Mind Map - help map term-specific ideas in a way that is easy for the brain to understand
Mood Boards - collages of elements, such as text and images, that help convey a general idea.
Life Cycle
Life Cycles are when interfaces are created, used, and then eventually decommissioned. The Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) is the number one leading life cycle for any development type.
Waterfall - Waterfall methods require the planning to be done upfront before the project or phase starts. Generally occurs in a linear or sequential fashion. Everything in one stage is completed before you move to the next stage. All planning gets completed before the project moves to implementation. All implementation is completed before the process moves to testing. Easy to use; Easy to track. Disadvantages include it becomes more difficult to change the tasks and requirements once the project begins; Harder to pivot when faced with unplanned or unexpected changes. Agile - handles things in sprints, and the planning is more incremental Scrum is a framework built upon the Agile model and focuses on delivering value to the customer Described as lightweight, easy to understand, and difficult to master. Product Owner - responsible for prioritizing the work, maintaining the backlog, and accepting stories Scrum Master - helps ensure that Scrum rules are being followed and helps overcome any obstacles. Development Team Member - create increments of working code. Product Backlog - A list of everything that is currently needed for a product. Spring Backlog - A list of everything that is currently being developed within a sprint. Increment - The sum of all of the items that were created during a sprint. Big focus on self-organizing and cross-functional teams; Managers allowing the team to figure things out on their own before stepping in. Agile works in sprints - small, iterative batches normally spanning 2-4 weeks. The Agile Mindset Focuses on how to create and respond to change and how to deal with uncertainty. Agile methodologies are the conventions that a team chooses to follow in a way that follows Agile values and principles. Individuals and interactions over processes and tools Working software over comprehensive documentation Customer collaboration over contract negotiation Responding to change over following a plan “It’s really about thinking through how you can understand what’s going on in the environment that you’re in today, identify what uncertainty you’re facing, and figure out how you can adapt to that as you go along.”
SDLC (Software Development Life Cycle)
Here are some things that are going to be central to our explanation of the software development life cycle:
SDLC encompasses: planning, implementation, testing, documentation, deployment and maintenance. Models shifted from traditional staged SDLC processes, to , and then to . Agile and Devops as practices merged traditional staging in new and interesting ways. The cloud brought the arrival of web-delivered resources into the picture. The various types of concentrated SDLC models built from SDLC are Waterfall, Spiral, Iterative, Agile, and DevOps.
Vision and Strategy for Web Design
What is a Vision statement?
A vision statement is a written declaration clarifying your business’s meaning and purpose for stakeholders, especially employees. It describes the desired long-term results of your company’s efforts.
A company vision statement reveals, at the highest levels, what an organization most hopes to be and achieve in the long term. The vision is about your goals for the future and how you will get there, whereas the mission is about where you are now and why you exist There are five factors to consider when looking at a web design vision:
goals - show how a company will run the website and what has been accomplished along the way audience - Audience and brand aim to specify who is being targeted and how the website should impact them brand - how the message is delivered competition - shows what is out there and how this company and its vision are different and better. implementation - focuses on how the process gets started
What is a Mission Statement?
Your mission statement consists of the ideas you have about your site and your company.
A mission statement is unique for every business, it’s the reason why it exists and what it wants to accomplish.
What problem it wants to solve for its audience. It’s important to understand that your mission shouldn’t revolve around making more money, it should be focused on what you can offer your audience List of questions used to create the mission statement:
What can people do with the products or information you’re offering? What makes your products or business unique? How can your products/services enhance your clients’ lives? Why should people buy your products/services and not your (e.g. cheaper or better known) competitors? Or why should people read your information and take your advice instead of information on another website? What’s the reason you’re offering these products/services or information, besides making money? Ways to communicate your Mission
Mission Statement Page
Your site should have an about us page or section. Create a mission statement page Optimize your introductory content
Be sure to optimize your introductory content to tell the important stuff really quickly. What is your website about? What do you sell. Homepages and land pages. Think about your headlines
Make good use of your headlines and taglines. The headline is the title of a page or post. A tagline is a small amount of text which serves to clarify a thought. Make sure the headline and tagline both communicate the core goal of your product and write them from a user’s perspective. Right them in an action oriented way by using verbs and sentences that imply action. Ex. ‘Keep your site optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin!’ A picture is worth a thousand words
For most products, it is easy to find pictures that reflect the purpose of your website. Think about what you want to tell your audience, keep your mission in mind, while choosing your images. Be consistent with your communication
Make sure that your content, headings, images and site structure match the mission statement on your site. Make sure to create an experience that’s the same on every page or any other way that people come into contact with your business. Difference between a Vision statement and a Mission statement?
Mission statements are based in the present and convey to stakeholders and community members why a business exists and where it currently stands.
Vision statements are future-based, and they are meant to inspire and give direction to employees.
“A vision is aspiration; a mission is actionable.”
Website Specification Process
The specifications list is an integral part of any website and requires multiple inputs from various stakeholders. Specifications are information about various points of the website.
Goals, objectives, and customer identification are a few pieces of this list
To create the specifications, information such as goals, documentation, feedback, and priorities are needed. Compiling the specifications will help when detailing and outlining the list. No one should ever simply assume that everything is going as it should. The following are steps in the information gathering process that will help create a reasonable requirements list (Hirsch, 2020):
establish project goals and objectives - Project goals and objectives give the team an end goal, which will help them understand where the project is headed documentation - Having clear documentation allows for the quick retrieval of information, and reveals if any information is missing. transparency - Ensuring that the entire team is on the same page during this process is essential to keeping the information and the goals accurate. communication with users and stakeholders - Communication simply allows stakeholders, customers, and the team to understand how things are progressing do not make assumptions - No one should ever simply assume that everything is going as it should. confirmation - Confirmation that requirements are being met indicates that the process is going well. Scope creep is the gradual but inexorable process by which previously unplanned "features" are added, content and features are padded to mollify each stakeholder group, major changes in content or site structure during site construction are made, and more content or interactive functionality than you originally agreed to create is stuffed in.
Requirements Gathering - refers specifically to the practice of defining software requirements, but really every project has requirements, from a new customer support platform to a remodeled kitchen.
At its core, this is the process of understanding what you’re supposed to be building, and why you’re building it.
Website Publishing
Publishing a website means making it available to the public. A website can be published by purchasing a hosting plan through a website host or creating a web server in the corporate environment.
Deciding whether to purchase a hosting plan through a website or create a web server in the corporate environment depends comes down to the site’s functionality and what the site will be used for. Reliability is essential when looking at hosting options. Any amount of downtime is harmful for an organization, so prioritizing the service is a must Security - On-premise provides better protection for companies with proprietary information (Enix, 2018). Some companies cannot afford to have information stored online with the inherent risk of leaked information. Practicality is another consideration when in search of the ideal hosting option. Cloud hosting is typically better for scalability, and some companies see this as an advantage for future growth and innovation (Dialog, 2017). To determine your hosting needs and the type of servers, services, and site architecture you’ll require, ask yourself the following questions:
What kind of website are you building – will it be primarily a source of company information, or will it require more interactive elements? What functionality will your site include – will you have a customer database, and will there be a transfer of private and secure information? What kind of traffic growth is expected – will it be a blog that sees steadily growing traffic over time or an eCommerce site that can experience intense traffic spikes? How can end users be impacted by where a website is published?
End users can be affected by the performance, speed, and security of a website depending on the hosting provider's quality. Poor hosting can lead to slow load times and increased downtime, which can negatively impact user experience and site credibility. What are some of the considerations when choosing a hosting provider?
Key considerations include the provider's reliability, security features, scalability options, customer support quality, hosting plans offered (shared, VPS, dedicated), and the specific needs of your website (e.g., eCommerce, high traffic). What are some common mistakes made when selecting a hosting provider?
Common mistakes include choosing a free hosting plan, not considering scalability, ignoring security features, overlooking customer support, and not fully understanding the hosting needs of the website.
Why is on-premises hosting a better security option?
On-premises hosting can offer better security because it allows for direct control over the physical and network security measures. Companies can implement customized security protocols, manage access controls, and ensure data is kept within their premises. Why are cloud and hosted options more cost-effective?
Cloud and hosted options are often more cost-effective because they eliminate the need for significant upfront investments in hardware and infrastructure. They offer scalable solutions, where you pay for what you use, and reduce maintenance and operational costs by leveraging the provider's expertise. Why would a company choose to use a web hosting service over on-premises?
Companies might choose web hosting services over on-premises hosting for reasons such as reduced costs, scalability, ease of management, access to the latest technologies, and better disaster recovery solutions. Hosting services also offer robust support and maintenance, freeing internal resources for other tasks.
Mind Mapping: Web Design and Development
Mind Mapping is a diagram that is used to help structure information around a central theme by linking various words or images in a hierarchical way.
Mind Maps have the potential to become overly complex and cluttered, especially when dealing with lots of information.
A mind map presents a clear visual diagram, with succinct information presented in an intuitive structure. What you see in the mind map is a map to your thoughts. The visual nature of mind maps increase mental retention. Several reasons to use Mind Mapping:
to structure information effectively. to improve reading comprehension. to improve memory and recall Central Theme - main idea or concept of a mind map
Associations - The lines that connect one keyword, image, etc. to another.
A mind map is a visual representation used to covey and structure information in around a central theme by linking words and images. What is the theory behind mind mapping? The theory behind mind mapping is that it mimics the brain's natural way of thinking, making it easier to generate, organize, and retain information by visually connecting related ideas. What are some of the things mind mapping can be used for? 
Unit 2: User Interface Design
