Band
Promotion monica madelaine santa 9-2
♼
it 9
♼
2011
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INVESTIGATION stage one
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BAND PROMOTION Guiding Question: Does how we look and appear influence what people think of us?
The Client: A band. Problem: A band needs my help to make it big time. They don始t have any idea how to promote themselves and have hired me to make them famous. Target Audience: Anyone (young or old) who is interested in music. I am planning to... Design and create a website, Facebook and Twitter page to promote the band. Time Allowed: 1 Quarter.
Specifications & Limitations: Need internet access/computer Use any software (iMovie, pages) Videos 5 minutes max Sites/brochures/etc. not too long Appropriate for all ages Documented Evidence: Your documented evidence is like your diary. You start it when you first start making your design and it doesn始始t end till you have finished making your product. Take lots of photos, make notes on any modifications and add sketches and diagrams.
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INTRODUCTION I will design and create a promotional website for the band that will include the band始s photos, bios, personal information, videos, lyrics and anything else that may engage the audience further.
Materials Needed
Computer Internet access Camera Video recording device Photo editing software GarageBand
Additionally, I will also be creating a Facebook fan page and a Twitter account for the band. All this will be made within the time limit by following the stages of the Design Cycle which is investigation, design, plan, create and evaluation. I will interview my client to understand what they want to see on the site to create a product that they will be satisfied with and create a gantt chart to manage my time. It is essential that I follow all the steps involved in the Design Cycle to successfully promote the band. The create part will be done both during school time and at home but mostly at home due to restricted access to Facebook and Twitter at school.
Why?
Making this site will benefit both my client and the target audience because it will promote the band and as well as inform the audience about the band in a cool and engaging way.
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AREA OF INTERACTION The Area of Interaction for this project is human ingenuity because it requires originality and creativity, which will hopefully encourage people to go see the band I始m promoting. I will have to conduct interviews and use my knowledge of IT to create a product that is appealing to a wide range of audiences and advertise the band in a creative and innovative way. I will also be reflecting and evaluating on how I promote the band, which is part of human ingenuity according to the IB. Therefore, I believe the Area of Interaction that relates best to this project is human ingenuity.
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CLIENT INTERVIEW •
What type of music does your band play? We’re a rock band. We play mostly rock and occasionally pop but we’re experimenting with different styles and we’re open to all types of music.
•
you could make a photo gallery and add some videos to make the audience more engaged. Photos are important because they’re interesting and usually people don’t want to read a bunch of words.
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Do you think a website would best represent your band? Yes. A website would be a good way to represent us as it makes us look more professional. It’s important that we are also able to edit it easily once you have made the basic layout as we too would like to be able to share and record our experience with the audience.
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What are some of the specifics things you want on the site? We want viewers to be able to share the content on the site through social network. We also would like the site to be connected to our Facebook and Twitter page. There should be basic information about us and we want the site to be user-friendly.
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How do you feel about animations and graphics? Too much animations and effects can make can our site look unprofessional, so it’s not a good idea to use a lot. We don’t have anything against it but if you do use any effects, avoid using too much. It’ll just annoy the viewers.
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How big do you think the site should be? The site shouldn’t be too big. Maybe a couple pages that are relevent to us. If it’s too long, it might be hard for the audience to navigate the site. Also, too much content can make the site slow.
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What price do you think is reasonable for you? We’re willing to spend as much as $200 for the finished product but it depends on the quality of the site. We don’t want to spend too much.
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When would you like to have the site completed? As soon as possible. But don’t rush it. We want a site that’s informative and visually engaging but most importantly, we want to get our music out there and we want people to know about us. The sooner you can do that, the better but it’s important not to rush the process.
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•
What kind of image do you want your band to promote? We don’t want to project a negative image for sure. We want to make sure the audience knows who we are, the type of music we play and the lifestyle we live. We work hard but we also have a lot of fun. We don’t do drugs and our lyrics are clean. Anyone can hear our music and relate to it.
What kind of things would you like to see on your site? Definitely our information and contact details. It would also be cool if
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INTERVIEW SUMMARY From the client interview, I know my clients want an aesthetically pleasing website that represents the band, who they are and their music. They do not want to promote a negative image and from what I learnt, they are an ambitious but relatable rock band who believe strongly in their music. They do not want too much flashy animations and the site shouldn始t be too big to avoid slowness and an un-friendly user experience. They want the site to be able to connect to social networks such as Twitter and Facebook. They would like the site to include information about them and pictures and videos to make the site more interesting. They are willing to pay $200 for a site that is exactly what they are expecting. They also want the site to be finished as soon as possible but do not want the site to be rushed.
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BRAIN STORMING Need to update the site regularly
Allows the audience to interact with the band through social networking, etc
Engages the audience Make the band famous Represents the band well
WEBSITE
Aesthetically pleasing Include lots of relevant information
Makes people want to listen to their music
Appropriate for all audiences
Promotes a healthy image of the band
High quality
Promotes the band and their music
Interesting content on the site
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CASE STUDY << II >>
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2
3
Form
Website
Magazine Article
Video Ad
Target Audience
10+
12+
10+
Aesthetics
Can look very cool if you are good at graphic design and site making
Can look interesting but usually consists of lots of words and paragraphs
Can be visually aesthetically pleasing and engaging
Cost
Free
Free
Free
Function
An official site or page is preftty useful for promoting a band as the internet is now widely used
An article might not promote the band as effectively as other medias (people donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t really like reading)
A video advertisment of the band can promote the band if done effectively
Ease of Creation
Depending on the software or host, a website is difficult but not impossible to make
An article sounds easy but writing, editing and making the whole spread isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t
Making a video will be hard due to filming and editing which takes a long time
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Form
Website
Target Audience
People who like alternative rock music
Aesthetics
The layout itself is too simple and plain. Personally, it isn’t great aesthetically but includes a lot of features that enrich the fan experience
Cost
$20 a year for a “.com”
Function
It definitely promotes Linkin Park. The site includes links to their Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and MySpace pages as well as to iTunes where people can go buy their music.
Ease of Creation
I think this site must have been quite difficult to make. It must have taken a lot of time and effort to code the layout, link the pages and add content. 10
Website
Target Audience
People who like to read, magazine subscribers, etc
Aesthetics
Personally, I think the layout is a little too simple. The writing is quite small and there isn’t a large, attention grabbing title so we don’t know who the band even is. I don’t believe this is aesthetically pleasing.
Cost
rp20
Function
It explains a bit about Maroon 5 but it really is kind of simple and boring as some people just don’t like reading and there’s only one picture. It doesn’t promote the band effectively and it is hard for an article like this to engage the audience unless they’re really into minimalism.
Ease of Creation
The layout looks like it was made in a few minutes but writing the article might take time
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Website Target Audience
YouTubers, people who use the internet, like pop music
Aesthetics
Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a very engaging, quick yet informative and fun video that promotes the musician and her music
Cost
Free (if you use iMovie)
Function
It definitely promotes Gaga and her new album in a creative and visually engaging way.
Ease of Creation
I think this is semi-difficult. The effects donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t come with iMovie but the visuals are only pictures (which I can get from Google) and clips from the Bad Romance vid.
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CASE STUDY SUMMARY The case study sums up that though all three forms of advertising have been used, the most effective form of promoting a band is either a video ad or an official website. This is because a magazine article won始t reach as wide a range of audiences as a video or website does. It始s not easy to update it and limits the amount of people who have access to it. A website can be accessible to anyone as long as they have a computer and access to the internet, as is a video. Nowadays, kids, adults, even old people use the internet and therefore more people is reached through internet advertising. It is also a way of grabbing people始s attending and engaging them through interesting content. This is why I believe making a website is the most effective way to promote the band.
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IMPACTS ON THE ENVIRONMENT Since I will be creating a website, I will be minimizing the use of paper which is good for the environment. However, to view my site, you will need a computer and access to the internet which will waste electricity. Creating this website also means that I will have to use electricity which comes from a power station that may be using up our natural resources and contributing to global warming. The computer itself is produced from a factory that uses natural resources and releases toxic fumes that are causing air pollution which is harmful to the environment.
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IMPACTS ON SOCIETY This website will affect society because this could make or break the band. Some people might not like their music and may want to bring the band down. Also, other band competing to become famous may also see this site and try to beat them as well. It is also possible that people might try to illegally download band始s music which isn始t profitable for the band. However I think the impacts on society are mostly positive because if this does make the band famous, a lot of people will be more aware of the music this band makes and help them reach superstar success. With this, a big fan base will grow and encourage people to listen to the band始s music and share it with others. Music can bring people together and maybe the music this band makes can do it.
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DESIGN BRIEF I will design and create a promotional website for the band that will include the band始s photos, bios, personal information, videos, lyrics and anything else that may engage the audience further. Additionally, I will also be creating a Facebook fan page and a Twitter account for the band. All this will be made within the time limit by following the stages of the Design Cycle which is investigation, design, plan, create and evaluation. It is essential that I follow all the steps involved in the Design Cycle to successfully promote the band. The create part will be done both during school time and at home but mostly at home due to restricted access to Facebook and Twitter at school. Once I complete the product, I will evaluate myself and the product on all aspects through the design specification. Other people will then be able to access the site too. Hopefully, they willl be intrigued by the band and want to know more about them.
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SPECIFICATION Specification/why
Test
Software
I will use either Weebly, Wix, Webs, Piczo, Tumblr or iWeb to make the advert
I will try using each of these sites and see which one works best
Time
1 Quarter
I can make a schedule or gantt chart to manage my time.
Size
My site will not be too long with readable, working links and short paragraphs per person
I can test this by asking a friend to check if it’s too long or too short. Too long will be boring but too short means there’s not enough information
Aesthetics
My website should look fun and inviting but professional at the same time with lots of pics
I will ask a friend for his or her’s opinion. If they think that the site doesn’t have enough pictures then I will add more
Target Audience
People who like to listen to music
I will make my presentation visually attractive and easy to understand so that people will want to know more about this band and hear them
Function
To advertise this up-and-coming band by creating a website
My site must be nice, clean and professional and shows all the good aspects of the band and their music
Purpose
To get people to like the band
I can test this by checking to see how many hits the site receives
Cost
Should be free (don’t have a credit card or money for a “.com”
If the site doesn’t prompt me to pay them, it is free
Durability
If I don’t delete the site or don’t post anything offensive, my site will not be taken down
I’ll make sure that my site doesn’t have anything offensive. I can always update the site daily
Ease of Creation
I think this will be difficult to make but not impossible.
I can try out different site hosts and choose which one is easiest to use
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SUMMARY OF INVESTIGATION From the interview, I have learnt about some of the things that the client want to see included on the site like pictures, their music content and a nice and eye-catching layout. The case studies gave me a better image of what the site should or shouldn’t look like. For example, I shouldn’t use a small font because it will strain the reader’s eyes but I should use lots of photos because they will interest them. The software research will be helpful for me to create the best website possible in so I will try out each one and see which one works best. By researching about the impact, I have learnt about what could happen if I create this product and think about what I can do to make my product as environmentally friendly as possible, however, this is not a requirement of the client. I will also use the design specification to compare and test my product so that I make a really good website. The final product will be tested against the design specification so I can see what I have done well and what I can improve. It will also be beneficial to the client who can use it as a check list of what I have down.
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WORKS CITED The Fame Monster Album Trailer. Perf. Lady Gaga.YouTube.com. LadyGaga.com, 17 Nov. 2009. Web. <http://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=GQzYFKWBSbA&feature=grec_index>. Brian Towie. "Lover Boys â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Connected Magazine." Connected Magazine. Web. 29 Oct. 2011. <http://www.connectedmagazine.ca/ entertainment/3528/maroon-5/>. Linkin Park Official Site. Digital image. Web. 06 Sept. 2011. <http:// www.linkinpark.com/>.
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DESIGN stage two
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LINKIN PARK links (info, music, events, forum)
blog main updates, events and news goes here
widget box (twitter feed, recent photos, video gallery, comment box)
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bio
events
photos
social
forum
contact
playlist streaming music for the site social networking widget twitter/fb feed
blog main updates, events and news goes here recent photos photos of the band
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I LINKIN PARKII LIVE PERFORMANCE
f
ALTERNATIVE ROCK/HEAVY METAL MUSIC
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LINKIN PARK
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Client
Linkin Park Promotion
Linkin Park
Spot
Title
“Linkin Park”
Job #
1
introducing
LINKIN I PARK
music
nu metal
alternative metal rock rap rock
alternative rock
Shot 1: Introducing Linkin Park
Shot 2: New Band
Shot 3: Genres
Music: “Somewhere I Belong”
Music: “New Divide”
Music: music mixes
the
BATTLE OF THE BANDS saturday 18th september the rock n roll lounge
www.linkinpark.com fb / twitter
HEAR THEM ROCK OUT Shot 4: Live
Shot 5: Lorem
Shot 6: Finale
Music: “Numb” (live)
Music: Ipsum Dolor
Music: “In the End”
Page 1
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Client
Linkin Park Promotion
introducing
Linkin Park
Spot
<video footage>
Title
“Linkin Park”
Job #
2
<video footage>
LINKIN
PARK Shot 1: Introducing Linkin Park
Shot 2: Band Title
Shot 3:
Music: “What I’ve Done”
Music: “New Divide”
Music:
with a brand
Video Montage Mix
the
new single
The Catalyst
BATTLE OF THE BANDS saturday 18th september the rock n roll lounge
ES
N BUY ON ITU
New Song
Shot 5:
Shot 6: Finale
Music: The Catalyst
Music:
Music: Somewhere I Belong
Shot 4:
Page 1
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SUMMARY OF DESIGNS Design 1: I think this design is pretty much a standard web layout that is used in a lot of band websites. It doesn’t stand out and I don’t think it will promote the band effectively. Also, the navigation is unclear which may confuse my target audience. Design 2: I like this design because it is aesthetically pleasing and there is a lot of space for content and widgets. Personally, I think it will promote the band effectively. It is, overall, a very clean, professional and cool-looking site that I think will be both engaging and informative to the target audience. Design 3: I like the font used for the poster and the layout is simple and minimalist. However, there aren’t any pictures and the informative is limited. This is not very useful for advertising the band or their music because you don’t know anything much about the band so you don’t feel motivated to hear them live. Also, it isn’t interactive so you can’t listen to their music or view their YouTube videos which is not effective for advertising the band in the 21st century. Design 4: Although this poster does have a couple of pictures, I also feel that this design does not effectively promote the band as the simple layout and black and white color scheme may put off the audience. There isn’t much to learn about the band and people won’t feel motivated to listen to them or their music. Even if there is information, posters are quite useless in this day and age and the details on them are usually tossed aside. Design 5: I think this design is quite cool. The video is clear and is visually engaging for the audience. They also hear samples of the band’s music so they can instantly know if they will like the band or not and support them. It’s simple and short but the effects aren’t amazing. I think it is a good way to promote the band but it definitely needs some cool effects and transitions to engage the audience even more. Design 6: This is definitely one of my favorite designs. It’s interesting and short, and because it is visually engaging, people will want to watch the ad. It contains a lot of information about the band. People can see what they look like and hear their music If they like the band, they’ll go and support them. It’s effective but still lacks the personal fan experience that a website can give through social networking and fan forums. Another problem is that I’m not sure if I can finish it in time.
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EVALUATION AGAINST SPECIFICATION 1
2
3
4
5
6
Form
Website
Website
Poster
Poster
Movie
Movie
Time
✓
✓
✓
✓
x
x
Size
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
Aesthetics
x
✓
✓
x
✓
✓
Target Audience
x
✓
x
x
✓
✓
Function
x
✓
x
x
✓
✓
Purpose
x
✓
x
x
✓
✓
Cost
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
Durability
✓
✓
x
x
x
x
Ease of Creation
x
x
✓
✓
x
x
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PEER REVIEW All the designs are very creative and are great for band promotions. I personally love the second design. It has a very simple design yet is attractive and contains information for the target audience. I think it is very smart to have a streaming song on the website and a social networking widget. However, you should have the name of the band, on the website like the first design to avoid confusion :) â&#x17D;ŻďŁ§Elena
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DESIGN SUMMARY
After creating 6 designs, evaluating each of them and the peer review, I think I will select design 2. I believe a website is the most effective form of promotion nowadays and I can link it with social media and networks to create a site for the band that is interesting, informative and engaging. Unlike a poster, a site canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be torn down or contain only tiny pieces of information and unlike a movie, it isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t limited to certain amount of time. You can always add to a site, you can create a fan experience over the internet so your fans can connect with you and keep updating the site with the latest news and information. In addition, aesthetically, I think design 2 has a very simple and clean looking layout that will have a user friendly interface. Like Elena mentioned, I think it is very smart to have a songs streaming on the website and a social networking widget. However, I should have the name of the band, on the website like the first design to avoid confusion.
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PLAN stage three
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gantt chart
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1
3
STEP BY STEP PLAN 2
4 33
5
6
7
8 34
10 Add text
Add content Make pages 35
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RESOURCES/TOOLS Computer I need to have a computer with internet access because the site is going to made and published online. Wix.com I will be using this free site creator to create and publish the band始s official website. It has a variety of themes, many features and is user friendly. iPhoto, Photoshop, Picnik.com I will need to use some sort of photo editing software to edit any banners or photos I put onto the site. HandBrake I will use HandBrake or a similar software to convert audio and video into a format that can be played on the site (mp3, mp4, etc). Total Price: $0
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PLAN EVALUATION
I think my plan was quite detailed and could easily be followed by anyone else who wants to make a website. My gantt chart is easy to follow and the timing is realistic. I also think that my step by step was quite detailed although there is no one way to design a website so the that part of the plan doesn始t have to be followed exactly.
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CREATE stage four
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de #1
04.10.11
Today, I have started on creating an e-mail account for the band and using that to sign up for a free account on Wix. After testing several other options like Webs and Moonfruit, I have decided that Wix is the best choice as it has a lot of good features and a simple, easy to use design interface. I始m also familiar with using this platform so it始s not completely new to me. I have not done much yet but I have selected a blank template for me to work on. Next lesson, I will be working on designing the main page. I始m quite happy with what I have done so far and I am excited for the final design.
Here are a few of the websites I tested:
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de #2
05.10.11 Today I worked on the enter page for the website. I have already added a title and a couple buttons for “Getting the Album” and “Enter Site.” I’ve already linked “Getting the Album” to the iTunes store. I got the inspiration for my enter page from www.ladygaga.com. I think it looks really cool and highlights her most recent single “You & I” without ruining the site with annoying popups. After playing around with the enter page, I moved the title to the top and added a music player for the band’s latest single “Iridescent.” Next lesson I am going to configure the site display settings to stretch across the whole screen, add a “Click to Watch” link, social media buttons and maybe start working on the main page. Right now, the whole site is still a work in progress but I’m happy with what I have done so far.
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de #3
06.10.11 Today I’ve added the finishing touches on my enter page. The site currently now has music, pictures and a link to the band’s iTunes page. It suits the band image perfectly and the black and white theme looks very professional. I’m very happy with it. After finishing the enter page, I started on the main site. I started by opening a new blank template, added pages (Home, Linkin Park, Music, Community and Contact) and changed the background to pixelated black and white images. I repeated this step for all the pages. Eventually, each page all had a different background. Once I did this, I decided to make the contact page first. I added a form widget and anyone inquiries will be forwarded to the band’s e-mail.
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de #4
11.10.11 Today, I worked on the homepage of my site. I started by adding the name of the band for the title and then adding the main blog area which will have all the updates. To do this, I inserted a text box and added some dummy text to shape it. I didnʼt have much time to do a lot today and Iʼm disappointed that I wasnʼt able to put a lot of effort into creating the site today. I do think that I am going at a decent pace and am meeting my clientʼs requirements. Next week I will create the side bar which will include a music player widget, tour dates, recent photos, videos and links.
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de #5
12.10.11 After creating the sidebar, I moved onto the main blog. I added a large content box and in it and wrote a quick entry about the band’s new music video release. I pasted the video code from YouTube and before moving onto the header. I decided that simply the word ‘BLOG’ typed entirely with the Impact font would be too boring so I uploaded an image of the band’s logo and replaced the O with that. The site started to look better and I shifted a couple things here and there to make the site more aesthetically pleasing and easy to navigate. I’m much happier with what I have now than what I did last week. This is my current product:
After looking at what I’ve done so far, I decided the homepage needed change. I didn’t like the boring Impact title and the background was too distracting. I got rid of both those things and redid the entire page. I started by adding a text box and typed up the name of the segment I wanted to include. I added another box, inserted it below the header and then added content within it.
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de #6
18.10.11
After making some changes to the homepage, this is what the site currently looks like.
Today Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m going to be working on the right sidebar, possibly adding things like: about LP, links and news feeds. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m actually doing this as I go along which is why this entry is written in present tense.
I wrote a brief description about the band under LP, added some recent social media updates under News and added a couple links to other websites under Links.
I started by adding the content boxes and renaming the headers: LP, News and Links.
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de #7
25.10.11
Today I worked on the Gallery. I basically just added a “cover flow” style kind of photo viewer, resized it to fit the entire page and added the photos.
I am happy with the site so far. I will work on the music section and biographies tomorrow. The “Gallery” page currently looks like this when you see it in a browser.
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de #8
28.10.11
I started by inserting a blank shape into the center of the page and adding a text box that listed all the songs from the bandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s newest album: A Thousand Suns. I also added a picture of the album cover and a music player in the shape of a black iPod. To add the songs, I moved the songs from my CD to computer and then uploaded it onto the site.
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de #9
29.10.11
Today, I worked on the “Linkin Park” page which is basically just a page with short bios of the band. I started by finding photographs of the band members and then uploading them.
Then I wrote a short biography about each member and their position in the band.
I also changed the page to be called “Members” before publishing it because the page is pretty much just a page of bios of the members. The page currently looks like this when you view it online:
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de #10
30.10.11
This is what each of the pages look like on the site. I changed a few things like renaming the “About” page to “Members” and the “Media” page to “Gallery.” I did it because I didn’t have much time to develop the pages. I also changed the iPod to a list player because it looks more professional.
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