Project Progress

So far, I am regretting the challenge of Html but I enjoy challenges. I wanted the design of my site to be simple and easy to navigate. I am becoming more familiar with using Nvu and using Html. IF I were using Weebly or Google Sites, it would've have been an easy assignment. I'm glad I challenged myself but I guess the only frustration that I have is with html. Having to be so careful and submitting updated pages to NCSU's server is a pain. But I tell myself everyday to look at the positive from this experience. Hopefully, the recent changes made to my site will make everyone happy. I also would like to thank my group for their suggestions.

Interactions and Experiences (Part 3)

For my final post, I am glad to let everyone know that I now have two friends! I continued to send friend requests to teachers, to no avail. I uploaded a PowerPoint presentation about Google Sites that I created for my ECI 512 course. I do enjoy this site and the design. Teacher Recess has great potential and I will continue to use it after this assignment is complete. Overall, the user interface is easy to use and navigate. The site features a store and other resources that all teachers can use.

Interactions and Experiences (Part 2)

So far, I've joined two groups and posted a bulletin highlighting Evernote. One person has responded to my bulletin post and only have one friend. I wish that this site had a chat feature, which would add to the synchronous communication capabilities that many of the social networking sites are currently adding to their sites. I just noticed that posts can be separated by subject area. This is a great feature because it allows the users to discuss subject-related matters in one space.

Interactions and Experiences (Part 1)

I chose to become a member of Teachers Recess . This site seems fairly new and most members don't regularly check their friend requests. The design of the site is very user-friendly and easy to navigate. I created a profile that included some brief information about me and why I was on the site. The top navigation included some great links that allow teachers to sell teaching items, join groups, upload files, and upload pictures of pets. This site is simple and direct.

Accessibility Concerns

As I learn to manipulate HTML and NVu, I am focusing on the compatibility of flash and other multimedia files for my site. I am also want embed a screen reader for the site. I haven't completed much research on embedding screen readers on a web site but I plan on doing so this week.
So far, my site is simple. I plan on creating games and reading assignments that will be available for download, mostly in the form of word documents. Plans for my site are as follows:

• ReadFun (Reading Comprehension Website)
• Home Page (Overview of site and links to other pages)
• About Us (Creators of the site information)
• Students (Overview and games) (Pages: Reading, Phonetics, Spelling)
• Parents (How parents can help, downloadable content and resource links)
• Resources (Links to other related sites)
• Lessons (Games and other educational content)

Any suggestions are appreciated!

Web Design is........

The deconstruction of the ISTE site was a very interesting activity that gave me another perspective of the development of web pages. The most interesting aspect of this activity is that organization is not a difficult process to map out. Understanding the structure of a site can and will help me with my site because I now know that organization and planning is key.

My planning process is simple:

1. Decide what subject area I want to highlight
2.Create a basic concept map of the site (What will I have on the site)
3.Choose appropriate web developing tool
4. Research related educational sites
5. Design a few templates

That's the plan for now. Html code is the trickiest part of this assignment. I would like to learn as much as can to enhance the site. That means I should read more.

Is Google Taking Over?

If you take a look around, it's easy to see that Google is tied to many useful tools we use on the web. Let's review a few of their internet tools:

• Google Docs
• Search Engine
• Talk
• YouTube
• Maps
• Blogger
• Gmail
• Orkut
• Picasa
• Chrome
• Books
• Earth
• Scholar
• Shopping
• LAST BUT NOT LEAST----ANDROID

It's safe to say that Google has a large footprint in our society. Most of us rely on their search engine and blog using blogger. I can honestly admit that Google has a influence on our course. I have an Android powered device that saves all of my contacts to my Gmail account. I am using Blogger and NCSU's email is powered by Google. Does anyone see them buying Facebook in the future? What do you use that is powered by Google?

Are you afraid lol?

To HTML or Not

Knowing that HTML is an important feature of  designing a website. These days, templates are available that allow anyone to create a website. Google Sites is one of the newest site building tools that makes it easy for users to create a site about any topic that they want. This tool, as well as Weebly and Webs are free and have many templates available. The interesting aspects that all of these sites have in common are that they allow users to edit their sites using HTML. I think that this option is good to have and promotes HTML editing.

An interesting week

I can now say that I am officially under a lot of pressure. The pressure of succeeding and having another great semester. With work, school, and my social life, time management is a huge priority. This week we had to work on our rubrics. I wasn't a big help but I am now in the process of reorganizing my schedule. The main problem with my schedule is that I rarely take breaks.

Being a part of this course is very interesting. The rubric exercise has been on my mind as well as the html assignment. I am beginning to understand the stress that comes with developing a reliable online website. Knowing that the internet is my access to course materials, I have a new respect for the web developers and instructors that instructional designers that help make online education a success. Hopefully, this will be filled with confusing and ah-ha moments.

What a week!

I am very happy with my work effort this week. Even though I have managed to post late I did complete my assignments in a reasonable time. This weeks assignments was a challenge to me. Using HTML to design web pages is not new to me, but I never had to actually use it. I was overwhelmed at first, but the text and YouTube videos helped me understand what I was doing. Once I got started, I wanted to keep going. I can now say that I am a fan of using HTML to design and edit content for the web.

The Internet History Timeline activity was very helpful because it gave our group the opportunity to discuss important details that helped shape the internet. I never knew that e-mail came before the internet!

ALmost Over

I am still trying to grasp the blog thing. I have many sites to check so I am getting adjusted. Please bare with me. I will blog again very soon.

First Week

Very interesting first week of classes. I can say that I was a little overwhelmed by the amount of detail but that's always a good thing. Never can get too many details. I know that I will enjoy this course but I still feel a little nervous.