Preface

Changes

My original paper was very long and difficult to scan, especially on the web. To overcome this problem, I tried to go through and convert as much information as possible into bulleted lists.

I also created sub-headlines to break up the text into smaller chunks. I think these two elements alone greatly improved the readability of the paper.

Increasing value

After putting a years worth of time into my thesis, I felt that putting it online would be a worthwhile task. My main reasoning is to put the web address on my resume and having potential employers view the piece.

Strengthening the paper

In addition, the paper itself was strengthened and became interactive. Instead of being a linear piece, the reader can now jump around, scan through and choose to look at specific parts of the research. As previously outlined, the paper is also now easier to digest with the use of sub-headlines and bulleted lists.

Overall decisions

After a rocky start, my site finally started coming together. Thanks to Ayleen for staying late! In the end, I decided on a simplistic layout with navigation buttons on the top.

I was afraid the whole site would be too boring; there is a lot of text and not many graphics. However I didn’t think I had much of a choice with the serious nature of a research paper.

I also did not like my home page. It seemed very lengthy and hard to swallow as an introduction. But I chose to stick with it since I felt all the information was necessary to preserve the integrity of the paper.

One of the most difficult problems I encountered was the issue of cutting text. I found this extremely difficult and ended up keeping most it. Instead I tried converting longer paragraphs into bulleted lists.

Overall, the elements of my thesis stayed the same. The biggest difference was the results section, which was originally all text. To ease readability, I created the section as lists. This also makes comparison easier.

In the end

Despite my initial problems, I feel I succeeded in creating a worthwhile and informative academic site. I’m happy with the way the elements flow together but stand alone at the same time. I think the paper was greatly enhanced with the web and will maybe even be a useful tool for viewers.

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