Some Basics and an Overview
350:465 Writing HTML for the Web, Fall 2001

1. The 350:465 Writing HTML for the Web course is a workshop based on tasks
2. At first these tasks may be exercises for learning -- calisthenics!
3. Soon the tasks will be practical projects of a personal or professional nature with real content.
4. There are several ways of learning HTML, and we will use them all.
   • Adapting existing printed or HTML content
   • Creating original content in HTML form
   • Using hand coding for markup
   • Using HTML sofware and templates
   • Analyzing and modifying existing pages
5. Existing content has several main sources
   • Newspapers, magazines, books
   • Broadcasting, tape, film and photographs
   • Web paqes
   • Electronic texts
6. Original content has several common sources
   • Research in real world (interviews, documentation)
   • Research in libraries (print, online, hybrid)
   • Writing, editing, awareness of media differences
7. Course assignments
   • Exercises and reading
   • In class workshops of HTML skills
   • Class web page and discussion thread
   • Student oral reports on project progress
   • In class software demonstrations
   • Analysis and review of existing web pages
   • Weekly in-class short quizzes (each Tuesday)
8. Student goals questionnaire and statement of preferences
9. Student projects
   • A resume in various media
   • Samples and for models web pages
   • A scrapbook, personal or topical
   • Evaluating web-worthy content
   • Preliminary projects
   • The term project
10. Assignments
    • Readings, exercises, and downloads in Castro, 4th ed.
    • Weekly short quizzes
    • Research, writing, coding, design projects
    • Student oral reports and groups
11. Real world news on browsers, dot.coms. legal issues
    • Microsoft anti-trust case -- browsers -- desktop -- XP
    • Dot.com collapse -- e-commerce developments
    • PC hardware/software business: Gateway, Apple, Corel, Lotus
    • Browser wars, IE6, NS6 and AOL
    • Legal, censorship, copyright issues
    • Digital literacy
    • Social, educational, cultural issues
    • Leisure: Web amongst tv, film, books, CDs
    • Emergent media: e-readers, PDA, cell phones
    • Streaming media
    • Beware plagiarism, fraud, scams, viruses