T
https://members.tripod.com/~MrMorrison/WebFoot.html
e-mail: CptrTchr1@aol.com
Cue Conference and other CUE information: www.cue.org
Future CUE conferences:
|
1999 |
May 6 - 8 |
Palm Springs |
|
2000 |
May 11 - 13 |
Palm Springs |
|
2001 |
May 17 - 19 |
Anaheim |
|
2002 |
May 9 - 11 |
Anaheim |
|
2003 |
May 8 - 10 |
Anaheim |
Below you will find these topics or sessions covered from my perspective plus their abstract from the CD. (The abstract may have had spelling errors and formatting errors, but I didn't correct them for you...just remember they are the presentor's errors!)
Click the topic and you will be 'wisked' through cyberspace to the topic heading below:
Table of Contents to this Home Page
Friday, May 8, 1998
Try to preregister because the lines are long to register at the conference...plan 1/2 hr. of standing in line. If you must register on site, have your membership number handy. It makes the registration process faster. I tried to get the school district to preregister (at their suggestion, to save so much out-of-pocket expenses on my part) but the application form never made it past the distirct office. It was returned because, "if the $40 hands-on session you are registering for is cancelled, the district doesn't get the money back." My completed forms were not returned from the district so, I had to pay a late fee for registering on site of $39...go figure!
[Back to Table of Contents above]
Web Publishing Standards for Teachers and
Students
Abstract from the CUE-CD:
2118
All
6-12
Web Publishing Standards for Teachers and Students- Proposal Whether produced by teachers or students, web content should follow sound guidelines in order to ensure effectiveness and ease of use, not to mention keeping you out of hot water!
Your district and site probably already have a web presence and you have been asked to pick up the torch because you know your bytes from your SIMMs or you didn't lower your hand fast enough. But wait, before launching PageMill, HomePage or FrontPage, there are a few things to consider.
Whether starting from scratch or maintaining an existing presentation, growing a useful web presence involves a number of design and maintenance issues. Also, identifying what can be reasonably supported with given resources helps predetermine whether your proposed efforts will flourish or become cyber-orphans.
Issues of copyright and information protection must be weighed when planning your pages. Extant policies governing the release of information to students or the public at large supersede the free-spirited code of the Internet.
We will look at essential elements of good educational web pages as well as examples of existing intranet, internet and extranet projects utilized and maintained by teachers.
Sample guidelines and policies will be shared including Acceptable Use Policies (AUPs) for web publishing students and staff.
Summary:
Whether produced by teachers or students, web content should follow sound guidelines in order to ensure effectiveness and ease of use, not to mention keeping you out of hot water!
My thoughts and notes:
Mike Johnson's hand-out included these sections with comments which he covered in his presentation. They might be on the CD from the conference under session #2118. His topics were: Why Web Publish, What can we include on our Web pages?, Who is in charge of regulating Internet publishing?, What are the policies...in our district?, Content: Stick to your educational objectives, Protct the rights of students and staff. Who will maintain the information? Who is your audience? Chunk information, Set it togther with consistent navigational aids, Let them know it's current, Don't steal graphics, Style: Make it elegant, GUHSD WWW Publishing Guidelines for Students and Staff.
My notes include: Without 'Design and Content' your page is like a song in the shower. My comments will always be in [ ]. [Hey, it's like e-mail, if it satisfies me, who cares who reads it, the fun is in creating it...he doesn't agree.]
Do Not publish student names, addresses, and phone numbers without parent permission. Students want to publish especially their picture. Use the standard 'Photo Release Form' for parent permission.
Ask for and publish the local business community's feelings on web page content and objectives.
No pictures on teacher pages either.
Basic rule for anyone who wants to put something on the school's page: Update at least once a semester. Otherwise, don't publish their work.
If pictures (not of students) are used, use thumbnails so slow readers can see them and click them if they want a bigger version. [I have 2 samples of these on the WWW] Limit students to 30k per picture.
Teach the limitations of the authoring software you use in class as compared to the readers like Netscape.
Use Helvetica (sans-serif) font to save space.
Check 'logs' to see who is visiting your page and what domain they are from.
Since it is 'WORLD Wide Web' create links to a glossary if slang terms are used by students.
Best online HTML tutorials: Web66 and John Gilson's 55-minute tutorials.
Links from Mike's handout:
Sample Permission for identifiable minors online: http://intranet.grossmont.k12.ca.us/documents/permission.pdf
"Protecting Students and Staff in CyberSpace" on CUE CD
Freeware graphic application called GIF Prep: ftp://ftp.boxtopsoft.com/pub/GIFPrep1.0.1.sit.hqx
Web Design Manual: http://info.med.yale.edu/caim/manual/contents.html
Discussion of good vs. bad design: http://www.glover.com/ss/sucky01.html
Grossmont's Publishing Guidelines for Students and Staff: http://www.grossmont.k12.ca.us/HTMLClass/style.html
[Back to Table of Contents above]
Teach Web Publishing at Your
Campus
Abstract from CD:
2116
All
6-12
Teach Web Publishing on Your Campus
Your students already know more than you do about Internet technology but need guidance and an environment where they can contribute to your school and the community via the web. The Grossmont Union High School District has implemented web publishing programs for students at several levels. Whether offering a formal regular-day class that helps meet graduation requirements or managing an extracurricular web club, there are important issues of infrastructure, motivation, curriculum and support which demand careful consideration.
Classroom teachers already giving 110% may balk at adding another log to the load they carry. This session offers resources and curriculum help as well as strategies for making student produced web content become a reality on your campus.
Club models allow flexibility and openness among members of your team. Incentives to stay involved and meet deadlines are a challenge when a grade does not hang in the balance. Add restrictions on meeting times and places and you have an equation for frustration. Adjusting your expectations and narrowly defining your goals can head off troubles at the pass. Making use of resources already in the hands of your kids can also improve your product.
Whether an elective or a requirement, regular-day classes pose their own unique challenges. Even though the medium is highly in vogue, there will always be students in your class that "have to be there". Combine varying motives with a full range of past computing experiences and it can make teaching calculus and arithmetic at the same time seem tame. How you distribute tasks and balance HTML instruction and automation through publishing tools can determine the difference between success and failure.
Specific tools, templates and online resources are provided for you by an expert who has already done the legwork and made the mistakes.
Beyond producing techhies, web publishing provides the perfect venue for teaching invaluable lessons in teamwork, communication, message design and the Internet style of learning.
Summary:
Help your students go from web surfing to wave making. Provide guidance and a safe environment for them to become Internet content providers.
[Back to Table of Contents above]
Troubleshooting Your
Macintosh: Learn How to Keep Your Mac Happy!
David had distributed the various pieces of a Mac LC? to audience members. He called for the pieces and assembled the machine in front. It wouldn't boot...a ? came up on the disk icon. He checked and hadn't plugged in the power source and it worked.
This reminded him to say, "If you can't boot Norton Utilities from the CD [as I can't seem to do], unplug the power supply to the hard drive then boot it. [but then do you plug in the hard drive to repair it? He said never plug anything in when the power is on]
System Folder: Color all folders now so if anything is added and doesn't work, you can get to it faster. All his current folders were red.
Control Panel: Under "General Controls" go to "Documents" and select "When opening or saving a document, take me to the 'Documents Folder'" on all student machines.
Memory: Power PC use 'default' to use 1 MB of Virtual Memory instead of Ram Doubler.
Disk Cache: Select: "Use Default"
Extensions Folder: Discard Printer drivers for unused printers
Fonts: If problems, take whole folder out of extenstions folder and restart to see if a font is the problem. Remove all "Times" fonts with a number after them and italics on web sites look much better without any loss otherwise.
Preferences: Back up the whole folder especially after you install internet. You can Omit single items and program recreates it.
Cache: Trash to regain hard disk space and speed.
Launcher: Put new folder there with the name starting with a bullet (opt. 8) and it will show up on the menu.
Shut Down Extension: Be sure student hasn't put it into the startup folder.
Disk Tools: Copy from current system CD onto floppy for use on older Macs.
"Blessed" Icon must appear on both the sytem folder and system suitcase or computer won't work. This icon shows that a 'finder' is in the system folder.
Have 10% of your hard drive capacity free to prevent crashes as well as 10% of RAM. Ex. 10MB free on 100 MB hard drive. Check hard drive by double-clicking hard drive and using "View" small icon. Check RAM in 'about this Macintosh' under Apple.
Get Info.: Minimum size of application must be correct or it won't start. Preferred size is what will be used..too small may crash. Again, check 'about this Mac' and look at 'largest unused block'
Once-A-Month Maintenance:
1. Rebuild Desktop (option/Command on startup) [or use Tech Tools...ask me for it]
2. Run 'Disk First Aid' [or Tech Tools or Norton Utilities]
3. Use 'Apple HDSC Setup' and 'test' and 'verify'. Shareware: SCSI Probe good to 'mount' ZIP when it's disk icon doesn't show up.
Have latest versions of things from "Versiontracker.com'
He ran out of handouts, but said they were 'on the internet.' He neglected to give the address until the end of the session, or he purposely 'forgot' so the audience wouldn't leave: http://www.sierranet.net/~dhoffman/cue/
His abstract from the CUE CD:
2212
CM
Beginning
K-12, College, Administration
Title: Troubleshooting Your Macintosh: Learn how to keep your Mac happy!
If you've ever used a Macintosh you've been frustrated by applications that "unexpectedly quit", system errors, bombs, and Sad Macs. We all know that a Mac is easy to use, but when it won't boot, or constantly 'freezes' then it's a useless Mac. How many Macs sit unused and dusty in the corner of a classroom because the educator doesn't have the knowledge or skill necessary to keep it running trouble-free?
This session will cover the basic knowledge and skill necessary to troubleshoot Macs. Although the session will touch on hardware issues, the emphasis will primarily be on software. Most Mac problems are software related and can be resolved using some basic troubleshooting techniques.
We'll begin by understanding how the Mac works. Understanding the differences between RAM, ROM, and disk drive memory is crucial to troubleshooting. It is also useful to understand the startup sequence. We'll take a brief look at the System Folder and its contents. The more the user understand how the Mac works, the more they will understand problems they encounter.
Many of the tools necessary to keep a Mac running are built right into the Finder. We'll take a look at these features and show how they can be used in problem solving. In addition, many Finder features can also be used in preventative maintenance. Session attendees will learn what they can do to prevent problems from occurring in the first place.
Third-party software is extremely useful in troubleshooting. We'll take a brief look at a disk protection, repair, and recovery package, an extension manager, and some useful shareware utilities.
Participants in this session will receive handouts which will guide them in troubleshooting techniques. Handouts will include possible sources for best buys on Mac parts, and a list of web-based resources.
[Back to Table of Contents above]
Using All Seven On-Line Teaching
Tools
Education and the Internet EDP551 is one of the classes that this presentor teaches at CSULB. His web page illustrates the techniques he presented: http://www.csulb.edu/~murdock This graduate course for teachers is based on Netscape 'bare bones' (without plug ins) His presentation used Netscape, but he should have turned off the buttons and location portion of Netscape for better presentation. He also opened many files on the hard drive of the presentation Mac, but never typed a letter to find a file, just used the down arrow!
At CSULB, "the Internet is their Intranet"
"Distance Learning" used to be TV based, but now Pepperdine and UCLA are offering complete classes on the internet.
Interesting site: Alta Vista has a translator of up to 25 words to other languages.
Yahoo has a Map Generator like Mapquest
He used the term "jumping off place' for his site. [sure describes MY sites...you might jump off a bridge after seeing them!]
Issues in "Distance Learning" (today meaning Internet) Classes
1. Access and knowledge of software
2. Academic Honesty
He meets all students at the first session and they learn the software. Teaches web page address and e-mail address. First session, register for e-mail [univ. or web-based]. [Should they also register to post their web page if school doesn't provide space?]
Some problems they encountered: Modem problems, AOL cuts them off from internet.
Finally, his Seven Tools for Internet Teaching:
1. Web Pages. Start with 'static' web pages (all text) then add links to resources, graphics, (see quiz at tend of his page to be submitted by e-mail), Client Side Image Map (Interactive Graphics) w/menu on left to link right...keeps track of where student clicks and gives response to each click, Animated GIFs, sound (better w/Quicktime than REal Audio unless you use a Real Audio Server), and downloads.
2. With no time left, he covered the other seven: E-mail with attachements
3. Listservers/Newsgroups (Involves software on server)
4. Chat room
5. Assessment - online quizes and tests - multiple choice test when wrong it links to 'wrong, try again' when right, links to 'correct'
6. Audio-conferencing
7. Video-conferencing - He recommends CU-SeeMe for 30 day trial.
NOW, I find his abstract on the CD:
2048
DL
Intermediate
6-12, College, Administration
Teaching via the Internet: Using All Seven On-Line Teaching Tools
Instructional technologies generally evolve gradually. In the past, only when a technology was well established did education begin to find appropriate applications for it. But the new generations of technologies that comprise the internet, world-wide web browsers, and on-line communications are changing all that. This time, education is among the early adopters of a new and fast-emerging technology. But lest we rush in where technologists fear to tread, we need to be sure we understand both the teaching capabilities and technical limitations inherent in this new opportunity.
At California State University, Long Beach, we are involved in a continuing exploration of the instructional potential of the internet and its related technology tools. We have added internet content to many existing courses and adopted the internet as the primary teaching method in others. In our graduate courses on technology-based instruction, we have been focusing on the status of today's internet tools and their potential for the delivery of instruction.
Level 1 - Web Pages. The most obvious instructional use of the internet is to use web pages to deliver course materials to students. While it is faster than the US mail, there may be little added benefit to students other than the technical "glitz" of the delivery method. In that kind of correspondence-course model, the students can receive the class materials more quickly, but they have to use some special technologies to do it: we shouldn't forget that many students are still learning how to use the internet. A lot depends on the quality of the class materials; in other words, the quality of the web pages used to deliver the instruction. Web pages can (1) provide links to internet resources, (2) include full-color graphics to illustrate important points, (3) "play" audio and video files, and (4) provide informational files or programs that students can download and use as part of the learning experience.
Level 2 - Email. Using email to communicate with students and for student discussions adds a valuable level of interaction to internet-based teaching.
Level 3 - Listservs. Listservs can be used to facilitate the distribution of class materials and to set up discussion groups among students.
Level 4 - On-Line Assessment. Instructors can easily create quizzes and exams on a web page and have the results automatically emailed to them.
Level 5 - Keyboard Chat. Although limited by the user's typing ability, scheduled chat sessions provide a simple way to establish "live" communication with students.
Level 6. - Audio Conferencing. Internet-based audio conferencing systems provide some of the person-to-person interactivity students normally get in the classroom.
Level 7 - Video Conferencing. Although some of the required technology tools are complicated, internet-based video conferencing systems provide the kind of "live" interactions many teachers find missing in current internet-based course offerings.
[Back to Table of Contents above]
Stress, Technology and Exercise
Session was CANCELLED...which gave me great stress, but here's the Abstract from the CD:
2197
SH
All
K-12, College, Administration
STRESS, TECHNOLOGY, AND EXERCISE
Warning!Warning! Too much technology can be dangerous to your health!! Many educators, parents and students are overly worried about technology and the changes that it will bring into their lives in the future. They worry that they don't have enough technology or that they have too much technology. Or they worry that they don't know what to do with the technology that they have. How can we expect to educators to do a good job of teaching continually worried about this monster called technology?
Stress is a very familiar and powerful force that is having a great impact on how we teach. The introduction of technologies such as computers has greatly increased the stress load on already over burdened teachers. We need to develop skills and strategies in order to deal effectively with the negative aspects of stress. Once educators have the necessary skills in dealing with stress, they will be able to enhance.
In integrating new technology or software applications into daily practice there can be a lot of frustration, anxiety and stress. The problem is that most educators don't have a good understanding of the process involved and how to use the required technology. The emphasis of this session is to provide practical ideas for teachers, without a lot of "techno-talk", in
Most teachers jump onto the technology bandwagon without much thought as to what is involved. Integrating any new technology takes a lot of planning, organisation, skill building and patience. A lot of anguish can be avoided by learning some important basic skills before embarking on your main goal. s, and ask questions on smaller projects.
Before beginning any multimedia project teachers and students need to have some basic curricular and technical skills. The curricular skills include writing, planning, organising, researching, and interviewing and the technical skills include video-taping, using a computer and video capture using Quicktime.
This session will provide ideas for developing skills in interviewing, video-taping, and using Hypercard will be discussed. Participants will learn about the hardware and software that is necessary in getting started on their own multimedia projects.
Overview of this session:
1) Finding your stress level.
2) Reason behind increased stress.
3) Role of exericise and healthy living
4) Setting goals for technology.
5) Short and long term planning.
6) Key concepts for integrating technology into daily practice.
7) Must have applications for teachers.
8) Must have applications for students.
[Back to Table of Contents above]
Redondo High School gave 475 freshmen "Study Pros" a couple of months ago. No disk drive. Each classroom has an infrared that recognizes the students when they open their laptops (and takes roll) and downloads anything lost and uploads any files from flash memory that were done at home. Students can print in the room. Windows based laptop is 'military approved'. Only 2 were broken and they were thrown down a flight of stairs. Each teacher gets a Toshiba laptop. Nine schools across the nation are doing this program.
Their Abstract:
2182
Beginning, Intermediate
6-12, Administration
A Laptop In every Backpack
Brief:
A progress report on the NetSchools infusion of technology at Redondo Union High School, where 500 laptops were distributed to the total freshmen class. An overview at:
http://www.netschools.net
In September 1997 Redondo Union High School, in Redondo Beach, California began a project with NetSchools Corporation. (http://www.netschools.net)
The Redondo Beach Unified School District had completed the building of a LAN to service all classrooms K-12. A district teacher, at the same time, put together a plan for an ISP that would be run by students on the campus of the high school. "Beachnet" has been a very successful Internet access provider to not only teachers and students but to the community as well.
NetSchools approach to increasing student achievement through technology will be to issue StudyPro Laptops to the entire freshmen class along with 25 teacher laptops. Parent, student, and teacher training will be an essential part of this project.
[the following came off the CD like this!]
T h i s s e s s i o n i s d e s i g n e d t o g i v e t h e p a r t i c i p a n t s a p r o g r e s s r e p o r t o f t h i s f i r s t l e v e l d e v e l o p m e n t o f t h e N e t S c h o o l s p r o g r a m a t o u r s c h o o l .
P a r t i c i p a n t w i l l g e t t o s e e t h e S t u d y P r o . A d e s i g n s p e c i f i c l a p t o p b u i l t t o w i t h s t a n d t h e r i g o r s o f t h e s t u d e n t d a y . T o u g h , w i r e l e s s , a n d w i t h n o s t r e e t v a l u e t h e S t u d y P r o p r o v i d e s t h e s o l u t i o n t h a t o u r d i s t r i c t w a s l o o k i n g f o r .
P a r t i c i p a n t s w i l l g e t t o s e e
1. t h e s o f t w a r e u s e d , i n c l u d i n g a l o o k a t t h e t e a c h e r -d e s i g n e d "K n o w l e d g e N e t s" f o r integrating s c h o o l -c e n t e r e d c u r r i c u l u m t o u s e o f t h e l a p t o p s a t s c h o o l a n d h o m e .
2. t h e "ho w" , "w h y" , a n d t h e "o h m y" o f t h i s e x c i t i n g a n d c h a l l e n g i n g p r o j e c t .
3. h o w t h e y c a n l o o k t o t h e f u t u r e b y l e a r n i n g f r o m o u r g r o w i n g e x p e r i e n c e s i n t r y i n g t o a c h i e v e t h e k i n d o f p r o d u c t i v i t y t h a t a c o m p u t e r i n t h e h a n d s o f e v e r y s t u d e n t c a n p r o v i d e .
4. s u c c e s s e s a n d p i t f a l l s i n a q u e s t i o n a n d a n s w e r p e r i o d w i t h s o m e o f t h e t e a c h e r s, students, and parents i n v o l v e d i n t h e p r o j e c t .
5. t h e e v a l u a t i o n p r o c e s s t h r o u g h a t t i t u d i n a l and measureable s u r v e y s , student projects, and other assessment tools.
A power point presentation of the project will include a tour of the websites, explanation of the program, and visuals. An electronic question and answer platform will be utilized with attendees.
[Back to Table of Contents above]
Filamentality: Making the Leap
From Web Sites to Insights
Learned here of a great place to teach making web pages AND posting them on the WWW free! http://www.kn.pacbell.com/wired/fil/ No graphics allowed but links with graphics stored elsewhere on the web would work. Tutorial looks like Tripod's, but uncustomizable. Ok to have student's use this as well as teachers. Stated limit of six months left on their server, but they haven't removed anything yet. They have a registry so you can see if pages have been made and stored on the subject of your choice already.
Blue Web'n (Blue Ribbon) Mailing List of 15,000 subscribers to their listserv. Database of Web Sites they've searched. Web Based Tutorials. Web Based Activities. Web Based Projects plus 4 other categories. WebQuests including 'Six Strategies for using the web for learning.' Treasure Hunts. Guide for Teachers and Guide for Trainers. 500 pages now registered and searchable in their database.
2190
MU
K-12, College, Administration
Filamentality: Making the Leap from Websites to Insights
Looking back on it, getting Internet access into your classroom seemed like a hurdle. But once you got access, finding your way around the Web seemed like the high hurdle. Now that you know how to use search engines and can even find Web-stuff related to what you teach (by the way how are your mutual funds doing? what's the weather like in your hometown? whatever happened to your high school sweetheart?), the big challenge you face is, "How do I go from my bookmarks to student learning?"
No, you're not in for the steeple chase, the Pacific Bell Education First team at San Diego State University has developed a Website called Filamentality* that guides users through brainstorming topics, using search engines, collecting good Websites, and creating a variety of Web-based activities.
During the first part of this session, participants will learn the basics of using Filamentality. They will learn that it is an interactive, cross-platform, free, Web page maker that does more than hack HTML. Through Filamentality's interactive process, users will create a hotlist that evolves into an activity format that specifically targets affective, knowledge-acquisition, or higher-cognition goals for learners. The activities include such things as:
¥ Treasure Hunts
¥ Multimedia Scrapbooks
¥ Subject Samplers
¥ Introductory WebQuests
The second half of the presentation will actually be a strategy session where participants get coaching on tips and suggestions that will help them decide which activities they want to create based upon their instructional goals.
This is an excellent session for people who are poised to use the Web in their classrooms, educators who like students to construct their own Web pages for learning or those teachers who end up training other teachers. These Web sites and this process will provide the lift you need.
* Webs are made of Filaments, learning comes from active mentality, Filamentality combines the two.
[Back to Table of Contents above]
Videoconferencing for
Learning
http://www.kn.pacbell.com/vidconf
The abstract:
2188
DL
All
K-12, College, Administration
Videoconferencing for Learning
Using videoconferencing technology, two or more people at different locations can see and hear each other at the same time, sometimes even sharing computer applications for collaboration. This rich communications technology offers new possibilities for schools, colleges, and libraries, who are now using videoconferencing systems for a variety of purposes, including formal instruction (courses, lessons, and tutoring), connection with guest speakers and experts, multi-school project collaboration, professional activities, and community events.
As an interactive communication medium, two-way video stands out in a number of ways. First of all, it's almost like being there. The visual connection and interaction among participants enhances understanding and helps participants feel connected to each other. This goes a long way toward building relationships in a way that e-mail, telephone, or online chat systems cannot, supporting collaboration among traditionally isolated institutions. A videoconference can improve retention and appeal to a variety of learning styles by including diverse media such as video or audio clips, graphics, animations, computer applications.
Educators and librarians from around the country report that Videoconferencing technology impacts student learning in the following ways:
Heightens Motivation
¥ The excitement of using new technology and interacting with other students or adults increases motivation. Improves Communication, Presentation, and "SCANS" Skills
¥ Students perceive video gusts as important and are more conscious their appearance and oral communication.
¥ When students plan and implement the videoconference, they learn important communication and management skills
Increases Connection with the Outside World
¥ In some cases, a live visit is not possible, though at least one face-to-face visit is recommended if an ongoing relationship is important and if it is feasible.
¥ Videoconferencing is usually easier than visiting, so communication can be more frequent, saving time and resources.
¥ Students have a greater opportunity to form meaningful relationships with children who may be very different from them.
¥ The richness of the communication supports the formation of relationships between learners and mentors/role models.
Increases Depth of Learning
¥ Students learn to ask better questions.
¥ Learning is from a primary source rather than from a textbook, so students are exposed to multiple perspectives.
¥ Videoconferencing usually involves collaborative , authentic learning situations learning and appeals to different intelligences (language, interpersonal, spatial, kinesthetic). Necessary planning also contributes to a better learning experiences.
[Back to Table of Contents above]
Their abstract:
2106
TC
All
K-12, College, Administration
Web Page Design Tips
Although it's tempting to rate a Web page solely on the "Glitzometer," there are actually three factors to consider when creating (or grading) the page:
1) Purpose: Why are you putting it on the Web rather than some other medium? Who is your target audience and what should they do in reaction to your page?
2) Content: What is the information or insight you intend to convey?
3) Technique: How do you combine text and graphics to display your content and achieve your purpose? How is Web "publishing" different from print? What are the new opportunities and constraints?
We examine the importance of graphics and animation and share some tips for balancing them with download time. (For example, we talk about JPEGs vs. GIFs and when to use each; horizontal vs. vertical graphics; "morphing" from thumbnails, black and whites, or smaller images to larger photographic images; the impact of photographs vs. clip art; effective use of backgrounds, bullets, lines and rules.)
We take participants on a tour of exemplary home pages and visit sites that offer free-to-download images and graphics as well as a myriad of tips for Web page design, authoring and posting.
We sift through the hundreds of books and magazines that talk about the Web, and recommend a few of the most valuable.
Finally, we reflect on the use of humor on the Web and show how to entertain more people than you offend.
A handout is provided (as well as a Web address with links) for all the URLs mentioned in the session as well as dozens of additional print, CD and online resources. The handout is also posted on the Thornburg Center web site (www.tcpd.org) with hot links so participants can check out the sites mentioned without having to type in all the URLs.
NOTE: Both the handout and the web pages are available in Portuguese as well as English.
e-mail: lynellb@aol.com
[Back to Table of Contents above]