The song remains the same. Not.

If you final project didn't differ from the initial story boards, then you are a better person than I. I believe the story boards are to be used as guidelines for the final product and as always are subject to change. The color scheme basically stayed the same as did the layout. But as I was creating the site, more ideas started popping into my head as what I wanted to do. One thing I want to change is to create a site banner for the top of the page. Instead of having text next a jpeg, I want to make it all one jpeg/gif in Photoshop. And as the first site was different from the second, so was the storyboards drastically different from the second site. I really created the second site to get a different view and maybe more ideas as to what I wanted to use for the fist site. Again, I have my work cut out.

One of these things is not like the other.

Creating the two sites was an interesting challenge. I knew the second site would be easier because I had already done most of the hard work with the creation of the first site. Upon creating the second site on Wix.com, it really was just a matter of copy/paste most of the information. It took me several hours to get the first site the way I wanted it with having to edit the template and I'm still not fully done. I'll use the first site created for now, but ultimately I want to recreate it again from scratch and not use a template. The template creates too much bloat in the HTML code. I also want to obtain the proper Ganster logo's from Shihan Ganster so I can properly implement them on the site. The original site has them, but not in the original size and not the unedited versions.
Using the Wix.com site for the second site creation was a breeze. However to create it like the first one would have taken just as much time if not more. Once I got use to the Wix .com interface, creation of the second site went even faster. In some ways I like the second site came out and navigates over the first site. But again, I'd rather create the site from the ground up and without the use of templates. So I have my work cut out.

Link to second site.

Help, I need somebody.

I learned a lot through this course. I'm glad to have gotten acquainted with Photoshop and Expressions Web. This class complements the IT cohort I've already finished and will help with a future job when I obtain it (hopefully sooner, rather than later). Through Expressions Web, I learned a lot more about HTML, which is something I was expecting from the beginning. The only let down was not being able to delve into some scripting. But there is always room for dessert.

Web vs Print (It's on!)

People don't read websites like they do with printed material. Websites get skimmed since reading from a computer screen slows the reader down by about 25%. Web users pay attention to headlines and summaries more than content. And web users tend to ignore the left to right reading rule and look all over the screen.

Tips for writing for the Web:

• KISS - Keep It Simple and Short (try to keep word count about 50% of print)
• Use bulleted/numbered points to simplify ideas for easier reading
• Create various web site pages with different topics instead of cramming lots of information on one page
• Use highlighting/bold keywords for emphasis
• Put the most important information at the top of the page
• Keep paragraphs to about three sentences

Story Boarding (Not to be confused with Water Boarding)

Story Boarding is a way to get your ideas down on paper for the website. It allows you to brain storm ideas and see how well they might be able to work together. It also outlines the site layout and helps prevent pitfalls of not following the CRAP principles. With story boards you can see how many pages you will need to create, you can list links needed, files/photos that will be needed, and colors to be used.

Which online program will be used?

I know the suspense is killing me about which online program I will use to create my site for the final project. Luckily I don't have to wait long on my decision. I decided to use Wix. I chose this really more because of sheer curiosity. It talks about just drag and drop for creation. Also supposedly you can just click and type. It is also Flash based. Well the proof will be in the pudding, so they say.

Usability vs Accessibility - The Ultimate Showdown

Usability is about making a website simple, easy, quick to navigate, and enjoyable to use. It is also about presenting the information in an easy to read format.

Accessibility is about making the website navigable to everyone including people with disabilities or people with slow internet connections.

They are both important because people with slow internet connects don't want to wait while the site loads only to have to wait more because they can't find the information or product they visited the site for. Also because of the America with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), some sites could be subject to an ADA claim which could include reduced site traffic and maybe even a lawsuit.