Mike Webb's Online Portfolio

Mike Webb's Online Portfolio

This page provides descriptions for, and links too, most of the sigificant design projects with which I've been involved. In the interest of putting this page together efficiently, at this time, it is intended to be functional, without particular emphasis on appearance. The individual projects themselves show some of the more varied design directions I have taken.

The newer sites were designed with, and for, Microsoft Internet Explorer running under Windows; the older sites were designed with, and for, IBrowse running under AmigaOS. When possible, I have tested these sites with various versions of Netscape. I am not aware of any incompatibilities.

Categories Below

Large-Scale Web Sites
Course Project Sites
Older Web Sites and Early Projects
Print Publications
PowerPoint Presentations (for Course Projects)

Large-Scale Web Sites

Cornell Fitness Centers (2002 - 2003): As Information Technology Consultant for Cornell Fitness Centers, I was responsible for updating and maintaining the web site. The site I inherited, however, was outdated, error-prone, and not compliant with the standards used by the rest of Cornell Athletics. So I redesigned the site from the ground up to look and feel like other Cornell Athletics sites, but with an emphasis on clean, efficient code. This site uses strictly plain HTML. After considering some likely audience profiles for CFC members, I decided it would be best to avoid such technologies as JavaScript and CSS in the name of compatibility with multiple platforms, older computers, and dialup connections. The site, as I originally implemented it, used ASP for server-side includes; but I converted it to hard-coded HTML for hosting here, due to web hosting provider limitations. Unlike most web sites with a fixed header and navigation bar, this one always scales to fill the browser window above a certain minimum size.

Meinwald Group (2001): This site began as a course project and ended as a complete web site for the research group of Dr. Jerrold Meinwald, a professor in the Cornell University Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology. Other than images provided by Dr. Meinwald's lab, I designed and/or manipulated all the graphics on this site. Like the CFC site, this one scales to fill the browser window.

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Course Project Sites

Connectrix Update (Spring 2003, Communication 260 - Science Writing for Public Information): The final project for this course was to create a newsletter, either in traditional print format or as a web site. My group chose to create this site about a fictional PDA/computer peripheral company called "Connectrix." My group members provided the bulk of the writing, and I did all the editing and web design, as well as some writing. This site uses plain HTML and a fairly simple, straightforward design for the sake of compatibility and efficiency.
Additional components (MS Word format): Situation Analysis | List of Article Types | Template Description | Manuscript Copies of Articles

Web-Based Four-Function Calculator (Spring 2003, Communication 540 - Impact of Information Technology): The project for this course was to design or research a principle or prototype from a human-computer interaction (HCI) and usability perspective. Although I ultimately chose a different topic for the final project (refer to PowerPoint below), I created this calculator as my pilot project. It is a rough demo and proof-of-concept, and as such is not graphical beyond basic HTML UI elements (and the logic contains a few known minor bugs). However, it is mostly functional, and demonstrates web-based modeling of hardware interfaces or potentially complicated or dangerous machines, suggesting that web-based simulators can serve as powerful -- yet portable -- educational and analytical tools.

Blue Bird Coat Hangers (Fall 2001, Computer Science 130 - Creating Web Documents, co-developed with Peter Chan): The professor for this course was known for specifying somewhat strange project topics, to encourage students to think in unorthodox ways, and try to have some fun in the process. As a result, this site -- which had to be about coat hangers -- is mostly tongue-in-cheek and even a bit ridiculous. As the final project for the course, it also had to be Flash-based.

Broccoli (Fall 2001, Computer Science 130 - Creating Web Documents, co-developed with Peter Chan): As with the Coat Hangers Flash-based site (see above), this is a case or a strange project topic -- in this instance, broccoli -- and hence there is some intentional silliness. Certain things about this site might also annoy the viewer, but due to the project specifications, that was actually intentional. (For example, to make it past the "favorite vegetable" form, the viewer must click the link, not press enter.) The assignment was to use some more advanced JavaScript, so the site has some toy examples of what can be done with arrays, functions, objects, event handlers, and such.

Color Basics (Fall 2001, Computer Science 130 - Creating Web Documents, co-developed with Peter Chan): The assignment for this project was to create a frame-based site using some simple JavaScript, with attention to design. My partner provided the concept, content, and graphics, and I did most of the coding.

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Older Web Sites and Early Projects

Haven (1999 - 2000): Haven is the administrative umbrella student organization for most of the student groups dedicated to serving the needs of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning (LGBTQ) community at Cornell. As one of the founding members and an officer of Haven, I created this site to provide a unified and uniform web presence for Haven and its constituent groups. This is an older site, and its simplicity reflects that.

Cornell University Gay-Straight Alliance (1999 - 2000): CUGSA is one of the constituent groups of Haven. As a founding member and officer of CUGSA, I created this site to provide a web presence consistent with Haven's. This is also an older site, and its simplicity reflects that.

The Kyle Webb Site (1999): This is a very simple home page I made for my mom quite some time ago. It also showcases the entire history of her primary contribution to Amiga Monitor (see above): the "Lame Humor Department," a monthly cartoon series notorious for poking fun at some of the bigger players in the personal computer industry.

Amiga Monitor (1996 - 1998): This was not a web site, per se, but an online magazine released as a complete portable web-based publication each month. It provided news, editorial, features, and reviews about the Amiga computer platform, and in time came to be read by Amiga owners all over the world. I founded AM, and did all the organizational, design, editing, and publishing work, and a substantial amount of the writing. AM began very early in my web design career, and although the design evolved over the magazine's two-year run, it is still dated by current standards.

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Print Publications

Brochure: Ground-Source Heating (Spring 2003, Communication 260 - Science Writing for Public Information): For this project, the assignment was to assume the identity of a company or organization and produce a brochure on some science-related topic. I chose NYSEG (New York State Electric & Gas) as my company, and Ground-Source Heating as my topic. The result, shown here in MS Word format, is a six-panel brochure intended to be folded such that the upper right panel is the front, and the upper middle panel is the back.

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PowerPoint Presentations (for Course Projects)

Project Presentation: Usability Analysis of a Cell Phone Interface (Spring 2003, Communication 540 - Impact of Information Technology): This PowerPoint file accompanied my final course project presentation. My project was a qualitative, and somewhat quantitative, analysis of a particular cell phone's user interface. Given the informal and friendly seminar-style atmosphere of the class, certain slides are light-hearted and not entirely serious. This file also makes references to the four-function calculator listed above.

Persuasive Speech: Wintel Debate (Fall 2001, Communication 301 - Business and Professional Speaking): This PowerPoint file accompanied my persuasive-style speech about the perceived threat of the "Wintel" monopoly (Microsoft and Intel) to the rest of the computer industry and its consumers, for an audience of student computer users.

Informative Speech: Information Architecture (Fall 2001, Communication 301 - Business and Professional Speaking): This PowerPoint file accompanied my informative-style speech about the field of Information Architecture and web design, for an audience potentially interested in entering the field.

PowerPoint Project: Verizon (Fall 2001, Communication 301 - Business and Professional Speaking): This project was intended to familiarize us with PowerPoint. We were instructed to create a stand-alone presentation about a particular company (in fitting with the "business" theme of the course). I chose to assume the identity of Verizon, and create an overview of some of the company's many telecommunication products and technologies. This presentation runs automatically once started. I received a perfect score for this project.

Public Interest Report - Nokia Hands-Free Cell Phone Technology News (Fall 2001, Communication 301 - Business and Professional Speaking): This PowerPoint file accompanied my group's presentation of a public interest report. We were required to assume the identity of some major company, and deliver a PIR from the point of view of that company. My group chose Nokia, and we reported on new legal and technological developments concerning hands-free cell phone products, for an audience of Nokia shareholders.

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