We’ve covered a lot of ground in the past few weeks, and I hope all of you have reached the point where the principles of responsive web design and the intricacies of the Bootstrap framework have “clicked” for you. During the final two weeks of this project, you’ll be pulling together everything you’ve learned so far this semester: site structure, typography, color, images, etc… Remember: the difference between a good site and a great site lies in the details, so when you’re done marking up your content, make sure you spend enough time customizing the site header, the menus, the sidebars, and the other little features that will improve the appearance and functionality of your site.
I will be traveling for part of next week, so I’m taking this chance to share our plans for the coming two weeks. You’ll be completing some of this work while I’m gone, but if you have any questions, I will be available by email. Here’s a quick overview of the next two weeks:
- Your homework for Monday (10/21) is to finalize the Bootstrap template(s) you plan to use for your new site and assemble all of the pages you think you will need for this project. If you have been keeping up with our checkpoint assignments, this task shouldn’t be too difficult. As you finalize your template(s), the following sites might provide some inspiration:
In class, I will demonstrate how to create a private, protected subdomain on your Reclaim Hosting account for uploading your Unit #2 files, and we will experiment with some tools that will help you add custom CSS to your Bootstrap site.
- On Wednesday (10/23), I will be at a conference, so I have designed a class activity that you can complete without me. Please come to class ready to share your favorite strategy for customizing a Bootstrap site. The tip, trick, or workaround that you share should be something you’ve learned while working on Unit #2 and something your classmates might be able to use on their sites. Plan to take no more than five minutes demonstrating your method(s) for working with Bootstrap. Any remaining time can be used helping each other solve technical problems on your sites.
- On Monday (10/28), we will conduct a peer critique workshop on your Unit #2 websites. Please come to class with a complete site, ready to be tested and reviewed by your peers. In order for everyone to see your site, it should be up and running on your Reclaim Hosting account before you come to class. This workshop will help you iron out any final wrinkles in the design and functionality of your site.
On Wednesday (10/30), your Unit #2 project is due before you come to class. Please review the assignment guidelines and make sure your site functions properly after you have uploaded it to your Reclaim Hosting account.[UPDATE: The due date for Unit #2 has been pushed back to Monday, November 4.] In class, we will begin discussing the Client Project, so please read the following articles:- “Marry Your Clients,” by Shane Pearlman
- “In Defense of Difficult Clients,” by Rob Swan
- “No One Nos: Learning to Say No to Bad Ideas,” by Whitney Hess
- “20 Signs You Don’t Want that Web Design Project,” by Jeffrey Zeldman
You don’t need to print out all of these articles, but you should be ready to discuss them when you come to class. (When you’re done reading those, if you need a little diversion, check out Clients from Hell.)
If you have any questions about these plans, please don’t hesitate to contact me. We’ll also have a chance in class on Monday to make sure that everyone knows what’s going on for the next few weeks.