Final Website and Report
Due Date: Tuesday, Dec. 16th, 12:00 – 2:00 p.m., Ross 435 (my office)
Submission Name: <finalproject> (site folder)
During the final exam period, you should do the following to submit your final assignment:
- Print version of report — Hand me a printed version of an 8- to 10-page final report that describes in some detail the web site you have designed with your partner(s). The report should be written to your client in a language they can understand, but at the same time covering the concepts listed in the next section below.
- Live website — Upload a copy of the final version of your client’s website to your ISU public webspace, in a folder called finalproject. (The site only needs to be uploaded to one group member’s webspace.) Alternately, if your site has already “gone live,” you can submit the URL for the client’s real site.
- Electronic copies of all files — Create a folder called allfiles and put everything you’ve used for this project (including a copy of the final report) inside of it. Zip/compress the folder and upload allfiles.zip to your finalproject folder.
We will be working on these projects in class the last three weeks of the semester. During these workshop sessions, you and your partner will have a chance to show your materials informally to others in class for on-the-spot feedback about usability and design.
Structuring the Report
When writing the report to your client, you should cover each of the topics listed below, though you’ll need to do so in a language the client can understand:
- Audience analysis
- Digital ethos
- Site architecture
- Visual layout and design
- HTML code
For example, your client may not understand the term “ethos,” but they will know what you mean by “character” or “reputation.”
Though the written report is important, the website itself is the primary focus of evaluation. For this reason, your site should be as close to perfect as possible and should reflect a thorough understanding of the topics above. Special attention should be paid to the textual content of each hypertext node to ensure you have adhered to general guidelines for web writing style as discussed at the beginning of the class.
Format
The 8- to 10-page final report should be double-spaced and in 12-point type, using the same format you used for the Final Project Proposal. Your proposal should be named Lastname-FinalProject.doc (only one of your names is needed), and you should email it to me. Your final website should be uploaded to a finalproject directory on the ISU public webspace of one of your group members and should be located inside a folder called finalproject, which should include an index.html file that is the main page of your overall site. As with the proposal assignment, images and extensive secondary sections of the site should be contained in individual subfolders, with relative paths of all links reflecting the structure of these subfolders.
Evaluation Criteria
I will evaluate your final website using the same criteria listed on the Final Project Proposal assignment page. However, your final site should show significant revision and improvement in comparison to the prototype you created earlier in the semester. One overarching question will guide my evaluation of your final project: If I were your client, would I be proud to use the website that you have created for me?