COM%20205%20Multimedia%20Applications

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COM 205Multimedia Applications

• St. Josephs College
• Fall 2003

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Basic Software Design
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Consider your audience

• Who?
• What?
• When?
• Where?
• How?

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Technology

• Connection- 14.4K modems/ fast T1
• Dont over use graphics too slow
• Monitor size
• Put most important info at top of page
• Dont clutter screen
• Dont cause too much scrolling
• Browsers available
• Netscape
• Internet Explorer
• Plug-ins

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Some Design Issues

• Speed ( of loading)
• Simplicity ( say more with less)
• Clarity
• Consistency
• Easy of use
• Ease of navigation
• Bells and Whistles

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Speed

• Should load quickly
• Choose text and graphics wisely
• Not too many bitmaps!
• Balance text and graphics
• Design for the disabled or those without graphics
• Use ALT tag in HTML
• Blind will hear description of image with
  synthesized speech
• Some may choose not to load graphics and can
  still understand the message

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Simplicity and Clarity

• Use basic layout and themes
• Use only a few colors and fonts
• Choose clear consistent icons with universal
  meaning
• Include no more than 5 to 7 items on a menu

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Consistency

• Provide and overview/summary screen
• Each link and page should have the same look and
  feelwhere possible
• Use same colors for hotlinks, etc

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Ease of Use

• Easy to read text and font size
• Use text appropriate to your audience
• Provide sense of where you are
• Check for dead ends- pages without links
• Use good navigational controls

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Ease of Navigation

• Provide navigational controls
• ( back, next, home, top, bottom)
• Button bars are often helpful
• Include common links on each page
• Home
• Email
• Back, etc.

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Bells and Whistles

• Animation should be meaningful not distracting
• Dont go over board- one screen is not meant to
  contain ALL you know or have learned
• Use special effects where they enhance your
  message

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Interesting Resources

• Web Page Design Guides
• http//info.med.yale.edu/caim/manual
• http//hotwired.lycos.com/webmonkey/design/?twdes
  ign
• http//www.killersites.com
• Virtual Computer Library
• http//www.utexas.edu/computer/vcl/www.html
• Animation
• http//hotwired.lycos.com/webmonkey/multimedia/ani
  mation/tutorials/tutorial1.html