Designers sometimes use blogging software and sites such as Blogger and WordPress as content management systems or as ways to allow clients to easily self publish. Often, they need to customize their blogging sites to fit their clients needs and/or branding.

Not so much a topic as a task, what ways can you find to customize the template you've chosen for your class blog? Can you change colors and fonts, add images, gadgets, or other elements? Try to customize your blog and report on what you've done, how you did it, and what else might be possible.

Possible points: 30 points

On many blogs and CMS systems, you have the option of publishing a site feed which will create an XML version of your blog for RSS syndication. What is RSS? How is it useful and/or being used? How can you use the RSS feed to track updates to your fellow student's blogs? What's an aggregator?

Useful resources:

• http://www.bloglines.com
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rss
• What other useful resources can you find?

Design and development for the Internet is a dynamic and constantly changing field. As technologies and practices change, designers need to be able to keep up. The fact is, nobody can know everything. And, there's always someone out there who knows more than you. Given this, the web design community has always been very open to sharing information and inspiration. As a designer, it's important that you learn where to find sites of information, inspiration, and resources.

Your task: find a resource and share the love. Find a site that provides information, tutorials, forums, stock resources (photos, audio clips, movies, etc.), scripts, downloads, articles, advice, design tips, or links to well-designed and inspiring sites. Tell us what the site is about and how it is useful and include a link to the URL.

Don't know what kind of sites are appropriate? Here's a very short list of resources that I like:

• Adobe Support Center (lots of tips, tricks, and tech support right from the horse's mouth)
• Blue Vertigo (lots and lots of links to great resources for designers)
• A List Apart (articles and tutorials on web design)
• Flashkit (for Flash tutorials and sound loops)
• Actionscript.org (great source of actionscript tutorials and articles)
• CGI Resource Index (great source of CGI programs and scripts for the Web)
• Lynda.com (video software training)
• CSS Zen Garden (Cascading Style Sheet info and inspiration)
• Dope Awards (links to inspiring and cutting-edge sites)
• Smashing Magazine (online design magazine)
• Favorite Website Awards (links to inspiring and cutting-edge sites)
• Rhizome.org (new media arts and artists)

Find a site that you think is cool or cutting edge and well designed. Explain what this site is about and why you find it compelling. What makes the site cool or cutting edge and how does it differ from most sites that are out there? Are there special, unique, or interesting features to the site? Can you determine how the site was made and/or the tools and techniques that were used?

Possible Points: 15 points | Can be repeated 1x

Students are required to:

1. Remember that the purpose of the blog is academic and that they have a responsibility to contribute to the collective learning of the group. Posts should relate in some way to course content.
2. Post using their real name. Knowing that others will read their postings, students should not make comments that they would not make in person to another student's face.
3. Refrain from posting abusive or profane content.
4. Refrain from posting links to content or materials that they have not thoroughly reviewed.
5. Strive for the best writing (including grammar use) and analysis that they are capable of.
6. Include links to outside sites, sources, and reference materials, particularly resources that may be useful or interesting to other students, whenever possible.

Goals for the course blogs include encouraging student exploration and contemplation of issues related to contemporary interactive media arts and the studios and artists making it. Students will explore the Web to find, share, and discuss compelling and cutting-edge examples of interactive media design. Students will further investigate and discuss issues and practices related to interactive media including technology use; design principles and techniques; creative, developmental and business processes; and critical/theoretical analysis.

Given that all of the students in the class will be searching and exploring the Internet for design studios, artists, projects, resources, and other information that relate to interactive media design, a collaborative course blog will allow each student (and the instructor) to be exposed to more (and higher quality) projects and resources than each may have found on their own. Beyond being exposed to a wider variety of content (and points of view) students will contribute to the "collective intelligence" of the course and play a role in shaping course content and their own experience with the course.