Assignments

Digital Publishing will be based on a 100-point grading scale. All elements will be due online at at start of class on the dates given in the schedule. No credit will be given for late assignments or assignments that do not meet minimum requirements.

Your grade in this class is determined by your work on a variety of projects and one midterm exam. Please check the schedule for due dates.

Online portfolio: 5%

You should have a spot on the Web where people can quickly find essential information about you. You should use Clippings.me. At a minimum, your portfolio should include:

In addition, it is highly recommended that you upload any publications or examples of great class work.

Important: In order to be graded for this assignment, you MUST add a link on your TU home page to your portfolio.

Personal Homepage: 15%

You will set up and maintain your own individual home page on the Towson web server. Your page must include the following components AND must also be available online throughout the semester in order to get full credit.

Required components:

HTML exam: 20%

There will be one exam this semester. It will focus on your ability to create Web pages using only HTML. You must know HTML exactly to get credit; no credit will be given for incorrect code.

Online package: 60% (Due in stages throughout semester)

You will produce original multi-page Web sites presenting information on a topic of your choice. Choose a topic that you already know about and have interest in because you will be immersing yourself in this subject for the rest of the course. Do NOT choose a topic related to restaurants, bars, nightclubs or geographical locations such as neighborhoods.

Keep in mind that the topic you choose should have resources available during the semester to be photographed. So be realistic in your topic choice.

You will research your topic and create all content yourself. This includes all photos, video and text.
Deliverables for this project include:


Topic & resource list: 5%

This assignment is the blueprint for your semester's work. It has several components to it. The more time you spend on each of them now, the better your project will turn out. Please structure your assignment to follow these questions, in order:

  1. What is the focus of your project? This should not just be a topic, but a clearly defined narrow slice of a topic, and one that is not already covered extensively by websites and blogs.
  2. What is the purpose of your project? Is it to entertain, to inform, to help? How will you accomplish that purpose?
  3. Who is your audience? Like No. 1 above, this should be a clearly defined group of people, not "everyone" or "all food lovers," for instance.
  4. Your website will have an introductory page, and two pages that focus on key aspects of the focus you have chosen. What do you envision those pages to be?
  5. What multimedia elements will you use, and how would each complement the project?

While your answers do not constitute a contract, you should stick to them as much as possible to keep you on track.

 

Hypertext: 10%

Your website is the centerpiece of your semester project. It should contain useful and relatively timeless information on your topic. Your text must total at least 750 total words, split into an introduction page and at least two subpages. Be sure to include word counts on each page.

For example, if your topic is local universities going "green," an introduction page may give basic information on the topic. One subpage could focus on transportation alternatives provided by local schools, including shuttles and Zipcar rentals. The other subpage could focus on unique recycling practices on local campuses (e.g., competitions, etc.) While your text can be based on existing material, I highly encourage you to do your own research so you have something unique to offer readers.

Your introduction page text MUST include links to each subpage. Each subpage MUST include at least two external links that add to the value of your content. Indicate all your links like this: (links to http://whatever.com/page.html).

Navigation text, resource link text page headlines and text from other sources do not count toward your total word count.

 

HTML/CSS produced pages: 20%

Each page will be written using HTML and CSS. Pages must be of a two- or three-column format. They can be created and edited using Adobe Dreamweaver. You will start with a CSS/HTML template (a responsive one is best), but you must modify it to get full credit.

For full credit, your project will include these elements (not including the rest of the outlined deliverables) with files named as specified. If I cannot find a file by the specified name, I will give you no grade for it:

An introduction page, named index.html.

At least two subpages related to your topic, named subpage1.html and subpage2.html. Each must have one or more visual elements (photos, embeds, etc.).

A page holding your map and any other multimedia not embedded on your subpages. This page should be named media.html.

On each page, horizontal or vertical site navigation to your introduction page, subpages, and media page (other links are optional). Each page must link to every other page in your project.

On each page, a banner that includes the name or topic of your site and links to your project home page.

On each page, your contact and copyright information (preferably at the bottom of each page).

On each page, a unique page title.

Custom logo: 5%

Using the software or online site of your choosing (Canva is a good starting point, but other sites are also useful), create multiple versions of your logo to replace the dummy images included in the tempate.

 

Multimedia (20%)

Category 1: choose two of these:

1) Original photos: 5%

You will take photographs related to your topic and place at least five photos directly onto your Web pages. Each photo should be well composed and exposed AND should show people involved in activities related to the topic. Photos used in your logo do NOT count toward this total.

2) Map: 5%

You will plot locations important to your topic onto a Google map (be sure to login with a Gmail account and not your TU account). Your map needs a good title that will help people find it online. You should have a minimum of 10 locations on the map, each with explanatory text and a working link to a related Web site, article or blog post (NOTE: The basic website link that Google supplies does NOT meet this requirement). Points of interest should be zoomed in and centered in the map window. Your map should be embedded into one of the subpages of your Web project, and it should provide the option to click to a larger version.

3) Timeline: 5%

You will create a timeline using at least 10 dates to show important developments in your topic area. These should not refer to events that will occur in the future. You can use any tool you want to, but it is suggested you start here. You might get some good ideas from this article.

4) Twitter list: 5%

Create a list of at least 10 Twitter accounts relevant to your project following these instructions. Be sure you give your list a ONE-WORD title. Then follow these steps exactly:

  1. The link to your list will look like this: https://twitter.com/i/lists/1234559767802105856, but you will not be using that link.
  2. Go to https://publish.twitter.com/#
  3. Enter https://twitter.com/twitterhandle/lists/listname in the bar and change it to apply to your account and your list. Example: https://twitter.com/thomlieb/lists/chocolatemakers.
  4. Edit Customization. If you don't, then it will be a super annoying never-ending list. If you are adding the list to your sidebar, the best is 400x220. Play around if you want it bigger.
  5. Embed the code on one or more of your website pages.

5) YouTube playlist: 5%

Create a playlist of at least 10 YouTube videos relevant to your project and embed it on one of your subpages or your media page. Get started with these instructions.

Category 2: choose one of these:

1) Original video interview: 10%

Create and edit a video interview with an expert on your topic. Minimum of 90 seconds, maximum of two minutes. Upload the video to YouTube and embed on one of your pages.

2) Interactive JavaScript: 10%

Start with an available script and customize it. Examples of scripts you might use are:

You may use other JavaScript options if you get instructor permission beforehand.

 

You may edit elements after they have been turned in, but not for a change in grade. Assignments that do not meet the minimum requirements, are turned in past the due date or not uploaded to the proper directories will not be graded, and you will receive a grade of ZERO.