TTh, 12:30 - 1:45, Jonas 207 · Spring 2014

Instructor: Paul Kopco

Office: Jonas 108C

Office Hours: Monday: 10:00 - 10:50 & 12 - 12:50 Wednesday & Friday: 10:00 - 10:50

Phone: 642-6503

email:

Text:

None -- handouts will be supplied by the instructor

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 work with various sound, music, and video editing programs to create digital multimedia elements from concept to completion.
• To address cross-platform issues; that is, to understand what steps must be taken for projects developed on the Macintosh to be viewed on Windows-based computers.
• To investigate techniques which will allow class projects to be streamed and viewed on the Internet via the World Wide 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 digital multimedia projects, involving the creation of sounds, music, and video elements, will be completed during the course for grading purposes. 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.

• The first project, due the day of the midterm exam, is to create a music track and write a script, and incorporate them to create a multitrack sound file, in .mp3 format, consisting of music, dialog (either performance or narration), and sound effects, overlapping each other and properly mixed. Minimum length is one minute, and you must hand in the script as well as the normalized composite sound file. The project could be any of the following:
  • a story (play, news story, etc.)
  • an advertisement
  • a documentary (real or made-up)
  • a variety show podcast

• The second project, due the day of the final exam, is to produce a digital video at least 2 minutes in length incorporating at least 15 clips videotaped by the student. It must also have:
  • a music track
  • either natural sound, a dialog track, or a sound effects track (or any combination)
  • beginning and ending titles
  Possible topics:
  • my (or my roommate's) typical day
  • a trip to ? (Deer Mt., the mall, Roughlock Falls, Mt. Rushmore, etc.)
  • my pet(s)
  • my family
  • a documentary
  • a story
  • an advertisement
  • a music video

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 focus of the class will be on learning and using digital multimedia software; and the development and creation of multimedia components including music, sounds, and video.

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 labs 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.

ADA Statement
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, (Jacket Legacy Room in the Student Union) or via email at Mike.McNeil@bhsu.edu for more information. Additional information can also be found at http://bit.ly/ATu91.

Academic Freedom and Responsibility
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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