Syllabus

Interactive/Web Design 2 (6733) - A.K.A. Open Source DesignCRN: 6733, Credits: 2, Fridays 12PM – 2:40PM, Spring 2008Instructor: Mushon Zer-Aviv, email: mushon [at] shual [.] com

Course Description:

Open Source Design is a web and interaction design class dedicated to designing with and for free and open source software.The class will explore layout, color, and interaction design concepts for the web. Students can expect to add new skills including the use of HTML and CSS, and an introduction to the ins and out of Wordpress content management system. Students are not required to have any programming skills and all the actual technical work will be very accessible. In today’s media environments the tools we use now will be extinct by the time we can put them to use, therefore today rather than learning how to use tools as they are, we should understand how they work in order to renew and change them to fit our needs. The main questions we will deal with through the semester will be how do we learn and how can we teach through interface? What is the role of design in the open source world? And how can we give back to this new collaborative movement?This course is about learning to develop and execute strong design concepts, and not to learn a specific software or programming.

Course Outline:

This course is based around assignments that the students would encounter working in the new media industry. Student will design interfaces for real existing open source projects and will actively engage with these communities. No programming skills are pre-required, but some will be acquired through the course of the semester. Projects will be presented both as digital images and as html/css compositions and Wordpress themes. The students will primarily be creating their designs in Photoshop and then translating it into markup language. Almost all classes will be centered around the critique of student work. The students are expected to bring in their homework to each class and be prepared to explain to the class how they arrived at the presented solution, showing sketches and variations of the design. Students are expected to participate in the critique and discussions of their fellow students’ work, as topics and questions arising from these discussions will introduce the students to many of the ins-and-outs of interactive design and the open source process. Each class one student will give a presentation on an issue relevant to the class topic - on the margin of design and open source. On some of the final critiques guest critics will be invited and students are expected to give a well thought out presentation of their work. Guest speakers might also be invited to present on some specific topics during the course. Learning Outcomes: After taking the class students should have a basic understanding of the open source process and an approach to make the designer a part of it. The students should be able to design a successful web interface taking into account both usability and technological considerations. Students will be given the tools to take on any technology and hack their way successfully through it.

Evaluation and Grading:

The student grade will be determined from a number of factors and will follow the school’s guidelines below. The final grade will be determined as a summary of the grade for each project throughout the semester, but a student’s progress throughout the semester will also be taken into account. Each project will be graded based on the final result and presentation, but an equally important factor will be the ability of the student to follow the outlined process and that required effort and work is shown throughout the project. Failing to do so will affect the grade on a project.

Readings and Resources:

There are no required readings for this class but recommended books and resources will be discussed during class.

Materials and Supplies:

The students are required to bring their sketchbook and notebook to each class. Even though not mandatory, it is highly recommended that the students have their own computer (Mac or PC) with the software Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator.

DEPARTMENT AND CLASS POLICIES and REQUIREMENTS:

Attendance: Attendance at all classes is expected. There is no substitute for working and participating in class. Three absences is a failure. If a student fails a class due to attendance, he/she is no longer permitted to attend the class. Absence will impact final grade. Undo tardiness following a given break will result in an absence. Leaving before the class is over is considered an absence.Tardiness: Two tardy nesses will be counted as one absence. Ten minutes late is considered tardy. Over 20 minutes late is considered an absence.Academic Warning: Students who do not complete and submit assignments on time and to a satisfactory standard will fail the class. It is the student’s responsibility to obtain missed assignments from other classmates and make up work in time for the next class.

Undergraduate Grade Description:

A 4.0 Outstanding, professional quality workA- 3.7 Excellent workB+ 3.3 Work of high qualityB 3.0 Very Good workB- 2.7 Good workC+ 2.3 Average workC 2.0 Adequate workC- 1.7 Passing work but below good academic standingD 1.0 Below averageF 0.0 FailureWork that is late, if accepted by the instructor, is downgraded one full grade for each session lateCourse requirements:Assignments –All assigned work is due at the beginning of the following class session unless otherwise noted. Work submitted after that will be considered late and will be marked down accordingly.Preparedness: All students are expected to bring required materials to all classes. In addition, each student is expected to maintain a visual and written journal, which will be a collection of observations, inspirations, class studies, and preparation sketches for projects/assignments.

Faculty Contact Information

I can be reached at mushon [at] shual [.] com for questions and appointments.

COURSE OUTLINE

01/25 - Week 1: Overview: The Collaborative process, Digital design and Open Source

In class:

Assignments:

02/01 - Week 2: The DOM

In class:

Assignments: HTMLify and mockup your tutorial’s page.

02/08 - Week 3: BluePrint CSS - Grids and Layouts

In class:

Assignments: write CSS code for your layout.

02/15 - Week 4: BluePrint CSS - Web Typography and graphic elements

In class:

Assignments: Complete the page tutorial assignment.

02/22 - Week 5: Tutorial pre-final

In class:

Assignments:

02/29 - Week 6: Deeper into Wordpress (guest lecture)

In class:

Assignments:

03/07 - Week 7:

* Mushon in Europe. Make Up class date to be scheduled.

Assignments:

03/14 - Week 8: Wordpress pre-final

assignment:

03/28 - Week 9: Wordpress final presentation

In class:

Assignment:

04/04 - Week 10: Info-Archs

In class:

Assignment:

04/11 - Week 11: Towards exposure

In class:

Assignment:

04/18 - Week 12: Discussion of the first step and the second one

In class:

04/25 - Week 13:

In class:

05/02 - Week 14: Pre-finalIn class:

05/09 - Week 15: Final Presentation