CPSR

In the Spring 2017 CPSR class students expressed an overwhelming interest in creating and publishing websites.  As we talked about current day website design we went through the entire process of what would be needed to build and host their own websites. The students researched and chose their domain names, hosting options, and the myriad of tools available to them. We looked at many modern web building tools like content management systems (CMS), web-building tools like Wix or Weebly, and some students studied HTML and CSS. The students expressed an interest in both the design, or presentation of content, and in the tools or languages needed to control their presentation.

To meet both needs I chose to separate the organizational structure of a website from the languages used (circa 2017) to build functionality into a website.  For our content we started with presenting ourselves in a web building project called "Academic Portfolio." In order to understand the flow of content and organization needed for their websites I chose to use the simple tool of the New Google Sites. (This website you are reading was built with the New Google Sites tool.)

In elegant design form and function are inextricably linked. The current iteration of website design (circa 2017) follows a Bauhaus design ethos- less is more. This user centered 'clean' and 'simple' design requires a strong organizational backbone, stunning visuals and seemingly seamless integration of many multimedia elements.