Practice Makes...Almost Perfect

I am finally starting to get the hang of the web development skills we are learning in class, basic though they are. What used to take me half an hour of trial and error now takes me a few short steps. For a while, I was confused about the location of files in the public_html folder on my desktop, on Files 2.0 and in JEdit, but I understand now how they all work together.

Just to give a quick example: Earlier today, I wanted to see what my code looked like, so I uploaded it to Files 2.0 and opened the page. Later, I realized that instead of waiting to upload it on Files 2.0, I can just open the .html file from my desktop folder and the page will automatically open in a new window. It's a much faster way to check my work.

Little things like that are starting to make my work a lot easier. Most of all, I really admire the work of professional web developers who can do much more complicated and elegant coding than my basic scrawl. I have a newfound appreciation for user-friendly, aesthetically pleasing websites!

Blackboard Critique

As much as I love the way Blackboard makes it possible for teachers and students to communicate more effectively and "go green," it is not very user friendly. I like the way students can post papers, download reading assignments, send email to classmates and participate in discussion threads. However, the administrator (usually the professor) must set up certain privileges in order for these functions to work, and sometimes professors don't bother, or don't know how.

For me, the side bar is confusing. I usually have to click on a few items (Course Documents, Course Information, Assignments, etc.) before I can find what I'm looking for. Professors should be able to label their own side bars, so that the items are more relevant to each individual class, and therefore easier to navigate.

Group Presentation Ideas

We all expressed an interest in photography, so we're going to make either a website or a slideshow/movie called A DAY IN THE LIFE. Each of us will choose one day to take 10-15 pictures throughout the day, of places we go, people we see, the mundane and the profound. Then, we'll collect all of our photos and present them creatively, but we're not quite sure how yet.

Professor Yen said there was a group a few semesters ago who did a photo project that looked at graffiti around the city. Maybe we could focus on something more specific like that.