Using infographics as educational tools has emerged as a strategy to reach consumers in today's information-saturated environment. Through the use of engaging and informative graphics, educators can deliver meaningful messages tailored to targeted audiences. Varying types of effectively designed infographics can be used to capture the attention of…

Physical design projects are a way to motivate and engage students in authentic science and engineering practices. Web-based tools can support design projects to ensure that students address and reflect upon critical science concepts during the course of the project. In addition, by specifying challenging design goals that require students to…

Engineering design has been suggested as a viable instructional approach for Technology Education (TE) to intentionally provide students the opportunity to apply multidisciplinary concepts to solve ill-defined design challenges (Wells & Ernst, 2012; Sanders & Wells, 2010; Wicklein, 2006). Currently, the context for design challenges in TE…

Explains GIF and JPEG formats for computer graphics to help Web page creators make an informed decision when selecting a format for each graphic in a Web publication. Highlights include compressing and decompressing computer images; image quality, including color; special features, including animation; and file size. (Author/LRW)

Discusses how to choose from the available interactive graphic-design possibilities for the World Wide Web. Compatibility and appropriateness are discussed; and DHTML (Dynamic Hypertext Markup Language), Java, CSS (Cascading Style Sheets), plug-ins, ActiveX, and Push and channel technologies are described. (LRW)

Provides background information on the development of the Ramapo Catskill Library System's (NY) LibraryLand Web site. Highlights include other library-related resource guides on the Web; an emphasis on public libraries; graphics; links; the use of HTML; and templates for designing library home pages. (LRW)

Provides design options for making Web sites more accessible to blind or visually impaired users. Highlights include valid alt-tags on graphics; helpful link text; cascading style sheets (CSSs) to separate content from page structure; descriptive links to tell what a significant graphic is about; and not using text only as a valid alternative.…

Complex computer and video games may provide a vehicle, based on appropriate theoretical concepts, to transform the educational landscape. Building on the original game object model (GOM) a new more detailed model is developed to support concepts that educational computer games should: be relevant, explorative, emotive, engaging, and include…

Describes a study that examined the home pages of all 120 libraries in the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) to compare design similarities and differences. Highlights include background; document headers and footers; graphics; hypertext links; and unlinked text. (Author/LRW)

Describes some of the factors that affect computer monitor display design and provides suggestions and insights into how screen displays can be designed more effectively. Topics include color, font choices, organizational structure of text, space outline, and general principles. (Author/LRW)

Reviews evaluation standards that are used to assess the quality of projected graphical displays, and discusses their use in evaluating graphs created with computer graphing programs. Design standards for projected graphs are explained, and examples of three types of graphs are shown. (four references) (LRW)

Discussion of Web page design covers balancing text and graphics; pixels; graphic file formats; dithering; and caching. (LRW)

Identifies human factor issues involved in the student-computer interface in computer assisted instruction and makes specific recommendations for screen design. Factors considered include simplicity, spaciousness, relevance, standardization, changing display screen contents, color coding, shape and size coding, and brightness coding. (Author/LRW)

Reviews the effectiveness of animation in enhancing textual information for instructional purposes and identifies factors that determine effectiveness. Outlines methodological problems in the research and summarizes design criteria for multimedia instructional products. Contains 78 references. (PEN)

Describes the use of an outside graphic design firm to redesign the Yale University Library (New Haven, CT) Web site. Topics include division of labor; design principles and technical requirements; related Web sites at Yale; usability testing; coding that conformed to library standards; ease of use; and communication between the design firm and…