Planning Your Project


The CS110 project is composed of five graded parts and one that you can complete after the course ends. These components are listed in this document with a very high-level overview. Each of them will have its own detailed description that you will read once a milestone ends and a new one starts.

Requirements

However, consider:

  • Requirements assignment is here obsolete.
    • You and your client must clearly articulate the site's goals. Are you trying to persuade, inspire, inform, debunk, delude, and so on.
  • Describe the audience:
    • who is a typical visitor, why is she visiting, what is she looking for, what is her background?
  • What is the subject matter?
    • Focus, focus! You can't provide everything to everyone.
    • Estimate resources and time, so you can plan accordingly.
  • Be precise!

Design

  • How will you meet the requirements?
  • Be very explicit: leave nothing unspoken or undocumented.
  • PLAN the work: determine all the tasks, assign them, and set deadlines for each.
  • Provide a listing of all directories and files. This can be done just like the computer would. This allows your partner to link to files you're creating, and vice versa.
  • This is also a co-authored paper, written in HTML, as long as necessary.

Coding

  • The first version ("beta" version) of your web site, all contained within a folder called "beta."
  • Also, a changes.html document that explains changes you made to your design, and tells us where your "start" page is. This is outside your beta folder.
  • Ideally, you will have divided the work well so that you can work largely independently.
  • However, keep in touch with each other and ensure that each partner is meeting her deadlines. Support one another and help without interfering.

Testing

  • Have others test your site and objectively evaluate it.
  • Write a short document about the feedback obtained and the changes made.
  • Implement (and document) the changes described in your testing document and other problems you've found.
  • The finished code is all contained in a folder called "final".
  • This is your final version.

Class Presentation

  • Short (9-10 minute) presentation describing your web site, touching on all the features you've developed over the semester: how you tailored it for your target audience, your content, your navigation, and any fancy features.
  • Cover your design decisions: why you did things the way you did.
  • You'll want to have good presentation skills and smoothly interact with your partner.
  • PLTC has special tutors for this. We will provide you with opportunities to practice with them.

Delivery

  • Make sure you give the finished site to your client!
  • Clients will have to arrange with their own ISP.
  • Think about how the audience will find the site. Who links to it? Your clients might need to advertise the site in blogs, Facebook posts, Tumblr, Twitter, etc., so that the number of links pointing to the new website grows over time.