This week has been quite interesting actually. Over the weekend I wasn't looking forward to having to get stuck back into some work... I think I slipped slightly into lazy mode during half term! However, Monday morning came and the task was revealed. At first I was a bit surprised to find I had to do a presentation all about the colour black, but in retrospect, it's been really interesting and a good task to do.
Firstly was the research. I spent pretty much six and a half hours on Monday just reading on the web about black, as well as the theories behind colour psychology. Having done Psychology at AS Level, I already had some knowledge and grounding with this, as well as an existing interest. This definitely helped with my preparations for next weeks presentation.
I've almost got my presentation done now, just need to practice it a few times and make sure I know the structure, etc. like the back of my hand. Not that I know the back of my hand that well...
I guess I didn't realise colours mattered as much as they do prior to this task, and my eyes have, in many ways, been opened. I suppose, in my ever-cynical view on life, I take the opinion that maybe the importance of certain things are over-analysed, and I think this may be one of those cases. Colours can be important, but more often than not, I think that they are just simply colours. I don't know what others think about this... let me know.
I've got my hosting sorted this week, so I expect I'll be providing you all with a new e-mail address soon enough, but I'll wait until I see you to do that. My domain name is www.tp-smith.co.uk, not much up there at the moment, but I thought I'd let you know for future reference. I decided to go with John for my hosting- it really did seem like the best option at this time- not just in price, but also what is provided. I think it's a brilliant deal!
I've also printed off the assignment sheets for the next two assignments. 'Back to Basic' looks quite interesting, but I have to admit, on first reading of 'Image Rights', I felt quite nervous about it. It seems to be quite a challenging assignment. I'm definitely going to have to re-read it a few times and come up with some questions about it. Hopefully this'll help me get my mind together and add to my comprehension of what the assignment will want from me.
Tuesday 30 October 2007
Tuesday 23 October 2007
Half Term... and Glad!
This weeks post may not be as long as the others, as it's half term and not a lot of assignment-related work has been going on!
I've set this week aside as a real time for rest and re-cooperation. I've found myself really, really tired this week, and I think it's been die to all the unforeseen stress I experienced during the first assignment.
Having said that the week has been for rest, I have spent a few hours messing around with XHTML, and I think I'm beginning to get to grips with the basics... although the more complicated stuff still has work needing to be done on it to improve. As for CSS, I think that it might be later in the week before I get onto having a play with that, if I'm lucky!
This week I've also had a chance to step back and think abut how I think the course is going for me, on a more personal level. Again, as I mentioned in previous posts, I'm beginning to feel that this really is the course for me at this point in my life. This, I can tell you, is really encouraging for me... I've really struggled to find a sense of direction in my life in the past!
I've set this week aside as a real time for rest and re-cooperation. I've found myself really, really tired this week, and I think it's been die to all the unforeseen stress I experienced during the first assignment.
Having said that the week has been for rest, I have spent a few hours messing around with XHTML, and I think I'm beginning to get to grips with the basics... although the more complicated stuff still has work needing to be done on it to improve. As for CSS, I think that it might be later in the week before I get onto having a play with that, if I'm lucky!
This week I've also had a chance to step back and think abut how I think the course is going for me, on a more personal level. Again, as I mentioned in previous posts, I'm beginning to feel that this really is the course for me at this point in my life. This, I can tell you, is really encouraging for me... I've really struggled to find a sense of direction in my life in the past!
Tuesday 16 October 2007
Deadline Day... Done and Dusted!
Today was the first deadline on the course, and I feel good that it's finally out of the way! As you can see from my previous posts, the assignment hasn't passed without problems, and I'm massively thankful and happy for the deadline to now have passed and the assignment to be handed in.
I was surprised at how relaxed I was around the deadline... if I was asked last week, I would have said that I'd be working right up until the last hour or so before the cut off point for handing in. In fact, all I had to do on the morning of the deadline was print off a few pages (that I couldn't at home) and put them in plastic wallets. By being prepared in advance, I think it enabled me to be much calmer around the deadline, and I had plenty of time to proof read and make any last minute amendments. Next time, though, I might make sure I can print the colour pages off at home... 20p a page can make it's impression on the pocket!
Over the last seven weeks, I think my knowledge of web design has evolved massively, particularly, I think, in terms of theoretical aspects such as accessibility. I've found looking into things like this really interesting, which is brilliant, as I've never found myself doing academic research into things I'm interested in before. At times I've ended up reading more than I had to. Having this feeling has made me begin to think that this really is the right course for me at this point.
Throughout the assignment, I think one area I've definitely improved in is the time management. At first, I found this difficult to do, but over the past few weeks I've found myself planning and recording my time much more efficiently. I'm also beginning to see that this has really helped the way I work. My recording of time is a lot better than my planning at the moment, so I've decided to assign this as a target to work on for the future.
Over the half term break and reading week, I've decided that, in addition to the work Steve sets, I'm going to spend a bit of time 'messing about' with HTML, and maybe a bit of CSS. I'm not massively familiar with these at the moment, and I think it's about time I set some time aside to deal with this. Now I'm looking forward to expanding my knowledge of this area, and I'll let you know how it goes.
I was surprised at how relaxed I was around the deadline... if I was asked last week, I would have said that I'd be working right up until the last hour or so before the cut off point for handing in. In fact, all I had to do on the morning of the deadline was print off a few pages (that I couldn't at home) and put them in plastic wallets. By being prepared in advance, I think it enabled me to be much calmer around the deadline, and I had plenty of time to proof read and make any last minute amendments. Next time, though, I might make sure I can print the colour pages off at home... 20p a page can make it's impression on the pocket!
Over the last seven weeks, I think my knowledge of web design has evolved massively, particularly, I think, in terms of theoretical aspects such as accessibility. I've found looking into things like this really interesting, which is brilliant, as I've never found myself doing academic research into things I'm interested in before. At times I've ended up reading more than I had to. Having this feeling has made me begin to think that this really is the right course for me at this point.
Throughout the assignment, I think one area I've definitely improved in is the time management. At first, I found this difficult to do, but over the past few weeks I've found myself planning and recording my time much more efficiently. I'm also beginning to see that this has really helped the way I work. My recording of time is a lot better than my planning at the moment, so I've decided to assign this as a target to work on for the future.
Over the half term break and reading week, I've decided that, in addition to the work Steve sets, I'm going to spend a bit of time 'messing about' with HTML, and maybe a bit of CSS. I'm not massively familiar with these at the moment, and I think it's about time I set some time aside to deal with this. Now I'm looking forward to expanding my knowledge of this area, and I'll let you know how it goes.
Tuesday 9 October 2007
A week to go...
This week has been the most chaotic, yet enjoyable, week on the course so far. My last post has become entirely void... I had selected a final design, but Steve wasn't happy with this choice and insisted on an amalgamation of the two designs. Looking back to the feedback group last week, I now remember that this was his conclusion as the conversation developed, but this must have been forgotten throughout the week and after the gathering of further feedback from other sources. First lesson for this week: make notes during feedback groups for future reference.
I arrived on Monday with the target of getting my screen design done on Pagemaker. However, after a short conversation and brain storming session with Steve, it became apparent that the design needed a complete makeover. With the 'practice' deadline looming on Tuesday, this seemed almost implausible, especially as I still had to finish the assets list and budget statement.
Fortunately, I managed to get all the assignment completed (with the exception of the evaluation) ready for the feedback group, and I had time for a quick proof read as well.
Looking back on this week, it's been a real challenge, but I've really appreciated the pressure. It could be that I work more effectively with an impending deadline. Of course, there have been times of frustration (with Pagemaker for the most part!), but in general, getting my head down had been enjoyable, and definitely beneficial.
For those of you who are interested, here is an image of my final screen design:
I personally am really happy with the result of the redesign. In my opinion, it's a much more effective design than the others, and the combination of different aspects of the other two has led to a design that is much more suited to my target audience.
This week, I have to complete the evaluation, redesign my feedback form to include more methods of gathering information, and make some minor alterations to the body of the assignment. In all, I feel confident that I can get this done relatively easily within the time I have.
I arrived on Monday with the target of getting my screen design done on Pagemaker. However, after a short conversation and brain storming session with Steve, it became apparent that the design needed a complete makeover. With the 'practice' deadline looming on Tuesday, this seemed almost implausible, especially as I still had to finish the assets list and budget statement.
Fortunately, I managed to get all the assignment completed (with the exception of the evaluation) ready for the feedback group, and I had time for a quick proof read as well.
Looking back on this week, it's been a real challenge, but I've really appreciated the pressure. It could be that I work more effectively with an impending deadline. Of course, there have been times of frustration (with Pagemaker for the most part!), but in general, getting my head down had been enjoyable, and definitely beneficial.
For those of you who are interested, here is an image of my final screen design:
I personally am really happy with the result of the redesign. In my opinion, it's a much more effective design than the others, and the combination of different aspects of the other two has led to a design that is much more suited to my target audience.This week, I have to complete the evaluation, redesign my feedback form to include more methods of gathering information, and make some minor alterations to the body of the assignment. In all, I feel confident that I can get this done relatively easily within the time I have.
Friday 5 October 2007
Decision
Despite some feedback from members of the class, I've decided to go for screen design 1 as my final design.
The primary reason for this is the reaction of Steve in the feedback group on Tuesday. This was his preferred design, and he is the client! I did try to dissuade him from this at first, but in retrospect, he is the client and therefore he has the final say!
Over the course of the week I think I've come round to agree with him... feedback from older family and friends leads me to believe that the style of design 1 will 'connect' more with older people, and that this design reflects some styles of 30+ years ago. As my target audience is older, it's probably the best bet that I go with this and use design 1. Now all that remains is slight editing, including 'chunking' the text and amending the font to a more web safe font.
Thanks to those who left feedback.
The primary reason for this is the reaction of Steve in the feedback group on Tuesday. This was his preferred design, and he is the client! I did try to dissuade him from this at first, but in retrospect, he is the client and therefore he has the final say!
Over the course of the week I think I've come round to agree with him... feedback from older family and friends leads me to believe that the style of design 1 will 'connect' more with older people, and that this design reflects some styles of 30+ years ago. As my target audience is older, it's probably the best bet that I go with this and use design 1. Now all that remains is slight editing, including 'chunking' the text and amending the font to a more web safe font.
Thanks to those who left feedback.
Wednesday 3 October 2007
Screen Designs
As I said in my previous posts, I've got my screen design down to two ideas. Please take a look and tell me what you think.
Screen Design 1:
Screen Design 2:
A quick response would obviously be appreciated, and you can use the vote function on the right if you fancy it, although constructive comments would be better!
Screen Design 1:
Screen Design 2:
A quick response would obviously be appreciated, and you can use the vote function on the right if you fancy it, although constructive comments would be better!
Tuesday 2 October 2007
Under Pressure...
As usual, I'll begin with an update on last weeks post. My time management, I felt, was better than previous weeks and this week I have again planned the entire week in advance, which I find helps my mentality- I seem to dedicate myself to actually doing the time if I have it on paper. The Design Mechanics visit last week was excellent- really worthwhile to come in on an extra day to listen to what was said by Dave and the two former students, Jemma and Oliver. On a more negative note, I didn't manage to get a final screen design chosen- I've got down to two now but will need some more feedback before deciding on which design to submit- I'll post the designs up later today.
This week it's really hit home to me that the deadline really is just around the corner. And there's still a lot to do. Although I've completed the majority of tasks now, the remaining tasks seem like a mountain in front of me. This week I've managed to complete the site structure diagram, and I've written up an almost final draft of the written part of the assignment- the project goals, target audience, delivery requirements and competitive analysis. The problem with this, though, is that I've almost written too much! With an upper limit of 2500 and mine reaching 2300ish, I'm really going to have to do some editing at some point. I think, on the whole though, I'm happy with this part of the assignment.
During my self study this week, I need to make sure everything else is ready to be incorporated into my assignment document next week. This includes:
On Monday of this week, we had a session in which we discussed the question: "What do you have to do to get 'merit' and 'distinction' grades?" After this, I felt, to be honest, as though there wasn't a hope of achieving anything higher than a 'pass', especially at the moment. In a way this is a new feeling for me, to feel a grade is out of my reach, and it's not something I felt comfortable with. On the other hand, it's challenged me to set my targets a bit higher and has illustrated to me the difficulty of the course. Perhaps I could set an aim at some point to achieve a 'merit' or 'distinction' in an assignment, but I feel for now as though getting to grips with the course and what's expected of me is still a higher priority.
This week it's really hit home to me that the deadline really is just around the corner. And there's still a lot to do. Although I've completed the majority of tasks now, the remaining tasks seem like a mountain in front of me. This week I've managed to complete the site structure diagram, and I've written up an almost final draft of the written part of the assignment- the project goals, target audience, delivery requirements and competitive analysis. The problem with this, though, is that I've almost written too much! With an upper limit of 2500 and mine reaching 2300ish, I'm really going to have to do some editing at some point. I think, on the whole though, I'm happy with this part of the assignment.
During my self study this week, I need to make sure everything else is ready to be incorporated into my assignment document next week. This includes:
- a final screen design;
- assets list;
- budget statement;
- evaluation.
On Monday of this week, we had a session in which we discussed the question: "What do you have to do to get 'merit' and 'distinction' grades?" After this, I felt, to be honest, as though there wasn't a hope of achieving anything higher than a 'pass', especially at the moment. In a way this is a new feeling for me, to feel a grade is out of my reach, and it's not something I felt comfortable with. On the other hand, it's challenged me to set my targets a bit higher and has illustrated to me the difficulty of the course. Perhaps I could set an aim at some point to achieve a 'merit' or 'distinction' in an assignment, but I feel for now as though getting to grips with the course and what's expected of me is still a higher priority.
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