College of Professional Studies
Northeastern University
Seth J. Merriam
s.merriam@neu.edu (add dgm6511: to start of subject line, please!)
CRN: 70295 / Fall 2016, 6 Weeks, Second Half, Online / September 19, 2016 to October 24, 2016
Required Textbook(s)/Software
There are no required books for this course. Instead, I will reference two types of learning tools:
1. I will be creating weekly recorded lectures, which I refer to as “screencasts.” These, generally speaking, are
either lectures with slides or actual demonstrations done within an applications to show particular tasks and
techniques related to the weekly topics and exercises.
2. I will be referring to additional, external tutorials – meaning material not created by me. These will include
websites, video tutorials, and Adobe’s own help files. If I find an individual student needs further assistance
(and additional tutorials), I will likely also recommend that some of use the “lynda.com” website (which you
can access through Blackboard) where you will be able to access a large number of recorded tutorials on
numerous topics. Again, it’s not a requirement at the outset of the course, but might become necessary for
those of you with limited coding or web development experience as the course progresses. (And even if you
don’t need it for this course, it is a great resource for other tutorials as well!)
There are software requirements for this course, and it is entirely your responsibility to secure access to the software
you need for this course. We will be making use of Adobe Dreamweaver and Adobe Photoshop. The latest
“Creative Cloud” software is the “CC 2015” version, and my screencasts will reflect that. It is my understanding that
the labs on campus have CC 2015 as well, so you should not have problems accessing CC 2015 in a lab if you do not
have access to it elsewhere.
Additionally, true web space, i.e., not MyFiles, is required. A hosting space with PHP 5.2.4 or higher, MySQL 5.0
or higher - to accommodate the installation of the latest version of the WordPress web application. The cost of web
hosting varies depending on your needs; I can recommend sites that will have the required technology – most require
yearly subscriptions, but are less than $100 for that yearly subscription. One of the most important things to keep in
mind is that you do, indeed, get what you pay for... so the “free” options generally will not give you good results –
they could be slow, hard to work with, or even all of a sudden vanish (and yes, that means your files will too). To be
sure, you will want to check that you can have more than one mySQL database and that you can use SFTP with the
site as well. And again, if you’d like I can make recommendations, or even look at a service you’re thinking about
before you purchase a subscription, but you will need this from the first exercise to the last.
Course Prerequisites
This Digital Media course has the following prerequisite(s):
Web Creation Boot Camp [01] – DGM6501
Students who have not taken the prerequisite(s) and have not received a waiver may, at the decision of
the instructor or academic director, be dropped from this class.
Course Description
This is a workshop-style course that covers the use of HTML, CSS, JavaScript (via jQuery), PHP, and WordPress to
create a number of dynamic, attractive, and easily maintainable web sites.
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DM6511: Web Creation Boot Camp 02
Course Outcomes
A student who actively participates in this course and satisfactorily completes assignments will have had the
opportunity to build attractive, effective, dynamic web sites by:
1. Writing server side PHP to dynamically include content.
2. Constructing a fully functional website that leverages the WordPress framework as a CMS-type web
application.
3. Leveraging the open-source resources that are available from the WordPress community (including
plugins, themes, and documentation).
4. Modifying source code to better meet your needs/goals.
5. Adding and manipulating media with the WordPress and Web 2.0 tools available.
6. Adding JavaScript to pages (via JQuery) to enhance the quality of the user experience of your website.
Course Methodology
Each week, you will be expected to:
1. Complete readings and tutorials as well as watch screencasts well in advance of the the due date
for each exercise/assignments – though, to be sure, most weeks will not have all three. There is a further
weekly-schedule breakdown in a later section.
2. Through completion of the assigned exercises you will experiment with the techniques and content presented
throughout the screencasts and reading. As you complete your assignments, you are expected and
encouraged to ask questions. You should not wait until the last day before an exercise is due to start
working on it, because you most-likely will not have time to correspond with me regarding questions you
have before the deadline for the exercise/assignment passes – and, to be sure, asking a question on the last
day before an exercise is due, does not typically qualify you for an extension. Unless otherwise specified or
necessary, questions should be asked in the forums to share with the rest of the class.
3. Help each other… if someone posts a question to the forums and you know the answer… by all means
help them out!
4. Write (i.e., actually type-out) your own code, and make each assignment your own. In other words: DO NOT
COPY/REUSE WORK FROM EACH OTHER, OR OTHER STUDENTS WHO HAVE PREVIOUSLY TAKEN
THIS COURSE. THIS IS CHEATING, I WILL NOTICE, AND IT WILL BE REPORTED.
Communication(Discussion Boards/Email) & Participation
Questions are good! Question are natural! You’re in this class to learn, so please ask your questions early
and often. Do not wait until the last day when an assignment is due, or worse, after you have handed it in, to ask
me a question. You absolutely will not be penalized for asking questions *BEFORE* an assignment is due/submitted,
and most likely your work will turn out better when you do as them. You should, however, be sure to take a
moment to compose your question and clearly and completely as you can. As an example, I sometimes receive
questions similar to “is this ok?” or “is this good enough?” – and those are not good questions. Why? Because I will
not “pre-grade” an assignment via questions such as those. In contrast, I will happily answer questions you have
about specific things you are trying to accomplish, or other things from the tutorial and screencasts for which you
may wish or need to seek clarification. Please be sure to review my examples in the discussion board area of
Blackboard for additional samples questions.
To accommodate most questions there are four general discussion boards for a variety of exchanges. Each
discussion board will be fully described in the Blackboard course. I will not, however, require weekly posts to
any of the discussion forums, as some courses do. Instead I simply expect you to use the discussion area for
posting questions and comments when you have them, as a means of sharing the exchange with the rest of the class
– this is intended to be similar to questions asked during a face to face lecture. Therefore please post all questions to
these discussion boards so all students, including yourself, can benefit from the questions, the answers, and general
discussions that occur. Furthermore, since someone may have already asked the question you have, take a look at the
discussion board for answers too. In general, there are no planned synchronous sessions for this course, but if
necessary individual synchronous sessions are possible as time permits.
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DM6511: Web Creation Boot Camp 02
Of course, if there are questions you’d rather not share with the group, you are welcome to email me those
separately. My preferred email address is listed at the top of this syllabus, in the blackboard course, and also on each
weekly course document. When emailing me it is VERY IMPORTANT that you use that address and start your
subject line with “DGM6511: ” and then append your actual subject line. This will ensure I see your email as
quickly as possible, and also help keep it out of my “spam” folder. I teach multiple courses, so this also helps me
identify the course in which you are enrolled, which adds valuable context to any questions you might be asking.
Regarding response time: I do my best to answer questions within 48 hours. Questions asked on Friday, Saturday or
Sunday, may not get a response until Monday. If you do not hear from me after 24 hours, please feel free to email
me a second time to be sure I received your email. However, please DO NOT repeatedly email me – especially with the
exact same email – within the first 24 hours; Aside from being unnecessary, and potentially discourteous, it may cause
my spam filter to block your message.
Grading/Submission of Work/Evaluation Standards
Each week you will expected to submit your work, as a zipped archive, to the assignment dropbox in our
Blackboard course. There are no exceptions to this. I will not accept work send to be via email. Do not send
zipped archives to me via email unless requested. Repeatedly ignoring this request will impact your
project grades.
This requirement behooves you to master the creation of zipped archives. The following link, which describes how to
create a zipped archive is also in the assignment dropbox section of the blackboard course. Please review it if
necessary – successful completion of this course depends on it. Many, but not all, assignments will also require a URL
where the assignment(s) have been “published” on a live web server (unless you are otherwise instructed), so, as
soon as we start publishing webpages, please get in the habit of including a text file with the necessary URL to your
assignment in your zipped archive.
This course focuses heavily on the technical aspects of web development, but does not neglect the aesthetics of the
UI (user interface). Therefore, where applicable, you will be expected to produce work that is both aesthetically sound
(based on principles of design) and technically proficient, and this will be reflected in your grades. This does not mean
you have to be a graphic designer or an artist; just that you apply some of the basic principles of design that we will
discuss during the course. I will grade exercises based on the factors listed below:
35%
30%
20%
15%
———
100%
concept realization/execution, problem-solving, effort
i.e., thoughtfully applying your newly acquired knowledge instead of
simply mimicking what you see in a screencast or tutorial
technology mastery (code/software/tools)
quality of UI/aesthetic design
(where applicable, otherwise – for entirely code based exercises – this
20% becomes part of technology mastery)
file management/organization
I adhere to the CPS Digital Media Program’s standard grading policies and scales:
Letter grade
A Outstanding
AB+
B Good
BC+
C Satisfactory
CF
4.0 scale
4.000
3.667
3.333
3.000
2.667
2.333
2.000
1.667
0
100 point scale
100 - 95
94 - 90
89 - 87
86 - 83
82 - 80
79 - 77
76 - 73
72 - 70
69 and below
Further, all grades will be reported via the Blackboard Gradebook in the following manner, which I refer to as a
“simple-grade”:
“Grade”
Equivalent
Take-Away
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3
100 - 90 (A range)
2
89 - 80 (B range)
1
79 - 74 (C range)
0
74 - below (failing)
Outstanding work;
Well beyond necessary requirements
e.g., display mastery of new knowledge via
meaningfully, self-directed work
Necessary requirements were met
and extra effort is evident
e.g., display working knowledge of new
concepts via meaningful additions to work
Necessary requirements were met
with no extra effort displayed
e.g., work simply mimics the screencast.
You need to fix and resubmit this assignment.
As such, completing and submitting the exercises by simply repeating what I show you in a screencast will
earn you an average grade (around a C). Showing effort toward mastery of the concepts by (using applying the
information shared with you and) producing well designed and developed exercises – regardless of the level at which
you begin this course – will earn you a B, or higher.
ALL Incomplete projects will receive a 0, so be sure to triple-check the deliverables for an assignment before you
submit it.
Work that is late will be marked down one “simple-grade.” For example, something that would otherwise earn
a 3, will earn a 2. Also: work that is more than two weeks late without any prior discussion and official
acknowledgement/agreement from me will not be accepted and will receive a 0. No exceptions. To this
end, the items in the assignment dropbox will become disabled (and likely disappear from your view) 2 weeks after
their respective due dates.
Regarding work that is to be redone: policies are individual to each instructor and course. I strongly encourage
you to ask as many questions as you have BEFORE your submit your FIRST ATTEMPT. That said, in this course, if you
earn a 0 on an exercise, you will be allowed to resubmit the work ONE TIME ONLY. There will be no further
discussion after the second attempt is graded, nor will there be any additional attempts granted. If the resubmission
fixes the problems, you will receive a 1; if the work is no better, repeats the exact same error, or is worse,
you grade will not increase from a zero. Therefore be sure to ask all your questions and TRIPLE CHECK your work
BEFORE you submit it to the Assignment Dropbox in Blackboard.
Again, in short, this class is not about retyping code or simply learning which buttons to click. It’s about the
comprehension and application of the technical and aesthetic aspects of web and digital media development, and
your work should reflect that where appropriate.
Weekly Class Schedule/Topical Outline
Each week you will be provided with one or more screencasts, tutorials, and readings to prepare you to
complete one or more exercises that are due by the date indicated in our Blackboard course (which is
typically considered to be Sunday by 11:59pm, with a 1-day grace period, unless otherwise stated – again, ALWAYS
check Blackboard); if you are every in doubt: please do ask. To respect this timeline, you should complete the
screencasts and readings by midweek (Wednesday, or Thursday at the latest) to provide enough time to
correspond and resolve any issues that may arise pertaining to the material. This ensures you get any questions
answer before the assignment is past-due, and that you have the end of the week (Thursday - Sunday) to
polish and refine your assignments to perfection (i.e., “go for the 3, instead of the 1).
Again: work that is more than two weeks late without any prior discussion and official acknowledgement
from me will not be accepted and will receive a 0. No exceptions.
In a nut-shell: Starting early and asking questions is an integral part of this online course. Waiting until Sunday night
to begin your weekly assignment is not advised. It will forfeit your ability to ask questions and get answers before you
assignment is due. It will also hinder your ability to thoughtfully consider the assignment and produce work that best
displays your master of the weeks concepts, which will affect the grade you earn.
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DM6511: Web Creation Boot Camp 02
Week
Topic
Assignments
1
Review of xHTML/CSS PHP
Fundamentals
1. Get web Space
2. Make a small, dynamic website using
PHP, xHTML, CSS and Adobe
Dreamweaver [ don’t worry this isn’t as
scary, or as difficult, as it sounds; it’s a
great base to build from for the rest of
the course ;) ]
2
WordPress Installation
WordPress as a CMS
WP Themes
WP Plugins & Widgets
AJAX Fundamentals
JQuery Fundamentals
1. Install a working version of WordPress
2. Be sure you can connect to it via FTP to
add/edit/delete files.
3. Download the Thematic WordPress
theme.
4. Download and Activate the Contact Form
7 Plugin
5. Modify the post part of a loop to add in
something of your choosing - perhaps an
excerpt, or some other item?
6. Modify the footer to say something of
your choosing that can change relative to
each page.
3
Making a Theme from scratch.
1. Create a theme that has a few different
types of pages:
1. a homepage (with some basic
content)
2. a posts page (for blog posts)
3. a content page (to display portfolio
style digital media elements (perhaps
images, or audio or video)
4
Media Integration
Finding your own Style
1. Experiment with the various methods of
integrating media (native tools and
embedding media).
2. Decide what “works best for your goals”
5
Finish and then Publish Site.
1. Download, install, modify or create a
theme you like to meet your needs as a
digital media portfolio website.
2. Create and add your content.
6
Northeastern’s Academic Honesty and Integrity Statement
The University views academic dishonesty as one of the most serious offenses that a student can commit while in
college and imposes appropriate punitive sanctions on violators. Here are some examples of academic dishonesty.
While this is not an all-inclusive list, we hope this will help you to understand some of the things instructors look for.
The following is excerpted from the University’s policy on academic integrity; the complete policy is available in the
Student Handbook. The Student Handbook is available on the CPS Student Resources page > Policies and Forms.
(http://www.cps.neu.edu/student-resources/)
Cheating – intentionally using or attempting to use unauthorized materials, information or study aids in an academic
exercise
Fabrication – intentional and unauthorized falsification, misrepresentation, or invention of any data, or citation in an
academic exercise
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Plagiarism – intentionally representing the words, ideas, or data of another as one’s own in any academic exercise
without providing proper citation
Unauthorized collaboration – instances when students submit individual academic works that are substantially similar
to one another; while several students may have the same source material, the analysis, interpretation, and reporting
of the data must be each individual’s independent work.
Participation in academically dishonest activities – any action taken by a student with the intent of gaining an unfair
advantage
Facilitating academic dishonesty – intentionally or knowingly helping or attempting to violate any provision of this
policy
For more information on Academic Integrity, including examples, please refer to the Student Handbook, pages 9-11.
Northeastern Online Policies and Procedures
For comprehensive information please go to http://www.cps.neu.edu/online/
Copyright Statement
Northeastern Online is a registered trademark of Northeastern University.
All other brand and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.
This course material is copyrighted and all rights are reserved by Seth J. Merriam. No part of this publication may be
reproduced, transmitted, transcribed, stored in a retrieval system, or translated into any language or computer
language, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, magnetic, optical, chemical, manual, or otherwise,
without the express prior written permission of Seth J. Merriam.
Copyright 2016 © by Seth J. Merriam
All Rights Reserved
2016 © seth j merriam