For February 17: To be ready for the first peer critique, your site need only contain a home page and an indication of the site's structure (through menus, links, or whatever hyperlinks you plan to use to move from this page to the interior pages). Obviously, you need to embed enough visual and textual information that your peer can get a good sense of how and where you are going with the site. But primarily, the home page critique will focus on design, rather than content, issues.

For March 16: Your site should be fully up and running, with all pages in place and most if not all of the content written. This is not to say that you cannot tinker with the site until the final due date, but you must have a complete project ready for review.

Here's a look at the critique format we'll be using:

408c Home Page Critique Instructions

Goals:

For the Reviewee: to provide you with informed peer feedback about your site.

For the Reviewer: to practice the strategies of Web critique we have discussed in class and which you have outlined in your mid-term test.

Value of Critique: Critique 1 = 8 points; Critique 2 = 12 points

Due Date: As stated on syllabus (two points deducted for each day late)

Submit assignment via email: ONE copy to reviewee, ONE copy to me

Format: The home page critique will consist of a one to one-and-a-half page memo with following sections:

1.                          Description of Page: give a brief overview of the apparent purpose of the site followed by a detailed description of what the home page looks like, with special attention to visual metaphors, apparent site structure, typography and layout.

2.                          Evaluation: draw on the appropriate vocabularies of rhetoric and visual literacy to write an informative critique of the page. If substantial written content is available, you may also comment on it.

3.                          Suggestions for Improvement: be as helpful and specific as you can.

Peer Review Information Sheet

Name:__________________________________________________________________

Home page URL:___________________________________________________________________

E-mail:__________________________________________________________________

Telephone:_______________________________________________________________

Note: You are responsible for ensuring that your site information is correct and that it is available for review. If the site you are reviewing becomes unavailable, first try to contact the reviewee. If your attempts fail, let me know by e-mail.