DOCSLIB.ORG

Reusable Design • May 23, 2010

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Reusable Design • May 23, 2010 Angela Dowd • ITEC 865 • Reusable Design • May 23, 2010 Reusable Design Allan McCollum–Introduction to The Shapes Project There are many design categories in the e-learning world and at least as many types of designers. Reusable design is embraced by most designers because it can be used in different contexts and shared with other individuals and teams. When developed with a well defined structure, reus- able design helps designers to be more efficient and more consistent in their work. Instructional designers, graphic designers, software engineers and information architects can all benefit from easy access to reusable design. Web Standards are a form of reusable design, as are Reusable Learning Objects, templates, components and symbols. This paper will explore some of the roles reusable design plays in e-learning and discuss the value that libraries and repositories add to successful e-learning development. Reusable Learning Objects (RLOs) are used by designers and instructors to create instruction. RLOs are context independent and cannot link to any content outside of the learning object. Ac- cording to Olgren and Ploetz1 some characteristics of RLOs are reusability, accessibility, interop- erability and durability. Templates can be examples of reusable learning objects. Designing e-learning using RLOs can save time and money because they are versatile and portable. When they are organized in a Learning Object Repository (LOR) along with their metadata and descriptions, they are also accessible. LORs use three categories to identify characteristics: General and content characteristics, technical characteristics and quality characteristics (Tzikopoulos, Manouse- lis, and Vuorikari)2. 1 Learning Objects for Instruction Design and Evaluation, by Pamela T. Northrup, published by IGI Global in 2007. p178 2 Learning Objects for Instruction Design and Evaluation, by Pamela T. Northrup, published by IGI Global in 2007. p34 Page 1 Angela Dowd • ITEC 865 • Reusable Design • May 23, 2010 Web Standards, a combination of XHTML, Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) and Semantic Markup, are a form of reusable design that is widely used in the design of e-learning. CSS can be used to control the look and feel of websites. Global changes can be made in an instant from distant locations. CSS can be reused and adapted over and over for different courses. The XHTML template semantically describes the document. Semantic Markup can deliver e-learning content to regular browsers, mobile devices, screen readers and text browsers for better accessibility. Designing with Web Standards, Third Edition by Jeffrey Zeldman with Ethan Marcotte One application of CSS that seems very applicable to e-learning is a style sheet that can take e-learning directly from the screen to print. The side menu is removed, fonts are optimized and all urls are live. All of this is done with a style sheet designed by Eric Meyer (Eric Meyer on CSS). In his book Designing with Web Standards, Jeffrey Zeldman explains web standards in detail. He co-founded the Web Standards project and has a personal website at www.zeld- man.com. Jeffrey also is the creator of A List Apart, a popular blog on design, usability and accessibility. Page 2 Angela Dowd • ITEC 865 • Reusable Design • May 23, 2010 Graphic designers also use style sheets to make global changes to e-learning and libraries to organize, classify and code components. In his book Modular Web Design: Creating Reusable Com- ponents for User Experience Design and Documentation, Nathan Curtis talks about designing with components and using a component library. Chunking is a term that is often used in e-learning. It is also used in visual design and has a similar function. Chunking visual content decreases cogni- tive load and improves flow so the brain can process information easier. Page designs need to be broken down into chunks of visual design called components. Some examples of components are headers, footers, logos, symbols, buttons and other artwork typically used in e-learning. A com- ponent library saves the designer from having to create content from scratch. A library provides portability. Course content is linked to these libraries and accessible from anywhere there is an internet connection. Symbols can be stored in libraries to be used in Flash animations. Logos, charts and maps, with full vector quality, can be pulled into courses and presen- tations in moments. Menus, sidebar graphics, and any type of button can be at your fingertips quickly. Of course, a library needs to be properly maintained. There should be a curator to check for quality. Components can be standardized and cataloged for better usability. Every organization will approach this differently. Prepared by Nathan Curtis Modular Web Design: Creating Reusable Components for User Experience Design and Documentation Standardization does not mean that everything will look the same or be boring. It does set a tone by making certain components available. This can create unity and cut down on production time, which is something that is very important in e-learning design. Page 3 Angela Dowd • ITEC 865 • Reusable Design • May 23, 2010 Prepared by Nathan Curtis Modular Web Design: Creating Reusable Components for User Experience Design and Documentation (from Safari online books) Reusable design is everywhere. Open source software is a perfect example of reusable design because it can be re-engineered and reused in various applications. There are also proprietary software applications, such as PowerPoint, that produce reusable design. Sometimes with propri- etary software a designer is limited by having to use certain types of plug-ins or canned designs. Open Source applications offer more freedom in this sense, but only if you understand how to work with them. The world of e-learning is constantly evolving and expanding. Reusable design helps instructional designers to move with this fast flow and still have the capability to produce high quality design. Page 4 Angela Dowd • ITEC 865 • Reusable Design • May 23, 2010 Resources Learning Objects for Instruction Design and Evaluation, by Pamela T. Northrup, published by IGI Global in 2007. Designing with Web Standards, Third Edition by Jeffrey Zeldman with Ethan Marcotte, published by New Riders, November, 2009. Modular Web Design: Creating Reusable Components for User Experience Design and Documentation, published by New Riders, Jun 24, 2009. Page 5.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • HTML5 Multimedia Developme
    HTML5 Multimedia Development Cookbook Recipes for practical, real-world HTML5 multimedia-driven development Dale Cruse Lee Jordan BIRMINGHAM - MUMBAI HTML5 Multimedia Development Cookbook Copyright © 2011 Packt Publishing All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embedded in critical articles or reviews. Every effort has been made in the preparation of this book to ensure the accuracy of the information presented. However, the information contained in this book is sold without warranty, either express or implied. Neither the authors, nor Packt Publishing, and its dealers and distributors will be held liable for any damages caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly by this book. Packt Publishing has endeavored to provide trademark information about all of the companies and products mentioned in this book by the appropriate use of capitals. However, Packt Publishing cannot guarantee the accuracy of this information. First published: May 2011 Production Reference: 1160511 Published by Packt Publishing Ltd. 32 Lincoln Road Olton Birmingham, B27 6PA, UK. ISBN 978-1-849691-04-8 www.packtpub.com Cover Image by Jacqueline Stetson ([email protected]) Credits Authors Project Coordinator Dale Cruse Leena Purkait Lee Jordan Proofreader Reviewers Clyde Jenkins Shi Chuan Christopher Scott Hernandez Indexer Monica Ajmera Mehta Laurentiu Nicolae Rekha Nair Acquisition Editor Steven Wilding Production Coordinators Shantanu Zagade Development Editor Melwyn D'sa Kartikey Pandey Cover Work Technical Editor Shantanu Zagade Arun Nadar Foreword Maybe you've heard the story—or probably urban legend—about the university that didn't lay any grass or pour any concrete when it first opened, leaving the campus grounds as solid dirt.
    [Show full text]
  • Taking Your Talent to the Web (PDF)
    00 0732 FM 4/24/01 1:38 PM Page i Taking Your Talent to the Web A Guide for the Transitioning Designer By Jeffrey Zeldman 201 West 103rd Street, Indianapolis, Indiana 46290 00 0732 FM 4/24/01 1:38 PM Page ii Taking Your Talent to the Web: Publisher A Guide for the Transitioning Designer David Dwyer Copyright 2001 by New Riders Publishing Associate Publisher Al Valvano All rights reserved. No part of this book shall be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means—electronic, mechani- Executive Editor cal, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without written permission Karen Whitehouse from the publisher. No patent liability is assumed with respect to the Acquisitions Editor use of the information contained herein. Although every precaution Michael Nolan has been taken in the preparation of this book, the publisher and au- thor assume no responsibility for errors or omissions. Neither is any li- Technical Editor ability assumed for damages resulting from the use of the information Steve Champeon contained herein. Development Editor Victoria Elzey International Standard Book Number: 0-7357-1073-2 Product Marketing Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 00-111152 Manager Kathy Malmloff Printed in the United States of America Managing Editor First Printing: May 2001 Sarah Kearns Project Editor 05 04 03 02 01 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Jake McFarland Interpretation of the printing code: The rightmost double-digit number Copy Editor is the year of the book’s printing; the rightmost single-digit number is Chrissy Andry the number of the book’s printing.
    [Show full text]
  • Designing With
    temp spine = .8252 designing with web standards “Jeffrey and his web standards co- conspirators have made it possible for those old enemies— beauty, usability, and accessibility — to play nice together in any website.” designing with — Louis Rosenfeld, publisher, Rosenfeld Media web standards second edition “Occasionally (very occasionally), you come across an author who makes you think, designing with “This guy is smart! And he makes me feel Best-selling author, designer, and web standards evangelist Jeffrey Zeldman smarter, because now I finally understand has updated his classic, industry-shaking guidebook. This new edition — this concept.’” web standards second edition now in full color — covers improvements in best practices and advances in the world of browsers since the first edition introduced the world to — Steve Krug, author of Don’t Make Me Think standards-based design. Written in the same engaging and witty style, “Zeldman explains complex technologies making even the most complex information easy to digest, it remains your jeffrey zeldman in a way that designers can not only essential guide to creating sites that load faster, reach more users, and understand, but actually get excited about. cost less to design and maintain. If you are serious about web design, you Learn from Jeffrey’s insights as he demonstrates how web standards are need this book.” driving search engine friendliness (“findability”) and the Web 2.0 applica- — Hillman Curtis, author, MTIV: Process, tions that have reinvigorated the medium and the online marketplace. Inspiration and Practice for the New Media Discover new techniques to make CSS layouts work better across multiple Designer and Hillman Curtis on Creating browsers and ways to make web content more accessible.
    [Show full text]
  • View / Open V1n2.Pdf
    VOLUME1 NUMBER2 ::: APRIL 2001 ::: FEATURE – Dale Vidmar 14 Days in Cuba: A Land of People Living In Between Dale Vidmar recently returned from a 2-week visit to Cuba as part of a tour group of 35 librarians and friends from the U.S. and Canada. We asked him to write a diary of his trip for NewBreed. INTERVIEW – Jeffrey Zeldman NewBreed Librarian asked Jeffrey Zeldman to educate the library community on standards... what are they, why are they important, what is the W3C, which browsers are compliant, what are the incentives, and more. These issues are central to the web medium we find ourselves increasingly immersed in. If librarians foresee themselves as key players in future information landscapes, we must begin with standards. PEOPLE For this issue, we aked three students at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign why they chose to pursue an MLS. Here are their responses. ASK SUSU Susu, our sometimes irreverent advice columnist, answers your questions about work, school, the job hunt, and librarianship in general. In this issue, Susu advises on interviewing. TECH TALK Colleen just got back from the ACRL conference in Denver, where she had a great time talking to exhibitors. In this TechTalk, she shares with you what she found. LETTERS Say What? If you have something to say, we want to hear it. Send us your letters and we'll post them here. If you're responding to an article or interview, place the headline in the subject of your email. © Copyright 2001-2002, NewBreed Librarian. All rights reserved. FEATURE ARTICLE ::: APRIL 2001 ::: 14 Days in Cuba: A Land of People Living In Between DALE VIDMAR Dale Vidmar recently returned from a 2-week visit to Cuba as part of a tour group of 35 librarians and friends from the U.S.
    [Show full text]
  • Deliver First Class Web Sites: 101 Essential Checklists
    Summary of Contents Preface ........................................................................................................ ix 1. Let’s Get Started … but How? .................................................................. 1 2. What to Find Out: Initial Questions to Answer ....................................... 17 3. Preparing Web Site Content ................................................................... 33 4. Managing all the Content ....................................................................... 45 5. Web Site Usability: Focusing on the User ............................................... 61 6. Color ..................................................................................................... 79 7. Information Architecture ........................................................................ 93 8. Navigation ........................................................................................... 115 9. Best Coding Practice: W3C Recommendations and Standards .............. 147 10. Creating Accessible Web Sites ............................................................ 173 11. Web Site Optimization ....................................................................... 199 12. Search Engine Optimization ............................................................... 219 13. Design ............................................................................................... 239 14. Testing ............................................................................................... 257 15.
    [Show full text]
  • Web Standards Solutions the Markup and Style Handbook Special Edition
    Web Standards Solutions The Markup and Style Handbook Special Edition Dan Cederholm Web Standards Solutions: The Markup and Style Handbook, Special Edition Copyright © 2009 by Dan Cederholm All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the copyright owner and the publisher. ISBN-13 (pbk): 978-1-4302-1920-0 ISBN-13 (electronic): 978-1-4302-1921-7 Printed and bound in the United States of America 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Trademarked names may appear in this book. Rather than use a trademark symbol with every occurrence of a trademarked name, we use the names only in an editorial fashion and to the benefit of the trademark owner, with no intention of infringement of the trademark. Distributed to the book trade worldwide by Springer-Verlag New York, Inc., 233 Spring Street, 6th Floor, New York, NY 10013. Phone 1-800-SPRINGER, fax 201-348-4505, e-mail kn`ano)ju<olnejcan)o^i*_ki, or visit sss*olnejcankjheja*_ki. For information on translations, please contact Apress directly at 2855 Telegraph Avenue, Suite 600, Berkeley, CA 94705. Phone 510-549-5930, fax 510-549-5939, e-mail ejbk<]lnaoo*_ki, or visit sss*]lnaoo*_ki. Apress and friends of ED books may be purchased in bulk for academic, corporate, or promotional use. eBook versions and licenses are also available for most titles. For more information, reference our Special Bulk Sales–eBook Licensing web page at dppl6++sss*]lnaoo*_ki+ejbk+^qhgo]hao.
    [Show full text]
  • Website Owner's Manual
    website owner’s manual website owner’s manual Paul Boag MANNING I iii I For online information and ordering of this and other Manning books, please visit www.manning.com. The publisher offers discounts on this book when ordered in quantity. For more information, please contact Special Sales Department Manning Publications Co. Sound View Court 3B fax: (609) 877-8256 Greenwich, CT 06830 Email: [email protected] ©2010 by Manning Publications Co. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, or otherwise, without prior written permission of the publisher. Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in the book, and Manning Publications was aware of a trade- mark claim, the designations have been printed in initial caps or all caps. Recognizing the importance of preserving what has been written, it is Manning’s policy to have the books we publish printed on acid-free paper, and we exert our best efforts to that end. Recognizing also our responsi- bility to conserve the resources of our planet, Manning books are printed on paper that is at least 15 percent recycled and processed without the use of elemental chlorine. Manning Publications Co. Development Editor: Sebastian Stirling Sound View Court 3B Copyeditor: Tiffany Taylor Greenwich, CT 06830 Designer: Leslie Haimes Illustrator: Eamon Dougherty ISBN: 978-1-933988-45-0 © 2010 Printed in the United States of America 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 – MAL – 14 13 12 11 10 09 To my father, who inspired me to write a book; and to my son, who may one day write one of his own.
    [Show full text]
  • Web Design and Mobile Trends for 2013
    Web Design Trends 2013 Awwwards.com 1 TRE NDS Project ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: Our gra- titude for the generosity of all the participants who have collaborated in this project by giving their valua- ble opinions: Dan Mall, Karen Mc- Grane, Jenn Lukas, Mike Kus, Nick Pettit, Dave Rupert, Veerle Peters, Denise Jacobs, Simon Foster, Bruce Lawson, Luciano Foglia, Ben Cline, Aarron Walter, Trent Walton, Oli- ver Reichenstein, Legwork Agency, Ultranoir, Ian Hickson, Brad Frost, Hinderling Volkart, Jeffrey Zeldman, Rachel Andrew, Epic Agency, Unit9, B-Reel, Fantasy-Interactive Lon- don,Hello Monday and Davin Wil- frid. EDITOR IN CHIEF and ART DIREC- TION: Awwwards Team. 2013 Web Design Trends 2013 Awwwards.com 2 Index/ Index Index 3 Rachel Andrew 78 Preface 4 Simon Foster 32 Interviews 7 Trent Walton 51 Aarron Walter 48 Ultranoir 60 Ben Cline 45 Unit9 86 Brad Frost 68 Veerle Peters 26 B-Reel 89 Conclusions 105 Bruce Lawson 36 Data 113 Dan Mall 8 Dave Rupert 23 Davin Wilfrid 102 Denise Jacobs 29 Epic Agency 81 F-i London 92 Hello Monday 95 Hinderling Volkart 72 Ian Hickson 64 Jeffrey Zeldman 75 Jenn Lukas 14 Karen McGrane 11 Legwork Agency 57 Luciano Foglia 42 Mike Kus 16 Nick Pettit 19 Oliver Reichenstein 53 Web Design Trends 2013 Awwwards.com 3 Preface Chapter. 1 Web Design Trends 2013 Awwwards.com 4 Commandments of needs based Why Trends firmly on their own experiences as users. The Awwwards community are a faithful audience, always interested Trends is not only a prediction for in learning and dedicating their 2013. It reflects a natural interest in time to acquiring the necessary how all aspects of web design will technical knowledge to apply in evolve over the next few years.
    [Show full text]
  • “There Was a Point in the 90S When I Felt Like a Sucker for Doing HTML and CSS” Jeffrey Zeldman
    .net interview “There was a point in the 90s when I felt like a sucker for doing HTML and CSS” Jeffrey Zeldman www.zeldman.com Jeffrey Zeldman could be called the godfather of web he explains. “I’d like to be able to create a multi- column layout and control source order without standards. Oliver Lindberg catches up with him to talk about having to do advanced mathematics or hire Eric Meyer or Dan Cederholm to figure out the CSS the current state of play, how to improve standards and how because I can’t. I’d also like to be able to embed web designers can survive the economic downturn fonts via @font-face as a law-abiding owner of a font. I’d like to be able to buy Franklin Gothic and use it for all the headlines on my website and Jeffrey Zeldman went to bed at 4am last that markup is supposed to be semantic. And not have a user able to easily pirate it, or the ITC night. Geekfest SXSW Interactive is in there’s growing interest in microformats and coming after me for violating its copyright. But full swing and yesterday his web design curiosity about HTML5. Things are happening.” right now I can’t use typefaces that designers have agency, Happy Cog, hosted the first annual SXSWi Zeldman, who co-founded the Web Standards been using for hundreds of years.” karaoke competition, aptly named OK! Happy Project (www.webstandards.org) in 1998, admits The world of standards certainly can be Cog’aoke (www.cogaoke.com).
    [Show full text]
  • Top 10 Law School Home Pages of 2010
    Georgetown University Law Center Scholarship @ GEORGETOWN LAW 2011 Top 10 Law School Home Pages of 2010 Roger Skalbeck Georgetown University Law Center, [email protected] Jason Eiseman Yale Law School, [email protected] Georgetown Public Law and Legal Theory Research Paper No. 11-01 This paper can be downloaded free of charge from: https://scholarship.law.georgetown.edu/facpub/603 http://ssrn.com/abstract=1736662 Roger V. Skalbeck, Top 10 Law School Home Pages of 2010, in GREEN BAG ALMANAC AND READER 2011 (Ross E. Davies, ed., Washington, D.C.: Green Bag Press 2011) This open-access article is brought to you by the Georgetown Law Library. Posted with permission of the author. Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarship.law.georgetown.edu/facpub Part of the Legal Education Commons, Marketing Commons, and the Technology and Innovation Commons TOP 10 LAW SCHOOL HOME PAGES OF 2010 Jason Eiseman and Roger V. Skalbeck† THE STATE OF LAW SCHOOL WEBSITES FOR 2010 This ranking report attempts to identify the best law school home pages based exclusively on objective criteria. The goal is to assess ele- ments that make websites easier to use for sighted as well as visually- impaired users. Most elements require no special design skills, sophisti- cated technology or significant expenses. Ranking results in this report represent reasonably relevant elements. Twenty elements are surveyed across three broad categories: Design Pat- ters & Metadata; Accessibility & Validation; and Marketing & Communi- cations. As was the case in 2009, there is still no objective way to account for good taste. For interpreting these results, we don’t try to decide if any whole is greater or less than the sum of its parts.
    [Show full text]