WEBSITE BUILDING OPTIONS
The tutorial includes opening a WIX account, building tabs, adding visuals, and creating hyperlinks. The tutorial was created by Melissa Yarger, an IUPUI alumni, as part of her Loretta Lunsford Scholarship.
You are welcome to build your team website using any web design tool you'd like. In class, we will experiment with WIX.
A note about MOVING BACKGROUNDS:
One benefit of WIX is the versatility of design options including moving backgrounds. These are fine in personal websites. Use distracting visuals like moving backgrounds sparingly in professional settings. Keep rhetorical context in mind as you build your pages.
Be sure that your text is not over moving images; it is hard to read when there is movement
behind the words.
Readability is the number one visual concern for your website.
It doesn't matter how beautiful the webpage is designed IF the client can't read and navigate the report.
The quality of your information is the most important aspect of the entire project.
Making the report and website easy to read and easy to access is part of quality writing in relationship to this rhetorical context. These intentional choices demonstrate your mastery of multi-modal discourse strategies.
WIX vs Google Sites
Google Sites
Google Sites Advantages
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Free
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Students already all have access through IU gmail account — no setup needed
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Allows synchronous team work, and can be edited remotely
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Total control over who has access to the site
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Specific pages can be hidden from public view (like personal work pages that the team uses)
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Simple, easy-to-use creation tools that allow for multimedia content as well as text content
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Can easily duplicate to create site mirrors
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Integrated with Google Drive
Inserting images: <tbd>
Inserting videos: <tbd>
Google Site Disadvantages
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Not many templates
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Visually not appealing with few design options
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Google Sites ONLY WORKS with three internet browsers: Chrome, FireFox, and Safari (Morgan Johnson, 2019, Canvas Comments)
WIX
WIX Advantages
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Free
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Easy to build sites with thousands of templates [Top pick for template options]
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Professional designs with options to upgrade to interactive pages
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Can be edited remotely, but will overwrite multiple saves happening simultaneously (someone's work will be lost)
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Can easily duplicate
Inserting images: WIX may not allow images to be inserted within a text window--it will not wrap text. Images must be uploaded to WIX prior to being placed on a pages. Captions can be difficult to manage. WIX provides thousands of stock image options.
Inserting videos: <tbd>
WIX Disadvantages
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Cannot save simultaneously in real time (WIX will overwrite one update and displace another)
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Does not link to Google Drive