IDST
130 - Process and Production (Spring 2005)
Lecture and Lab: Mondays and Wednesdays
12pm- 3pm
Instructor: Beth Cataldo • email:
bcataldo@ccsf.edu • 415-452-5107
Class Web site: www.bethcataldo.com/idst130home.htm
Office Hours: Mondays 10am-12pm • Cloud
208A
Course overview:
This class will provide students with an overview of multimedia development,
planning and production through a hands-on approach. Topics include multimedia
planning, budget development, building wireframes, team building, design,
production techniques and marketing your site. Assignments will cover
pre-production planning and production of a Web site. We will also study
many different genres of multimedia sites.
This course is a lecture/lab class and isn't repeatable. Both parts of
the class are required. You are expected to participate in critiques and
in-class discussions.
This is a SCANS (Secretary of Labor’s Commision on Achieving Necessary
Skills) class. This means that I will relate much of the class material
to skills that have been identified as helpful to success in the workplace.
Please see the attached sheet for the specific skills. Our mid-term project
will also address these skills in a team environment.
Goals:
The goal is you to take your own idea for a multimedia product and see
it through each stage from pre-production to final production. This will
be a hands-on process, and most of the assignments will be done in-class.
You will also work in teams to provide feedback and critiques to each
other on your individual projects. At the end of this class, you should
have a solid understanding of the stages of development of an interactive
project, including pre-production, prototyping and production. You should
understand the roles of different players involved in the process (including
designer, project manager, Web producer and programmer) and you will also
understand how HTML, Dreamweaver, PhotoShop and FTP software work within
the production process.
Required supplies:
• Zip disks or CD-ROMs for backup
• Folder/binder for presentation of mid-term and final project
Textbook:
Web Redesign: Workflow that Works
by Kelly Goto + Emily Cotler, New Riders Publishing, 1st edition.
www.newriders.com
ISBN: 0735710627
Dropping the class:
Attendance is mandatory for the class. If you are going to miss a class,
you need to email and let me know. It's your responsibility to drop the
class. You can do it in person or on the phone and you don't need my permission.
However, if you miss more than three concurrent classes without an explanation,
I will drop you if it's still during the withdrawal period. If you simply
stop attending after the withdrawal period without dropping the class
you will receive an "F" as a grade at the end of the semester.
Do not come to the final class with a final project and expect to pass
the class. You must attend the lectures and do the assignments to receive
a passing grade.
Grading Policies:
| Attendance/Participation
(160 points) |
Attendance and timely arrival to class is required. For each
two unexcused absences, I will drop your final mark one grade. Two
late arrivals (more than one-half hour) will count as one absence.
|
|
In-class exercises and presentations
(240 points)
|
There will be in-class exercises with each application, which will
build to the final project. Also, at the beginning of each class,
each of you will do a short competitive analysis of the genre that
your web site is in. This should be a 10-15 minute talk about what
common themes you see in this genre, underlining the sites that
stand out.
|
|
Mid-term project
(200 points)
|
The mid-term project will be a group project
where you use the pre-production information to create a presentation
to the class. You'll have three classes to prepare your mid-term
presentation.
|
|
Final Project
(400 points)
|
The final project will include approximately eight Web pages for
a site that you have been working on throughout the semester. You
will also hand in any pre-production work that's led up to the final
project during the semester, including mission statement, time budget,
prototype and wireframes. If you do not present a final project,
you will not pass the class. Also, you must present a final project
to pass the class. |
Assignments and
in-class exercises:
I will try to provide you enough time to finish most of the assignments
during lab. Assignments are due on the date specified. If you do not hand
in work on the specific date, I will downgrade your assignment one grade
for each late day.
Computer lab access:
If you need additional
time to finish an assignment, you can come in during lab time to work
or work at home if you have the right software. The computer lab in ARTX
does have open access lab hours. I'll announce them early in the semester.
To use the lab, you must present a photo ID, a CCSF ID and class badge.
Software police:
You can
be expelled for copying software from any computer lab at City College.
This includes fonts.
Tips:
Make sure you save all your files in the Class folder. Otherwise,
we'll delete all the files outside of that folder. Also, save often and
backup onto your ZIP disk after every class.
Classroom atmosphere:
Please do not engage in side conversations (or mouse clicking)
during lectures, demonstrations or presentations. Please turn off any
cell phones during class. Do not bring any food or drinks into the lab.
Also, please let me know if there's anything more you need to help understand
the material I'm presenting.
Other Recommended Reading:
Besides assigning readings from our text book, I will also post
class notes on my web site. I will handout some photocopies of chapters
from several different books. If you're interested in learning more about
these topics, I recommend buying the following books for more in-depth
coverage.
• The Elements
of Design
by Darcy DiNucci and Maria Giudice (PeachPit Press)
• Adobe Photoshop
CS: Classroom in a Book
by Adobe (Adobe Press)
• Macromedia
Dreamweaver MX 2004 : Training from the Source (3rd Edition)
by Khristine Annwn Page (Pearson Education)
• HTML 4.0 for
the World Wide Web
by Elizabeth Castro (PeachPit Press)
• HTML and XHTML:
The Definitive Guide
by Chuck Musciano and Bill Kennedy
(this is a great "dictionary" for HTML tags)
• Any QuickStart
Guide from Peachpit Press about the subject we're studying.
Online resources to find and buy books:
www.half.com
www.amazon.com
www.peachpit.com
www.lynda.com
Online resources:
http://www.webmonkey.com
("the web developer's resource")
http://builder.cnet.com/ ("solutions
for site builders")
Schedule:
The following is the general
outline for the class. The topics will remain flexible and could change
depending on the interests and experiences of the class and presentation
opportunities.
Week
|
Date
|
Topic |
Reading |
Assignment
|
| 1 |
1/19 |
Class introductions:
Add/drop, discussion about goals of class, class structure, etc. |
|
Buy required text |
2 |
1/24 |
Placement Test |
|
|
2 |
1/26 |
The elements
of pre-production:
History, types of products, key players, pre-production vs. production
process. Genres of web sites. |
Chapter 10: Analyzing
Your Competition |
Assignment #1:
Competitive Analysis (20 pts) |
3 |
1/31 |
Define: Mission
statement and audience
|
Chapter 3:
Phase 1: Define the Project |
Assignment #2:
Mission statement and audience for your site (20 pts) |
|
|
|
Define:
Audience Research
|
|
Assignment #3:
Do an audience survey for your site
(20 pts) |
| 4 |
2/7 |
Structure: Inventory,
Flow Charts/Site Maps and Wireframes |
Chapter 4:
Phase 2: Develop Site Structure |
Assignment #4:
Take one of the assigned sites and do a flow chart and wireframe
(20 pts)
|
4 |
2/9 |
Design: Prototyping
with Photoshop |
Chapter 5:
Phase 3: Design Visual Interface |
Assignment #5:
Prototype one of the provided sites (20 pts) |
5 |
2/14 |
Design: Prototyping
with Photoshop |
|
Assignment #6:
Create a site map, wireframe and home-page prototype for your site
(20 pts) |
5 |
2/16
|
Design: Prototyping
with Photoshop |
|
|
6 |
2/21
|
Holiday |
|
|
6
|
2/23
|
Home page presentations
|
|
Midterm Assignment |
7 |
2/28
|
Midterm
Lab
|
|
|
7 |
3/2 |
Midterm
Lab |
|
|
8 |
3/7 |
MIDTERM
PRESENTATIONS |
|
MIDTERM
PRESENTATIONS |
8 |
3/9
|
Production:
HTML: An intro to simple tags
|
Chapter 6:
Phase 4: Build and Integrate
|
Assignment #7:
Building a simple page with HTML (20 pts) |
| 9 |
3/14 |
Production:
HTML: Links and images
|
|
Assignment #7:
Continued |
9 |
3/16 |
Production:
HTML: Formatting text and tables |
|
|
10 |
3/21 |
Production:
ImageReady/PhotoShop:
Slicing to create graphics |
Handout
from Classroom in a Bookt |
Assignment #8:
Slicing up your prototype (20 pts) |
|
10 |
3/23 |
ImageReady/PhotoShop:
Slicing and creating rollovers and image maps
|
Handout
from Classroom in a Book |
|
| 11 |
3/28
|
Spring Break |
|
|
11 |
3/30 |
Spring Break
|
|
|
| 12 |
4/4 |
Slicing and Rollovers |
Handout
from Classroom in a Book
|
|
12 |
4/6 |
ImageReady/PhotoShop:
Optimizing graphics
|
Handout
from Classroom in a Book |
Assignment #9:
Optimizing graphics (20 pts) |
13 |
4/11 |
Dreamweaver:
The interface and
setting up a site
Dreamweaver:
Adding styles and
text |
Handout from Dreamweaver
MX 2004: Training from the Source |
|
13 |
4/13 |
Dreamweaver:
Adding graphics
|
Handout from Dreamweaver
MX 2004: Training from the Source |
Assignment #10:
Set up a site with Dreamweaver (20 pts) |
| 14 |
4/18
|
Dreamweaver: Using
cascading style sheets
|
|
|
| 14 |
4/20 |
Dreamweaver:
Using cascading style sheets |
|
Assignment #11: Create a simple Dreamweaver page (20 pts)
|
15 |
4/25 |
Dreamweaver: Adding
other media |
|
Assignment #12:
Create style sheets for a Dreamweaver page (20 pts) |
|
15 |
4/27 |
Marketing your
site: How to lure an audience and search engines |
Chapter 7:
Phase 5: Launch and Beyond |
|
16 |
5/2 |
Building your project
- Budget/scheduling: The team players and technology involved |
Chapter 8:
Testing for Usability |
|
16 |
5/4 |
Building your project
- LAB
|
|
|
17 |
5/9 |
Building your project
- LAB |
|
|
|
17 |
5/11 |
Building your
project - LAB
|
|
|
18 |
5/16 |
Final Presentations |
|
|
18 |
5/18 |
Final Presentations |
|
|
|