Journal Entry 8

            Since our dress rehearsal of the showcase, I have taken to heart what the second timers had to say about my project. I have looked over my home page and tried to have less white space without taking away from the point of my website. Another modification I have made is to have links open in new windows, so that users are not navigated away from the main site. I have also checked to make sure my site in compliant with section 508 rules. Pictures have alt tags and videos have a written alternative. These are things you typically do not think of as you are creating a project, so it is good to have another person view your project to find the things that should be tweaked to make the project effective.

It is amazing to see how my project has developed throughout the semester. Nelson and Stolterman (2003) cannot say my feelings any better, “Creating such a system of unification means bringing parts, pieces, functions, structures, processes and forms together in such a way that they have a presence and make an appearance, particularly of unity in the world” (p. 207). I feel as though I have achieved all of this in my project design this semester. It is mind-blowing to me to see where my project started on day one of the semester to where it is now and how it has come together. Nelson and Stolterman (2003) state, “once the designer dives in fully, it is one of the most inspiring and rewarding activities imaginable” (p. 223). I cannot agree more. Seeing my finished project gives me so much joy and confidence that I can be a designer.

            I cannot believe the final showcase is only one week away. I am excited to see other projects that I was not able to look at during the dress rehearsal. It is so interesting to see what my peers have designed and developed. It is incredible that the projects are so diverse. I didn’t think that there would be so many different types of projects because our class only represents a very small fraction of the designer population. But really it shows how creative and innovative each of us is. I have an amazing group of peers to use as a resource to bounce ideas off of and seek advice from. I even think of the studio experience as a small networking group.

References

Nelson, H. & Stolterman, E. (2003). The design way. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Educational Technology Publications. (Chapter 9: Composition) 

Journal Entry 7

            Last night in Studio we had our dress rehearsal of the fall showcase. This experience was very helpful in getting feedback about my project. The second timers were really supportive during the first half of the session. They had great advice to offer to make my site better, for example create more white space where there is a lot of text and also make links open in new windows. It was also great to just talk with them about design. They made a lot of compliments on my project and seemed impressed at what I created as a first timer to the course. It really made me feel like I had succeeded at something. Dr. Rieber discussed how sometimes we feel like creations may not be significant, but really we should not think that way because to other people they are significant. This is exactly how I feel sometimes. It was good to hear him reassure us that what we are doing is stepping out of our comfort zone and creating projects that are extraordinary.

            After the second timers viewed our projects we were able to view theirs. They had some amazing projects. It was so neat to see what they had created and the tools they used to get there. They are more experienced than us, so it was interesting to see where we would be next fall. One project that stuck out to me was a particular game that a second timer created. He had me actually play his game so that he could see where improvements were needed. Kapor (1996) states, “during the course of implementing a design, new information will arise, which many times will change the original design” (p. 8). I was able to be a key part of his design. I really enjoyed the design conversations that came about last night at the rehearsal.

            I plan on taking their comments to heart and looking over my project. The next few weeks before the final showcase, I plan on tweaking things in my project to make it the best that I can make it. I like Krause’s (2004) last statement about how designers succeed by “fostering personal creativity, learning the language of aesthetics and striving for proficiency with the tools of their trade” (p. 351). Not only do I want to succeed at this course, but also as a designer of future projects. This course is the first step in achieving this goal and I am sure the other studio courses will be the other key steps to becoming a designer and developer.

References

Kapor, M. (1996). A software design manifesto. In Winograd, T. (Ed.), Bringing Design to Software (pp. 1-9). New York: Addison-Wesley.

Krause, J. (2004). Design basics index: A designer's guide to designing effective compositions, selecting dynamic components and developing creative concepts. Cincinnati, OH: How Design Books.

Journal Entry 6

            Krause (2004) states, “Concept, when it is effectively applied, demands and hooks the viewer’s attention” (p. 280). This statement struck me as I was reading Krause’s Design Basics Index. This is something that I have been working on in my project. Over the past two weeks, I have been working on making my site more interactive and attention grabbing. I have been working with Animoto to create a presentation that makes the viewer want to learn more about the gluten free lifestyle and why it is so important to some people. I also filmed myself making lasagna to give viewers more than just a recipe. I thought this would be an engaging way to share a favorite recipe of ours. Some people learn visually as well. Another feature I am proud of learning is using a piece of software called EasyRotator. My plan was to list various recipes on a page, but as I started doing this, I noticed the page was getting entirely too long. When I have to scroll for a while on a website, that tends to make me not want to visit the site again. The EasyRotator allows me to create a type of slide show for the recipes. After creating my slides and installing the piece on my site, I am very pleased. It adds a bit of flare I feel to the site! I am continuing to amaze myself with everything that I am learning. Especially with the fact that I am self teaching, which is something I have not been comfortable with in the past. This skill is going to benefit me in the future however.

            Krause (2004) mentions that, “when a piece’s audience has been identified and its goal defined, it’s time to look for a message that will achieve this goal” (p. 330). I agree with Krause’s statement. My audience for my project can be anyone, but I am mainly targeting my family because I am trying to create something they can use in order to understand where my husband comes from. My goal is that they will understand him better and why he feels the way that he does when he eats gluten. Since I have established my audience and goal the message I am trying to send is to understand that eating gluten free not only affects my husband, but also myself and anyone else we choose to dine with, which happens to be family a lot. Eating gluten free can be scary and overwhelming at first, but it doesn’t mean that your life is over.

References

Krause, J. (2004). Design basics index: A designer's guide to designing effective compositions, selecting dynamic components and developing creative concepts. Cincinnati, OH: How Design Books.