Web Authoring (Spring 2007)

Description

Focused on individual projects and learning by doing, Web Authoring covers software, code, writing, and user-friendly design for websites. Students spend the term developing an original, user-centered Final Project site on a topic of their choice, and make a collaborative news magazine with a small group of classmates. Our goal is mastering what many consider the most difficult design challenge: to create in-depth, attractive, and original writing enhanced by savvy graphics.

Required Texts:

Castro, HTML for the World Wide Web with XHTML and CSS, 6th Edition
Williams, The Non-Designer's Design Book, 2nd Edition
Price and Price, Hot Text: Web Writing that Works

These texts are available at the Co-op Bookstore.
If any of the books is sold-out or otherwise unavailable you might try a trusted online vendor.

Course Requirements:

Final project	60%
Class participation	15%
Homework and quizzes	10%
Short essays	10%
Early web pages	5%

The grade for the final project covers the draft pages, the midterm prototype, the four design scripts, and the final site.

The final site will consist of a set of web pages, including a home page, two feature pages, a links page, a bio page, and an FAQ page.

Other pages may include (but are not limited to): a tutorial page, a time-line page, a feedback page, a map page, and media page (e.g., a Flash animation).

Two research-based short essays of about 1400 words each form the basis for the two feature pages of your final site. The first is a review essay of a non-fiction book.. The genre of the second essay should suit your project.

There will be two quizzes covering HTML and CSS, one early in the semester and one as part of the midterm. You need to pass at least the last of these to pass the course.

Early web pages for the class include a web bio page and a further reading (article supplement) page.

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