Web Design Principles

South Puget Sound Community College // April 28-29

 

Files

Dropbox files // Timer

Web Design Principles, A Beginning (pdf)

Books, Tools, Links

Books

• Learning Web Design: A Beginner’s Guide to HTML, CSS, Javascript and Web Graphics (Amazon)
• The Design of Everyday Things (Revised, 2013, Amazon)
• The Inmates are Running the Asylum (Amazon)

Software

• Browsers: Chrome // Safari (Mac) // Edge (Win10), MSIE (older Win)
• Text editors (free): Notepad++ (Win) and TextWrangler (Mac)
• Image editors: Photoshop (Win/Mac), Camera+ (iOS)
• I just want a blog! WordPress.com / Blogger.com / Tumblr.com / Medium.com

Tutorials

• HTML Dog – Beginner
• Mozilla
  • Getting started with HTML
• W3C – HTML Tutorial
  • Introduction
  • HTML Basics
  • HTML Elements
    • Headings
    • Images
    • Links
    • Paragraphs
    • Quotes
  • HTML Attributes
  • HTML Comments
  • HTML5 Style Guide
  • HTML5 Semantics
• W3C – CSS Tutorial
  • Introduction
  • Syntax
  • The Cascade

Video

• 3 ways good design makes  you happy – Don Norman
• DNS Explained

Web sites, resources

• A List Apart
• Section508
• Should I use a carousel
• Smashing Magazine
• Web Style Guide, Basic Design Principles for Creating Web Sites

Course Description

This 2-day class explores the fundamentals of what it takes to create a website from scratch and maintain it. If you need to create, re-vamp or maintain a website, and you need background knowledge and a few useful skills and tips, this class is for you.

We will discuss the process of creating websites, content management systems, web site design terms and principles. We will also explore converting images for the web and create a very simple website on WordPress.com.

Class format includes lecture, hands-on exercises, and real world examples.

Audience

This course is ideal for anyone, but especially communications professionals, who are involved in the conception, visual appeal and ease of use of web content.

Upon completion of this course, you should …

• Understand how to create a website from scratch
• Understand important fundamental website lingo such as “domain, URL, FTP”
• Be familiar different software options for creating websites and learn the pros and cons of each
• Explain best practices & guidelines for planning a website
• Understand why people leave websites
• Discuss navigation techniques and terminology
• Analyze a website and critique what “works” and what doesn’t
• Understand the concept of Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
• Use “usability” principles and a checklist to help you create user-friendly sites
• Learn about integrating social media on a website
• Be able to create a simple website on WordPress.com