Cyberspace i312

http://cyberspace.ischool.utexas.edu
This website is designed and maintained by iSchool staff for the online course Information in Cyberspace or INF312 or "i312".

Intended Audience:
Students taking the online undergraduate course INF312. Approximately 160 students this semester.
i312 Staff: TAs, GAs, UAs, and other iSchool Staff.

Usefulness of the Content:
Technology instruction is difficult, mainly because technology is changing everyday. Online instruction is difficult because it is remote and primarily text based. That said, the usefulness and sheer amount of content on this site is boggling. The content is very similar to this course except it is tailored for undergraduates. The module material was written by current and past staff of i312. That means people like us! The content is so useful because it takes very "plugged-in" students and enlightens them to the magic that is the internet and web-applications. Lots of topics are covered from Security and Privacy to RSS feeds and Skype. Throughout the semester students write and maintain their own XHTML website that is supported by the Cyberspace server. I believe this course instills confidence in students to get involved with Web2.0 or at least not to fear it.

Consistency of Design:
This website is really a server just like the ischool.utexas.edu, actually it is a part of ischool.utexas.edu. That means that cyberspace can host student webpages just like the iSchool does. With so much content it would be easy to lose a consistent design theme. This is danger is only moderate because i312 is moving to Drupal, a open source content management system or CMS. That means that a template controls the look and feel of the content. A CMS is an excellent way to manage a site with a lot of content and functions.

Ease of Navigation:
If there was an area that has particularly suffered from the move to Drupal it is the navigation. I find this the most frustrating thing about the site. There is too much navigation with in the module pages and that navigation is not the same on the top, bottom, and side. However, I does not seem to have phased the students because the navigation is linear and the writing style flows from one page to the next.