ARTD 299a is a course taught by jessica mullen at the university of illinois, urbana-champaign. It is an introduction to web development and design using CSS and XHTML.

A web designer, must be knowledgeable about the medium one is designing for. three main aspects of web design are: code, design, and concept.

Just like a print designer, a web designer must be familiar with the tools to create internet media. that’s where the code comes in. using XHTML and CSS. traditional design principles apply to the web as in any other medium. elements such as hierarchy, composition, typography and readability will all be covered extensively.

concept is by far the most important element of web design. with a strong concept, aesthetic design and proper coding follow naturally. strong concepts build communities, generate traffic and propagate messages.

this course focuses on the creation of internet memes and their effect on internet culture. if the next focus of the internet is building communities, then we should explore what makes information travel quickly to bring those communities together.

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