Planning the Center Park Web Site

As a good Web designer, the first thing with which you've asked the Center Park administrators to provide you is a list of required functionality, deadlines, and budget. They have produced the list of required functionality; it is now your job to design the site, via JavaScript, with the functionality they require.

Here is the list:

• Dynamic calendars. Students have asked to be able to view their homework assignments "at a glance," and to be able to do so in weekly and monthly increments; moreover, important dates for the operation of the school year (start/ending dates, vacations, meetings, etc.) need to be communicated via the site. The site will require several dynamic calendars so that users of the site can locate the information when they want and in the fashion (weekly, monthly) they want.

• A test and survey feature. Administrators of the school recently visited a sister school in another district and were impressed to see that school performing online testing. This feature has proven very useful as a method of assessment for advancedstanding students in continuing education, as well as (through some fairly simple modification of the code) a means of gathering information via online surveys. The Center Park administrators would like such a feature for their Web site.

• An online store. As with all things involving education, fund-raising is critical to ensuring that the important programs and initiatives of the school continue despite the omnipresent red pen of the local, state, and federal legislature. Center Park administrators have requested that the site feature some type of online store, at which orders for various fund-raising items can be placed at any time of day or night. To help further facilitate this online store, the administrators have also requested that basic financial calculators be included on the site so that visitors and members can perform quick price calculations.

• Secure, members-only access. Many of the features of the site, while open to the general public (e.g. the online store), will require secure access for current students and faculty only. In order to ensure that the information deemed confidential can remain as such, you will need to utilize some of the security features of JavaScript coding.

• Rotating banner advertisements. Not surprisingly, several organizations within the school (e.g. the sports teams, the band, and various student clubs) have asked for advertising space on the site so that visitors can be aware of their activities. Several of the rotating-banner ads will provide links to specific sections of the site, so being able to hyperlink within the ads will be a critical.

• Bold, attractive appearance. Finally, all of the above-mentioned functionality, as well as the general look and feel of the site, must be as eye-pleasing as possible. To that end, the site will also include various dynamic HTML (DHTML) effects, including highlighted navigation buttons on the home page. Figure 14.1 shows an example of such an effect in action.

  
  Figure 14.1: Highlighted navigation buttons on the home page draw attention to major site functionality.

As you can see from this list, the finished site will include some fairly advanced JavaScript functionality. However, while the functionality will be quite advanced, it can be implemented relatively easily through the power of JavaScript and what it brings to otherwise static and unexciting Web pages.

Don' Forget To Plan!

While this book is not about Web site or IT planning in general, planning is a critical topic that deserves a mention here.

No matter what the size of your Web project—from a personal home page to a site such as that for the Center Park School—planning is an absolute requirement. When planning any Web project, be sure to consider (even in the most rudimentary fashion) the following issues:

• The necessary work to be performed. Not unlike the bulleted list shown earlier, this high-level concept planning defines the major functionality of the project and who will perform/coordinate/implement/administer/ and ultimately be responsible for the final project.

• Special vendor requirements. What existing electronic systems are already in place, and/or what existing or soon-to-be-implemented hardware/software must function with the site? Are you using special products or otherwise proprietary technology (e.g. Microsoft platform: ActiveX controls) that will have a serious impact on how the functionality of the completed site is accessed?

• Design and documentation. What if you get only halfway through the project and you get hit by the proverbial bus (or, in a less violent scenario, get called away to a different project)? Will those who follow you be able to pick up where you left off in order to complete the project? To ensure that the answer is yes, you should be careful to document your code and your general site design at every step of the way. Not only will proper code documentation help those who follow you, but it can be invaluable when you need to go back to troubleshoot or fix the inevitable bug.

• Training. While everything about your code and your site functionality makes perfect sense to you, it may be anything but intuitive to your end user. While the above-mentioned documentation will help with this, you should also consider some training sessions (as well as written training documentation) that will ensure that both your end users and those charged with administering your site understand your thinking and know how to take the best advantage of your programming acumen.

• Scope Creep. Avoiding the dreaded scope creep—allowing your project to go off in directions you didn't plan for—is an absolute must. More than likely, you will be constrained by two things of which there is never enough: time and money. That said, plan carefully and then stick to your plan!