Thursday, April 30, 2009
Last Post!
For my last blog post of the semester, I would like to list all of the valuable skills that I have taken from this class.
In no particular order:
1. Lots of fancy techie terms that I never knew before
2. Basic web design skills
3. How to use Dreamweaver relatively well
4. What CSS is, and how it works (to an extent)
5. How to make powepoint presentations really quickly
6. What a web author actually does
7. That I can build a website for myself that I can be proud of! :D
--
This class has been extremely valuable for me. I never would have expected that I could actually do well in a class like this, and that I could enjoy it so much. I was really worried about taking this class in the beginning of the semester, and I'm really glad that I decided to stick with it. I hope that I can take the advanced web authoring class in the near future, and other classes about web authoring and website creation as well. I think that this class has taught me a lot of valuable skills, and I doubt that I could have learned them any other way.
In no particular order:
1. Lots of fancy techie terms that I never knew before
2. Basic web design skills
3. How to use Dreamweaver relatively well
4. What CSS is, and how it works (to an extent)
5. How to make powepoint presentations really quickly
6. What a web author actually does
7. That I can build a website for myself that I can be proud of! :D
--
This class has been extremely valuable for me. I never would have expected that I could actually do well in a class like this, and that I could enjoy it so much. I was really worried about taking this class in the beginning of the semester, and I'm really glad that I decided to stick with it. I hope that I can take the advanced web authoring class in the near future, and other classes about web authoring and website creation as well. I think that this class has taught me a lot of valuable skills, and I doubt that I could have learned them any other way.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Why did you hire me?
This article is geared (probably) ... not towards me. At least not yet.
I can appreciate the information that the author has provided, however, a lot of it, I feel, doesn't really apply to my present situation. However, the information about negotiating/dealing with clients, and setting rates for yourself (that you will stick to) I found quite valuable.
The scenario that the author presents about job security vs. actually doing your job, is a good one, and probably quite common. I think that overall the author provided an abundance of good advice, however, unfortunately, I worry that none of it applies to me at this current time.
I can appreciate the information that the author has provided, however, a lot of it, I feel, doesn't really apply to my present situation. However, the information about negotiating/dealing with clients, and setting rates for yourself (that you will stick to) I found quite valuable.
The scenario that the author presents about job security vs. actually doing your job, is a good one, and probably quite common. I think that overall the author provided an abundance of good advice, however, unfortunately, I worry that none of it applies to me at this current time.
Content Delay Syndrome
The cure for content delay syndrome article is probably geared more towards those of us in the professional writing field who are planning on going into the editing field. However, the article can also come in handy for others who, like the author, have clients who are unwilling to hire someone to write content for their website.
The idea that the author suggests of bringing an editor in after the client has their content written is probably a better, more reasonable idea for most people who want to write their own web content. The issue of knowing what you are writing about, rather than having to tell someone about the topic so that they can write about it could really save time for a lot of people, however, it could sacrifice quality.
However, it is important to remember not to wait too long to write up your web content. Information can quickly become obsolete when working on the internet. As we saw today in class, a few students still had yet to upload their content to their websites. We're working as our own editors for these projects, however, it is still highly important to make sure that our content is correct and current.
As the author continually emphasizes, editors are important!
The idea that the author suggests of bringing an editor in after the client has their content written is probably a better, more reasonable idea for most people who want to write their own web content. The issue of knowing what you are writing about, rather than having to tell someone about the topic so that they can write about it could really save time for a lot of people, however, it could sacrifice quality.
However, it is important to remember not to wait too long to write up your web content. Information can quickly become obsolete when working on the internet. As we saw today in class, a few students still had yet to upload their content to their websites. We're working as our own editors for these projects, however, it is still highly important to make sure that our content is correct and current.
As the author continually emphasizes, editors are important!
Monday, April 27, 2009
Wednesday Presentation Outline
1. My target users are professionals, typically those looking to hire; most likely journalism professionals. The elaborate Journalism section of the website helps to illustrate the fact that the dominant users will be in the journalism field. I have provided multiple examples of some of my written work, as well as provided a brief history of the journalism classes I have taken here at Michigan State.
2. The main purpose is to provide an easily accessible website for professionals to review when considering hiring me. As I said before, the site is mainly tailored towards journalism professionals, however, I have provided sections for each aspect of my major, including Middle Eastern Studies and Professional Writing.
3. My site uses most of the CRAP principles well. Although there is not much contrast throughout the site, as all of the pages have a very similar layout, all of the other elements are demonstrated well. The site is very consistent; for example, the navigation is located in the same place on each page. This makes important information easier to locate. As for the site's alignment, I like to think that things are well aligned. The navigation bar is aligned to the right, as is the link which returns the user to the main page. Each page's main title is aligned to the left, but I think it works well. As far as proximity is concerned, I think that important information is located just far enough away from each thing that users can easily tell what pieces of information are related, and which are supposed to be separate.
4. Design in relation to target users and main purpose:
5. Addressing usability and accessibility concerns:
2. The main purpose is to provide an easily accessible website for professionals to review when considering hiring me. As I said before, the site is mainly tailored towards journalism professionals, however, I have provided sections for each aspect of my major, including Middle Eastern Studies and Professional Writing.
3. My site uses most of the CRAP principles well. Although there is not much contrast throughout the site, as all of the pages have a very similar layout, all of the other elements are demonstrated well. The site is very consistent; for example, the navigation is located in the same place on each page. This makes important information easier to locate. As for the site's alignment, I like to think that things are well aligned. The navigation bar is aligned to the right, as is the link which returns the user to the main page. Each page's main title is aligned to the left, but I think it works well. As far as proximity is concerned, I think that important information is located just far enough away from each thing that users can easily tell what pieces of information are related, and which are supposed to be separate.
4. Design in relation to target users and main purpose:
5. Addressing usability and accessibility concerns:
Final Thoughts
The assignment that has been the most beneficial for me during this course is probably the final project. There are so many different elements that go in to creating an online portfolio for myself and so many ways that I can mess up, that I have already learned a lot even without having completely finished the final project. For instance, yesterday night when I was uploading copies of my published articles to the website: I ran into some trouble getting the copies to upload properly, and I still acually have two that don't work, but I worked through the issue (on my own, at that! :D) and I was able to get most of them to work. A semester ago I never would have been able to do somthing like this, let alone on my own. I have learned a lot this semester, many valuable skills. I hope that I can go on to take more advanced web authoring classes, because its really fulfilling being able to show someone my website and say "I built that." It's not a skill that everyone posesses. Hopefully the skills that I am taking from this class will be valuable for my future, especially considering the fact that the internet is always growing, and so many aspects of journalism are beginning to function in an online format. Paper is becoming obsolete, so it is my hope that this class will help me to better function in an ever changing online world.
Sunday, April 26, 2009
JPG, GIF, OMG!
I am so fed up with attempting to put images on my website! I got one image to show up so far by converting it from a BMP to a JPG to a GIF, which finally worked, but the others aren't working... and I have eight more images to upload!
The good news is, the images that I am trying to upload are of my articles that I wrote for my high school newspaper. My mom and brother came over to visit me this afternoon and were kind enough to bring along copies of my old high school newspaper. I just wish this wasn't so difficult!
I've decided to include separate links to each of my articles, each linking to a new web page. The only problem is that the image (when it does show up) shows up as a gigantic, overpowering image... nothing subtle about it. I think I know how to make the image smaller, but I'll worry about that bridge when I cross it.
The good news is, the images that I am trying to upload are of my articles that I wrote for my high school newspaper. My mom and brother came over to visit me this afternoon and were kind enough to bring along copies of my old high school newspaper. I just wish this wasn't so difficult!
I've decided to include separate links to each of my articles, each linking to a new web page. The only problem is that the image (when it does show up) shows up as a gigantic, overpowering image... nothing subtle about it. I think I know how to make the image smaller, but I'll worry about that bridge when I cross it.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Final Project Update
The usability tests didn't really help me much with suggestions for my final project, simply because I didn't really have very much for people to evaluate. I hadn't had much time to add any important information to my website, and the questions that I asked on the usability document really required the user to go further than my site allowed. This kind of sucks, that I couldn't really take much from the project, but I did still manage to get some work done in class today.
I have about four sub-pages for my website so far. I'm not sure if I'll use, let alone need, all of them, but they're good to have for now. It is unfortunate that I don't really have any published articles on hand that I can upload to the journalism part of the website, because I think that having those documents would really improve the website. (Even if the articles themselves are not of the highest quality.) Perhaps I can find a way to get my hands on some of my articles before the final project is due.
Besides that, I really don't have a lot of information to work with. I have a resume, but it is in desperate need of an update, which I will have to try to get to as soon as possible.
On a different note, the Identity Document is really beginning to freak me out!
I didn't realize that it was due so soon, and I'm really, really hoping that I can create the necessary images for it without having to use Photoshop. While I think that it would be extremely beneficial for me to get some hands-on experience with the program, I really just don't have time to figure everything out right now. It seems like all of my classes are just piling on the work right now, and I'm just trying to keep my head above water.
I have about four sub-pages for my website so far. I'm not sure if I'll use, let alone need, all of them, but they're good to have for now. It is unfortunate that I don't really have any published articles on hand that I can upload to the journalism part of the website, because I think that having those documents would really improve the website. (Even if the articles themselves are not of the highest quality.) Perhaps I can find a way to get my hands on some of my articles before the final project is due.
Besides that, I really don't have a lot of information to work with. I have a resume, but it is in desperate need of an update, which I will have to try to get to as soon as possible.
On a different note, the Identity Document is really beginning to freak me out!
I didn't realize that it was due so soon, and I'm really, really hoping that I can create the necessary images for it without having to use Photoshop. While I think that it would be extremely beneficial for me to get some hands-on experience with the program, I really just don't have time to figure everything out right now. It seems like all of my classes are just piling on the work right now, and I'm just trying to keep my head above water.
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Anorexic Web Writing
I really enjoyed the author's examples of copy vs. content, as well as his example of alt text for images. Even if I don't anticipate using alt text for images on my final project, the example worked well with his article. It helped to show that even the smallest things, when taken, and put to full value, can have a large impact on the final product.
The scenario that the author began the article with, of a person asking him to create a website without any content, was also a very valuable example. Some people may completely overlook the importance of having a website which works well with the content that you are attempting to provide to people, and this is how you create a bad website. (When considering this fact, I almost worry that I didn't have enough content when creating my final project website...)
Overall, I thought that this article was very interesting and extremely valuable.
The scenario that the author began the article with, of a person asking him to create a website without any content, was also a very valuable example. Some people may completely overlook the importance of having a website which works well with the content that you are attempting to provide to people, and this is how you create a bad website. (When considering this fact, I almost worry that I didn't have enough content when creating my final project website...)
Overall, I thought that this article was very interesting and extremely valuable.
Writing a Style Guide
The article 'Writing an Interface Style Guide' provided a lot of valuable information. I even liked the first definition of what type of information a style guide should contain:
Even some basic pieces of advice, such as including standard image sizes, seemed profound. I also appreciated that the author went into great detail providing examples of what to include in youe style guide, for instance, when talking about images again:
The author provided very specific examples, just in case the reader decided to use some of these specific ideas.
Images were not the only things the author talked about though, they provided quite a few examples which could come in handy for me when I am creating my style guide for my final project.
Like the interface itself, a great design style guide should be straightforward, intuitive, and informative. It should provide detailed information, yet be clear and concise.
Even some basic pieces of advice, such as including standard image sizes, seemed profound. I also appreciated that the author went into great detail providing examples of what to include in youe style guide, for instance, when talking about images again:
Show how they may be styled and aligned, and how captions should appear (if used).
The author provided very specific examples, just in case the reader decided to use some of these specific ideas.
Images were not the only things the author talked about though, they provided quite a few examples which could come in handy for me when I am creating my style guide for my final project.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Usability Test Outline
Here goes nothing!
Portfolio Usability Test Questions
Scenario for Users
1. Think-Aloud Protocol; ask users to attempt to find something, for example, my resume, and ask them to communicate their thought process verbally while they attempt to find it. This will allow me to figure out what is going through the user’s mind, and why they may have chosen the correct, or incorrect method of getting to a particular place.
2. Allow users to simply peruse the website, when they run into a problem, ask them what they would do to fix it.
3. A particular scenario that I could use would be to ask the user to pretend that they are a potential employer, searching through my portfolio attempting to find specific information. In this particular case, I would probably ask them to attempt to find links to my news articles/clips, to see how long it takes them, and how satisfied they are with my site’s navigation.
4. Any other scenario that I could envision would inevitably be very similar to the previous scenario. Considering my website’s potential users, I could, however, ask the user to simply repeat the above scenario using a different goal.
Tasks for Users
1. Find contact information.
2. Find my resume.
3. Find important/specific information located in my resume.
4. Find biographical/background information about me.
Final Thoughts from Users
1. What was their first impression upon seeing the site?
2. Does the color scheme work? What feeling did they get from it?
3. Is the website compatible with their browser?
4. Any suggestions for improvement?
Portfolio Usability Test Questions
Scenario for Users
1. Think-Aloud Protocol; ask users to attempt to find something, for example, my resume, and ask them to communicate their thought process verbally while they attempt to find it. This will allow me to figure out what is going through the user’s mind, and why they may have chosen the correct, or incorrect method of getting to a particular place.
2. Allow users to simply peruse the website, when they run into a problem, ask them what they would do to fix it.
3. A particular scenario that I could use would be to ask the user to pretend that they are a potential employer, searching through my portfolio attempting to find specific information. In this particular case, I would probably ask them to attempt to find links to my news articles/clips, to see how long it takes them, and how satisfied they are with my site’s navigation.
4. Any other scenario that I could envision would inevitably be very similar to the previous scenario. Considering my website’s potential users, I could, however, ask the user to simply repeat the above scenario using a different goal.
Tasks for Users
1. Find contact information.
2. Find my resume.
3. Find important/specific information located in my resume.
4. Find biographical/background information about me.
Final Thoughts from Users
1. What was their first impression upon seeing the site?
2. Does the color scheme work? What feeling did they get from it?
3. Is the website compatible with their browser?
4. Any suggestions for improvement?
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Usability Testing
I thought that the article on usability testing by Joshua Kaufman was helpful in some ways, but that most of his advice exceeded the amount of careful planning that I will need to do for this project.
For the most part, I thought that his suggestions under the header 'What are you going to test?' were the most helpful. "The wording of the scenario...should have a specific end goal," "the scenario should be typical of the activities that an average user will do on a site," and "the scenario should explain the task the same way that users would." All of these suggestions are relvant to the usability testing that I will be doing for my final project website.
Also, the idea of choosing testers who are similar to your website's anticipated audience is a key thing to keep in mind.
Other than that, I felt that a lot of the article provided a bit more information than necessary for my purposes.
For the most part, I thought that his suggestions under the header 'What are you going to test?' were the most helpful. "The wording of the scenario...should have a specific end goal," "the scenario should be typical of the activities that an average user will do on a site," and "the scenario should explain the task the same way that users would." All of these suggestions are relvant to the usability testing that I will be doing for my final project website.
Also, the idea of choosing testers who are similar to your website's anticipated audience is a key thing to keep in mind.
Other than that, I felt that a lot of the article provided a bit more information than necessary for my purposes.
Monday, April 13, 2009
Reading Wrap Up
1. Potential employers, likely those in the journalism field
2. They would likely want to learn whether or not I am suitable for their publication
3. To learn this, they would want to read clips of my published work/articles, and possibly look at a work or academic resume
4. Potential Tasks for users:
- Ask the user to look at the website and give their initial impression; what do they think the purpose is?
- Without clicking on anything, ask the user what they think the options do.
- Without clicking on anything, if you were exploring this website as a potential employer, what would you click on first?
- Ask the user what they think the purpose of the site is.
- Who do they think this site is intended for?
5. Costs and benefits of design:
- The relatively minimalist design of my website; good because it could make the process of finding the information that the user is looking for simpler; bad because it may not provide enough information to the user, if they are interested in learning more, they may be forced to use the 'Contact Me' option.
- My use of text links; good, because a picture would probably be inappropriate for the type of website I am designing; bad because they may not stand out as much from other text as a different type of link might... however, since this link is provided in a menu bar, it probably doesn't pose a significant threat.
- The large font I tend to use on the first page; good, clearer and easier to read; bad, provides less information per page, however, this may not be truly negative, because my goal is not to bombard the user with too much, possibly unncessary information.
- I used full text, not abbreviations; good, no issue with understanding confusing abbreviations; bad, takes up more space.
I don't feel that all of the costs mentioned are truly negative. My use of space for my portfolio, I think, is approptiate considering the audience I will be catering to.
2. They would likely want to learn whether or not I am suitable for their publication
3. To learn this, they would want to read clips of my published work/articles, and possibly look at a work or academic resume
4. Potential Tasks for users:
- Ask the user to look at the website and give their initial impression; what do they think the purpose is?
- Without clicking on anything, ask the user what they think the options do.
- Without clicking on anything, if you were exploring this website as a potential employer, what would you click on first?
- Ask the user what they think the purpose of the site is.
- Who do they think this site is intended for?
5. Costs and benefits of design:
- The relatively minimalist design of my website; good because it could make the process of finding the information that the user is looking for simpler; bad because it may not provide enough information to the user, if they are interested in learning more, they may be forced to use the 'Contact Me' option.
- My use of text links; good, because a picture would probably be inappropriate for the type of website I am designing; bad because they may not stand out as much from other text as a different type of link might... however, since this link is provided in a menu bar, it probably doesn't pose a significant threat.
- The large font I tend to use on the first page; good, clearer and easier to read; bad, provides less information per page, however, this may not be truly negative, because my goal is not to bombard the user with too much, possibly unncessary information.
- I used full text, not abbreviations; good, no issue with understanding confusing abbreviations; bad, takes up more space.
I don't feel that all of the costs mentioned are truly negative. My use of space for my portfolio, I think, is approptiate considering the audience I will be catering to.
Monday, April 6, 2009
Final Project Thoughts Continued
Module 5 is an identity document!
This seems like a bit of an intimidating project. I'm not too nervous about creating the identity document in itself, however I am a little bit concerned that I might not have enough experience with Photoshop. Since I likely won't be able to make it to class on Wednesday, I will plan on trying to find some time to go into the computer lab and work with Photoshop and see if I can learn how to better use the program. I actually wanted to use Photoshop a little more with my Module 4 project, hoping to create a logo for myself, however, I didn't think that I would have enough time to learn how to use and create this. I'm glad to hear that we will be learning how to better use the program so that I can hopefully enhance my final project.
Overall, I think that the identity document is a good idea, and I think that it will help me to focus on the design of my final project. I'm a little concerned about how long it is supposed to be, and how long it will take me to finish this write-up, overall, it doesn't frighten me much more than any of our other projects have in the past.
This seems like a bit of an intimidating project. I'm not too nervous about creating the identity document in itself, however I am a little bit concerned that I might not have enough experience with Photoshop. Since I likely won't be able to make it to class on Wednesday, I will plan on trying to find some time to go into the computer lab and work with Photoshop and see if I can learn how to better use the program. I actually wanted to use Photoshop a little more with my Module 4 project, hoping to create a logo for myself, however, I didn't think that I would have enough time to learn how to use and create this. I'm glad to hear that we will be learning how to better use the program so that I can hopefully enhance my final project.
Overall, I think that the identity document is a good idea, and I think that it will help me to focus on the design of my final project. I'm a little concerned about how long it is supposed to be, and how long it will take me to finish this write-up, overall, it doesn't frighten me much more than any of our other projects have in the past.
Thoughts on my Final Project
After completing module 4, my main worries about my final project revolve around a few central issues. I am mostly worried about how much time it will take to complete this rather extensive portfolio, as well as the fact that I could probably overlook some important elements if I happen to be careless for some reason. With all of the subpages that I am planning on incorporating into my final project, an error could easily occur that I could accidentally overlook. However, I think that in the long run, this is not that terrible of a worry to have.
Another issue that worries me is the fact that even after the whole semester of learning about web design in this class, I sometimes find that I still have a lot to learn. I try not to compare my projects to other student's projects because it always seems to me that mine end up being relatively inferior. It may be a good idea to try to learn from other websites, or projects created by other students, however, I have found that if I stick to a relatively simple format for most of my projcts, and try to finish them in a decent amount of time, that I am usually relatively successful.
One last worry about my final site, which is probably my most legitimate worry, is that I will not have a very impressive resume, and/or that I will not be able to find and incorporate any of my formerly published newspaper articles. Frankly, I have no idea where they are... and while this somewhat defeats the entire purpose of the website, I am hopeful that I can find a way around this particular dilemma.
Another issue that worries me is the fact that even after the whole semester of learning about web design in this class, I sometimes find that I still have a lot to learn. I try not to compare my projects to other student's projects because it always seems to me that mine end up being relatively inferior. It may be a good idea to try to learn from other websites, or projects created by other students, however, I have found that if I stick to a relatively simple format for most of my projcts, and try to finish them in a decent amount of time, that I am usually relatively successful.
One last worry about my final site, which is probably my most legitimate worry, is that I will not have a very impressive resume, and/or that I will not be able to find and incorporate any of my formerly published newspaper articles. Frankly, I have no idea where they are... and while this somewhat defeats the entire purpose of the website, I am hopeful that I can find a way around this particular dilemma.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Typography and Web Advertising
The article 'Typography and Web Advertising: Making Every Opportunity Count,' by Alexander W. White offered a lot of helpful advice for advertisers attempting to create successful ads for the internet.
His first statement about considering the difference in ways to advertise for the web as opposed to television or print, I thought, was extremely important. Not only are there several different knids of ads that you can use when creating an internet advertisement, but there are also several different techniques that you can use when desigining these advertisements: Image, Type, and Space.
I thought that all of the examples that the author included in this article were also quite helpful. Particularly the idea of using text in a new, eye-catching fashion seemed like a good idea. Just because text isn't completely new, doesn't mean that it can't be used in a new, eye-catchin fashion to advertise to users successfully.
His first statement about considering the difference in ways to advertise for the web as opposed to television or print, I thought, was extremely important. Not only are there several different knids of ads that you can use when creating an internet advertisement, but there are also several different techniques that you can use when desigining these advertisements: Image, Type, and Space.
I thought that all of the examples that the author included in this article were also quite helpful. Particularly the idea of using text in a new, eye-catching fashion seemed like a good idea. Just because text isn't completely new, doesn't mean that it can't be used in a new, eye-catchin fashion to advertise to users successfully.
Typography
The article 'Web Design is 95% Typography' begins to give a decent explanation of just what typography is, and how and why we, as web designers, need to know this, and use it well.
The first quote that the author gives by Emil Ruder does an exceptional job of explaining the necessity of the job, and how it has changed over a period of time. Another quote that he offers seems to explain the duty of typographers in a more straightforward fashion, however... "Typography has one plain duty before it and that is to convey information in writing."
Overall, what I took from this article was that with the amount of information on the internet in this day and age, and given how simple it is for someone with little knowledge on a subject to put information online, it is a typographer/web designer's duty to sift through the bad information, and put the correct information in an appropriate, usable format for users.
The first quote that the author gives by Emil Ruder does an exceptional job of explaining the necessity of the job, and how it has changed over a period of time. Another quote that he offers seems to explain the duty of typographers in a more straightforward fashion, however... "Typography has one plain duty before it and that is to convey information in writing."
Overall, what I took from this article was that with the amount of information on the internet in this day and age, and given how simple it is for someone with little knowledge on a subject to put information online, it is a typographer/web designer's duty to sift through the bad information, and put the correct information in an appropriate, usable format for users.
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