Technical Skills
In 541, my Korrecto Tutoring website made use of several kinds of software and other tools appropriate to the task.
Artifact Link
Korrecto Tutoring Website
Setting the Scene
I created the Korrecto Tutoring site as my individual final project for EDTEC 541. Upon my return from Ecuador I was planning to work part-time, tutoring ESL students and giving basic Spanish lessons. I took the opportunity during 541 Web Based Multimedia Development to design and develop a site that I could use to attract new clients and deliver information about my business online.
Results
To develop this web site I used Flash, Dreamweaver, and Fireworks. With a multicultural, ESL audience, the site itself needed to clearly communicate information while still being unique and clever enough to win new clients. Flash gave me the flexibility to have fun and be creative. Plus, the movement of Flash grabs the visitor's attention, and I needed that on my site. The fade-in and fade-out of quotes on the rest of the website was created with Fireworks to create the images, and Flash to create the animations. Meanwhile the Dreamweaver/CSS/HTML combination kept design simple and navigation familiar for the audience. I used a CSS styesheet that I found on an open-source web design site, and I learned the benefits of using CSS with a web site like Korrecto. Although it was my first time using each of these pieces of software, I am very happy with the result, even as I look back on it a couple years later.
Snags and Smooth Waters
With Flash, the design element of time becomes a factor. I wanted the animation to mimic handwriting on a chalkboard, with each individual stroke of the chalk animated, but I quickly realized that it took too much time for the animation to run with each stroke at normal speed. I didn't want to lose potential customers as they waited for the animation to complete, so I decided that I could still capture the same feeling by having individual letters display one at a time. Each letter in "Welcome To", therefore, is on a separate layer of the animation. The timing is better this way, and the audience still gets the sense that they are watching someone write. I also wanted the site to be available in Spanish and English, and for the visitors to be able to switch back and forth between the two languages. This meant that each page needed two versions, and it required being meticulous about which pages were linked through the "Para Espanol"/"For English" button. If I were looking to further improve this site, I would anchor the "Para Espanol"/"For English" button. Right now, the button will move around depending on the page being viewed. It should be stationary. I would also update the quotes area in the bottom left corner of the site. The quotes need to be displayed for a longer time which would make them easier to read for this audience and less distracting. I should have also added quotes in Spanish about learning a new language- which I did not do. Despite the snags I'm proud to show this site as a demonstration of my technical skills.
Capabilities and Characteristics
I got really excited while doing this project. I felt like I had started learning a new language with Flash, and I could make the design "speak" to my visitors. Working with Flash takes a lot of patience and attention to detail - qualities that I found in myself throughout this project. I also realized that I have an eye for simple design. With my newly acquired Flash skills, I wanted to embellish everything about the site - add more animations, flashing buttons - but I knew that would work against the simple, clean look that I needed for Korrecto. I also learned that my technical skills are strongly aligned with my ability to focus and learn individually. With programs like Dreamweaver and Flash, there's bound to be people who have encountered and resolved my same questions and problems in the past. Instead of asking my question and waiting idly for a response, I learned to search for and use the online resources already available to me to find the answers that I needed. I think this allowed me to learn more and find new things to try.