course. Students will be asked to discuss their own work as well as to critique the work of others.

Grading Scale: 10-point scale.
A = 100-90, B = 89-80, C = 79-70, D = 69-60, F = 59-0

The class projects will be graded on:

  • The aesthetic considerations and quality of the project.
  • The amount of effort put forth on the project.
  • The daily participation in working on the project and understanding of the computer.

Two major projects will be completed during the course for grading purposes. Both are websites to be designed for a screen size of 1024 x 768 (usable space = 960 x 620) with appropriate titles on all pages. All pages must be operational on both Mac and Windows computers. If you strictly follow the instructions and meet the requirements for the projects as stated below, as well as demonstrate acquired graphic design principles, you will receive a grade of A, but the lowest A (90%). The grade will decrease from there for every instruction not followed or requirement not met.

Use of automatic web page creation software such as Dreamweaver is not allowed in this course except as directed by the instructor. The object of this course is to learn how to write HTML and CSS code manually.

  • The first project, due the day of the midterm exam, is to produce a website with a minimum of eight pages, with a theme of "All About Me." It will have a main page named "index.htm" or "index.html" with 7 clickable links, each of which will link to a topic page consisting of text and images (at least one image per page — images should be no more than 600 pixels high). The project website will contain a folder named "images" to hold all photos, images, and graphics. It will use tables for placement of page elements and CSS for engaging links. The first four menu links will be labeled:
    • Birthplace (where you were born)
    • Home (where you live now and have lived before)
    • Education (where you have gone to school)
    • Interests (what you like to do/your hobbies — this may not include academic subjects like photography, etc. — those are topics for the final portfolio website)
    The subjects of the last three links will be chosen by the student. Possible topics include:
    • Family
    • Pets
    • Music (favorite music/bands/artists)
    • Sports (favorite sports team/s)
    • Movies (favorite films/actors/directors)
    • Work
    • Pet peeves

    This project will become a component of the final project.


  • The second project, due the day of the final exam, is to produce a self-promotional portfolio website, which will consist of the midterm website with additional pages and new index page. This website will be posted to a free hosting service on the Internet. It will have a main page named "index.htm" or "index.html" with at least 4 clickable links, and a folder named "images" to contain all photos, images, and graphics. The first 3 (or more) links will lead to examples of the student's creative college work in at least 3 of the following areas, depending on the student's academic program:
    • art/drawing (images)
    • photography (images)
    • computer graphics (images)
    • journalism (text and/or photographs)
    • broadcasting (text and/or photographs)
    The last link on the index page will be titled "All About Me" and will lead to the midterm project pages.
     
  • Extra credit can be earned above the maximum 90 points for the final project (as explained above). Three extra points will be awarded for each of the following enhancements incorporated into your final project website:

    Projects will be due on announced dates. Five points will be deducted from the project grade for every class day late. It will be the student's responsibility to bring missed assignments to me on the day of return.

Course Schedule:

  • The software we will use for graphics is Adobe Photoshop CS5.
  • We will focus on the elements and terminology of web design, and apply them to our projects.
  • We will learn the basics of designing for the Internet, including learning about graphics formats, HTML (Hypertext Markup Language), and CSS (Cascading Style Sheets).
  • The pace of the class will be determined by how quickly the process of learning programs and developing projects goes. We don't want to compromise quality for speed, yet at the same time setting and meeting deadlines are all part of the process.

Students using the Mac lab at BHSU must follow these rules:

  • If you are unsure of something, ask!
  • You may not install personal software on or remove software from the computers. Downloading and installing software from the Internet without approval from the instructor is prohibited.
  • You may not move any hardware or change the setup of the lab in any way.
  • To conserve consumables such as paper and toner, please print only when absolutely necessary.

Reasonable accommodations, as arranged through the Disabilities Services Coordinator, will be provided students with documented disabilities. Contact the BHSU Disabilities Services Coordinator, Mike McNeil, at 605-642-6099, (Woodburn 134), fax number 605-642-6095, or via email at Mike.McNeil@bhsu.edu for more information. Additional information can also be found at http://bit.ly/ATu91.

Under Board of Regents and University policy student academic performance may be evaluated solely on an academic basis, not on opinions or conduct in matters unrelated to academic standards. Students should be free to take reasoned exception to the data or views offered in any course of study and to reserve judgment about matters of opinion, but they are responsible for learning the content of any course of study for which they are enrolled. Students who believe that an academic evaluation reflects prejudiced or capricious consideration of student opinions or conduct unrelated to academic standards should contact the chair of the department in which the course is being taught to initiate a review of the evaluation.

In this course you are expected to perform to the utmost of your abilities in an honest and sincere manner. Cheating & plagiarism will not be tolerated. Academic misconduct will be dealt with per SD Board of Regents regulations.



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