NMS520: Website Design I

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Joy Robinson


Class: Wed 6–9:15pm, McGaw 142
Office hours: Weds 5–6pm
(or by appointment)
Office: McGaw 115G
Phone: Office 773.325.2066
email: jrobin37@depaul.edu 
gChat: njoying
visit joyrobinson.com for more

Course Overview

pdf of syllabus

Course Description:

An introduction to the process of making functional sites for display on the Internet. Students will learn HTML-based development software, and work with imaging software to apply fundamental theories of new media design to the production of working computer-screen applications. Web Design is a production-oriented course where students learn to think critically about the various technologies (open source, video, CSS, CMS, social media, scripting) at use in modern day websites. We give specific emphasis toward technology usage in order to communicate effectively online. Students critically examine website design, layout, structure, and content in order to address the intended audience. Prerequisites: Instructor permission required

Learning Objectives

  • Explore new media in the context of online design
  • Describe the public discourse surrounding technology and the web
  • Identify the future trends of the web and web design
  • Design a website using your personalized technology toolkit
  • Analyze websites in relationship to user centered design concepts

Books

Required Texts: 
Laws of Simplicity by J.Maeda 2006 
Universal Principles of Design by Lidwell, Holden, and Butler 2003 
Recommended: 
Build a Website For Free (Mark Bell) 
Supplementary readings as assigned by the instructor.

Technology & Materials

Tech: A laptop OR a flashdrive OR a portable USB hard drive that you bring to class
Browser: Firefox, Chrome or other non-IE web browser
Editor: Photoshop, CS3/CS4, Dreamweaver, Notepad/TextEdit or other equally adept html editor/creator
Notebook: for making drawings/sketches
Account: On this course wiki
LMS: Blackboard account
Technology contract: Signed by week 2

Class Format

Each class will be generally structured into 2 segments: Production and Contributions.

Production

During this segment of the class, students are permitted to work on the projects during the class and/or present updates to the class about their projects.

Contributions

TechCorner is composed of 2 parts. Each week both segments will be explored.

Part 1 : Seek: A student is asked to lead a class conversation centered around a research topic, discussions from the past week, or a blog topic. This topic should be illuminated via delicious bookmarks or illustrated in the FAQ section on the wiki. Topics are limited in scope unless otherwise pre-approved by the instructor.

Part 2: Share: Three students each week will be asked to lead the discussion on a special topic in the class. A short overview of the topic should be posted to the wiki prior to class. Discussion on each of the topics is limited to 10min. Topics are limited in scope unless otherwise pre-approved by the instructor.

Discussion: A series of topics centered on the assigned readings. During these discussions, class participation is expected. This are all in-class.

FAQ: As a community, we will construct a FAQ for the course. This will consist of some tech stuff, as well as important concepts that need examples or other topics that should be clarified. Each week, we will add to it. Sometimes, I will pose a question, other times I will ask a student to pose a question. Each of us will take a turn contributing our knowledge to the online document.  I expect that our collaborative effort in building the FAQ will be a unique journey.

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