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In a brief informal presentation, demonstrate the changes you made after completing your beta testing (backed up with user-testing data).

Individual reports, revisiting findings discovered during alpha testing, and presenting your goals for the final release.

Upload to Turnitin.com.

About 500 words, starting with a bulleted list of your goals for the final release. (Place that list at the beginning of your submission, but you should probably write the list last, after you have thoroughly considered what you learned from the beta-testing.)

(Moved from Dec 1)

There used to be a "Term Progress Report" on the sylalbus... I've dropped that assignment.

This is the last submission we will have time to discuss in great detail, and our last chance to discuss big-picture changes. From here on, our focus should be on resolving trouble spots and fine-tuning.

Small teams test each other's projects and report results. This is not a contest - this is a practical, honest exploration of strengths and weaknesses.

Delayed from Nov 14.

What is an Alpha Release?

A partial draft, with some sections more or less fully complete, but whole sections left unfinished.

So, if you plan a website with a home page, four supporting pages, and a "credits" page, your alpha release might have the home page, just one supporting page, and an
incomplete "credits" page.

If you plan a game in which the character explores a three-story house, your alpha release might include one more-or-less complete floor.

The basic idea is that you need some parts complete enough that your users can actually test them usefully, but you have to be willing to change your work based on what you learn from your test users.

(A beta release is an essentially finished product - your game should have an ending, your website should be written and proofread.  Your beta-testers will identify improvements that you hadn't thought of -- synonyms you should implement in Inform 7, new sections or navigational features on web pages, etc.)

Post an informal progress report on your blog, with quotations/links/samples that demonstrate your progress. Post 2-4 comments on peer entries, demonstrating your willingness to help peers solve problems.

Whoops, looks like I accidentally put this on the syllabus twice. The progress report is actually due on the 14th.

The same instructions as the last portfolio, but with Krug instead of Killian in section 1A.

1A) Write a new blog entry that offers a thoughtful, reflective critique of Krug's Don't Make Me Think, bearing in mind that the book was originally published in 2000. (How well has it held up? What could be improved in a new edition?)

* You may include links to entries you have previously posted, and/or links to what your classmates have written on the subject.

1B) As you did for your last portfolio, create a portfolio entry on your weblog, with a title that emphasizes what you feel you have accomplished so far this term. Write a brief introduction that introduces the class and your portfolio to a reader who doesn't know the purpose of the assignment or what the class is supposed to cover.

2) Use material you have posted on your blog to support your statement about what you learned. You may give a simple bulleted list, or you may write a paragraph that includes key words that link to specific pages on your site.

When including a blog entry, write some significant words, such as the title of the entry or the reason you are including it in your blog, and turn those significant words into a link. (Please don't use neutral words like "click here" or "my homework" or "foreshadowing in 'A Good Man Is Hard to Find'" for the links... make your words communicate the insight contained in your blog entry: "Emily Dickinson is a sick cookie.")

Sort and organize your entries into the following broad categories. (I definitely do NOT want just the URLs of every entry you have posted.)

2A) Coverage: Link to one or several entries that include a direct quote from the assigned reading, that identify the source of the quote, and that links back to the course web page devoted to that reading.

2B) Timeliness: Link to one or several entries that you posted on time (such as agenda items posted 24 hours before the class discussion, or reflection papers posted before the class meeting... something you posted during a classroom exercise would be a weak contribution here).

2C) Interaction: Include one or several entries that demonstrate your ability to interact with peers. Your entry might link to something a classmate posted, or your entry might have attracted comments from peers. If someone leaves a comment, you should reply to the comment in order to try to keep the conversation going.

2D) Depth: Include one or several links to entry on your blog that shows your ability to write in depth.

2E) Discussion: Include one or several links to a page on a classmate's blog where you left a significant comment that was part of a fruitful discussion. (Would "Good job!" or "LOL" count as significant comments? Probably not.)

3) Submit your portfolio by posting a link to it on this page.

I will give you a rough scenario, which you will individually flesh out into Inform 7 code.