Assignments

There are only two assignments in the course, but there is a lot of other work that you will have to do. You'll find descriptions of the tests and participation in the evaluations section of the site. And do check out the exercises section too. There are many exercises you'll need to do to get better at web design. I've designed them to help get you up to speed, so you can build your own project at the end of term.

A note on when assignments are due

Assignment 1 is due the BEGINNING of class and should be submitted on paper.

A lateness penalty of 5% will be applied every day afterwards, including the weekends, unless you negotiate permission to hand in your assignment late with me before it's due.

Web Proposal (20 percent)

Deadline: October 15 (at the start of the morning class)

To complete this assignment, you will use the following process:

  • write a communications plan (comms plan)
  • figure out what content your site will have, and arrange it in a reasonable architecture (blueprint)
  • map your content onto an exact file structure (content map)
  • create wireframes of how you think the main sections of the site will be laid out.

At this point you can also decide on the design/navigational elements and consider the overall tone, color, and layout. This is your best chance to get the site right — it should be fully planned before you begin creating it.

Required elements: Hand in a paper copy of your communications plan (one or two pages, point form), the blueprint, the content map and page layout ideas — also referred to in class as wireframes.

To get a higher grade: Include the website content and other elements that will flesh out your plan: color palettes, images you have created for the site, storyboards, a full mock-up and anything else that explains what the site will look and feel like, such as scenarios or audience research. When possible, hand this in on paper; you can refer to a URL for images, color layouts and specific color palettes if you have chosen them.

Web Production (40 percent)

Deadline: December 3, 9 pm

Produce a website that you created from scratch. Keep in mind everything discussed in class and in our readings. Check to ensure the links are not broken and get your peers to Beta Test the site.

Remember that the content of your site must be original. This means that you must write it — you cannot use content from other websites, books, magazines, and so on. Material copied from other sources is plagiarism. You can quote other material if you cite it. There should be a minimum of 13 static html pages, with an average of 100 word/page. Here are all the required elements of the project:

  • 13-25 separate html pages (you can go over 25 pages, but I'll stop marking there)
  • aim for about 100 words/page on average, but feel free to go longer if you need to, and shorter on pages where it's appropriate (i.e., site map, contact page, about the site)
  • original textual content
  • if you your content refers to other sources, please cite them in a separate "Sources" page
  • good navigation
  • user friendly design
  • helpful semantics
  • minimum of five properly compressed images (buttons, tabs, photos, etc. count)
  • one image that combines textual and graphic elements (a logo or banner)
  • Site ID (logo, wordmark, tagline)
  • Web maintainer email (or contact page)
  • Last date updated (on home page, at least)
  • Individual, unique & effective HTML Page titles
  • Long pages have “back to top” links
  • Useful alt tags on images
  • Sensible file structure.

Bonus marks opportunity: Get the site finished by November 23 at 9 pm, and get a 5% bonus on the assignment!

Check out the complete final marking criteria here.