VG Talk 2005-11-28T18:43:04Z Development and conversation for the new VG tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2013:/bohn0025/VGTalk//616 Movable Type Copyright (c) 2004, bohn0025 Branding and Manifestos: VG, V/G, Bee Gees? 2005-11-28T18:43:04Z 2004-08-16T12:25:48-06:00 tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2004:/bohn0025/VGTalk//616.4242 2004-08-16T17:25:48Z One last post for today, coming from another thing brought up in the meeting and my own questions.. Masha had a great idea that we all liked, perhaps making a VG "manifesto" that would lay out what our goals are... bohn0025 One last post for today, coming from another thing brought up in the meeting and my own questions..

Masha had a great idea that we all liked, perhaps making a VG "manifesto" that would lay out what our goals are for VG. It could be a public essay - portions of which would certainly end up on the front page of the site. Writing a collaborative essay in the coming weeks would be a great way to cohere our ideas about VG.

As a starting point, I've got a question: Practically, how are we writing "VG"? "VG", "V/G", "VG: Voices from the Gaps"? What does the change from "Voices from the Gaps" to "VG" mean theoretically?

]]> Categories: Categorization 2005-11-28T18:43:04Z 2004-08-16T12:05:30-06:00 tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2004:/bohn0025/VGTalk//616.4240 2004-08-16T17:05:30Z At the meeting last Wednesday, one of the ways we thought of breaking down the categories seemed promising: "Art" and "Praxis." Of course, the devil is in the details. Here's a first shot at organizing the Things into categories. See... bohn0025 At the meeting last Wednesday, one of the ways we thought of breaking down the categories seemed promising: "Art" and "Praxis." Of course, the devil is in the details. Here's a first shot at organizing the Things into categories. See the list in the Full Entry

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  • Art
    1. Artist Bio
      1. Recom. Reading (by artist)
      2. Archival Info (by artist)
      3. Translation Info (by artist)
      4. Links (by artist)
    2. Essay (by Artist)
    3. Review (by Artist / Work)
  • Praxis
    1. About Us / Project
      1. Contact Info
      2. Credits
      3. Awards
      4. Overview and Purpose - general "about" stuff

    2. Classroom
      1. Essay (pedagogical)
      2. Pedagogical General (syllabi, etc)
      3. Recom. Reading (pedagogical)

    3. Production
      1. Contributor Info
      2. How To
        1. How to Contribute (general)
        2. How to contribute (Artist Bio)
        3. How to contribute (Legalese, forms, etc)

    4. Interactions
      1. Essay (General)
      2. Opportunities
      3. Outreach

    • Comment on how to categorize these things

    ]]>     Categories: Things 2005-11-28T18:43:04Z 2004-08-16T11:45:37-06:00 tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2004:/bohn0025/VGTalk//616.4239 2004-08-16T16:45:37Z Hi all If this post and its comments don't yield a definitive list of categories, then I'll bring a stack of 3×5 cards on Wednesday and we'll hash it out then. More in the full entry. I'll keep this entry... bohn0025 Hi all

    If this post and its comments don't yield a definitive list of categories, then I'll bring a stack of 3×5 cards on Wednesday and we'll hash it out then.

    More in the full entry. I'll keep this entry separate from a "categorizing" entry to make commenting easier.

    ]]> So, here is a list of "things" that go on the web page. One sort of comment that would be useful here would be to add "things." A "thing" isn't necessarily an individual web page, but a separate element that could potentially be added to any single page. Our project here is to determine what category each of these "things" belong to.

    1. Contact Info
    2. Credits
    3. Awards
    4. Overview and Purpose - general "about" stuff
    5. Artist Bio
    6. Recom. Reading (by artist)
    7. Archival Info (by artist)
    8. Translation Info (by artist)
    9. Links (by artist)
    10. Contributor Info
    11. Essay (General)
    12. Essay (by Artist)
    13. Review (by Artist / Work)
    14. Essay (pedagogical)
    15. Pedagogical General (syllabi, etc)
    16. How to Contribute (general)
    17. How to contribute (Artist Bio)
    18. How to contribute (Legalese, forms, etc)
    19. Opportunities
    20. Recom. Reading (pedagogical)

    So, add "things" in the comments....

    ]]>     How to Use This Site 2005-11-28T18:42:48Z 2004-08-11T19:06:24-06:00 tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2004:/bohn0025/VGTalk//616.4113 2004-08-12T00:06:24Z Hi All 1) To View the Blog and Comment on Entries: go to http://blog.lib.umn.edu/bohn0025/VGTalk/ (you should be here now....) 2) To Post a full entry (not just a comment) to the blog for others to comment on, go to http://blog.lib.umn.edu... bohn0025 Hi All

    More in the full entry

    ]]> If you're new to blogs, here's how it generally works. Main topics are posted as "Entries." There are put on the front page and serve as a way to keep discussion focused. (so this is an entry). Then each entry can be commented on.

    On the righthand side of the main page are lists of the most recent Entries and Comments.

    The engine that runs this blog is very much like the one I want to use as a backend for the VG site...

    ]]>     Categories 2005-11-28T18:42:48Z 2004-08-11T18:58:01-06:00 tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2004:/bohn0025/VGTalk//616.4112 2004-08-11T23:58:01Z I'll post a fuller entry on this later, including more detail from the meeting. For now, just comment generally on whether or not you think that the "Artist / Praxis" split is feasible. I like it a lot, but I... bohn0025 I'll post a fuller entry on this later, including more detail from the meeting. For now, just comment generally on whether or not you think that the "Artist / Praxis" split is feasible.

    I like it a lot, but I am not sure just how it'll work design-wise. The Artist side will be fairly simple to lay out and design. But the Praxis side has a lot of disparate sections that hang together well conceptually, but may be tougher on a screen. Any thoughts?

    For those not at the meeting today, fuller details to follow tomorrow...

    ]]>     Prototype 6: Tabs and sub-tabs 2005-11-28T18:42:47Z 2004-08-11T18:50:50-06:00 tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2004:/bohn0025/VGTalk//616.4110 2004-08-11T23:50:50Z Here's the last prototype I have to confess this is my own favorite, at least aesthetically. One major downside Pat pointed out is that in order to see the sub links, you have to click on a tab. I could... bohn0025 Here's the last prototype

    I have to confess this is my own favorite, at least aesthetically. One major downside Pat pointed out is that in order to see the sub links, you have to click on a tab. I could change that so they appear when you hover over a tab, but then you have to do some mouse-rolling-tightrope walking so you don't hover another tab on your way to the sublink

    ]]>     Prototype 5: DropDown Menus 2005-11-28T18:42:47Z 2004-08-11T18:47:01-06:00 tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2004:/bohn0025/VGTalk//616.4109 2004-08-11T23:47:01Z Here is the fifth prototype. These menus are basically stolen from the code in an article at a great webdesign site, alistapart. Anyway, I don't know why that banner got big on me there.... More in the full entry... bohn0025 Here is the fifth prototype. These menus are basically stolen from the code in an article at a great webdesign site, alistapart.

    Anyway, I don't know why that banner got big on me there.... More in the full entry

    ]]> This layout tended to be the overall favorite of the group today. Dropdowns are nice because they don't take up much space yet still allow you to quickly see a bunch of links within the site. One downside is that you need to make your top-level categories descriptive enough so a visitor will know where to look.

    ]]>     Prototype 4: Leftbar Navigation 2005-11-28T18:42:47Z 2004-08-11T18:38:27-06:00 tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2004:/bohn0025/VGTalk//616.4108 2004-08-11T23:38:27Z In the meeting today, we reviewed three basic website navigation layouts. This is the first and most basic, a leftbar navigation. More in the full entry... bohn0025 In the meeting today, we reviewed three basic website navigation layouts. This is the first and most basic, a leftbar navigation.

    More in the full entry

    ]]> Again, this prototype is u g l y. But it does get the point across. One point it doesn't get across is that despite it's ugliness, leftbar navigation tends to be very easy to understand and navigate at a glance. It is possible to pack a lot of links in a relatively small area and have them all visible immediately for the reader, as in my wife's school's website, here.

    ]]>     Prototype 3: Loom Splash 2005-11-28T18:42:47Z 2004-08-11T18:32:22-06:00 tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2004:/bohn0025/VGTalk//616.4107 2004-08-11T23:32:22Z Here is the third protype splash screen. I briefly discussed splash screens and their general purpose in a previous entry. Again, in a real version the words would light up. We discussed the "Producers, Production, Product" as a possible category... bohn0025 Here is the third protype splash screen. I briefly discussed splash screens and their general purpose in a previous entry.

    Again, in a real version the words would light up. We discussed the "Producers, Production, Product" as a possible category division for quite awhile during the meeting. Ultimately, we may want to not use it as an overall website organization metaphor, but instead as some sort of catalyst for the "VG Manifesto". I'll post a Category entry and a "Manifesto" starter entry in a bit, so try to keep comments here just on this protype.

    This prototype is too wide. Ah, well.

    ]]> Prototype 2: VG Splash 2005-11-28T18:42:47Z 2004-08-11T18:18:30-06:00 tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2004:/bohn0025/VGTalk//616.4106 2004-08-11T23:18:30Z

    Well, after our meeting today, we discussed the viability of "splash" screens: basically welcome pages that act as gateways to the main site. Having a "splash" screen would make the website more "magazine-like" - like a cover. But it is... bohn0025 Well, after our meeting today, we discussed the viability of "splash" screens: basically welcome pages that act as gateways to the main site. Having a "splash" screen would make the website more "magazine-like" - like a cover. But it is an extra, perhaps unnecessary step. Here is an example of a site that uses a splash screen, The Schomburg Exhibition.

    Here is the first of two prototype splash pages.. My own comments in the full entry.

    ]]> The prototype is obviously pretty rough. I just used the copy from the current page and an image from Memory.Loc.Gov. If we were to do something like this, the words would light up on a mouseover and be clickable.

    I have to say I'm leaning away from a splash screen.

    ]]>     Prototype 1: U of M Standards 2005-11-28T18:42:47Z 2004-08-11T18:09:59-06:00 tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2004:/bohn0025/VGTalk//616.4105 2004-08-11T23:09:59Z Here is the first of the protoypes, based on the University of Minnesota's Creative Standards Guide. Comment on this version here. My own comments are in the Full Entry.... bohn0025 Here is the first of the protoypes, based on the University of Minnesota's Creative Standards Guide.

    Comment on this version here. My own comments are in the Full Entry.

    ]]> Well, I am not much of a fan of this layout. There is more tweaking that can be done to make the site look better and still fall within the U of MN's standard template. But I just don't think we want VG to be defined as a U of MN site first.

    A more interesting issue is whether or not we want to keep the global header at the top of every page, which is what the U would like as a Bare Minimum. I'm not sure about that one.

    ]]>     Test Entry 2005-11-28T18:42:47Z 2004-08-11T17:43:53-06:00 tag:blog.lib.umn.edu,2004:/bohn0025/VGTalk//616.4104 2004-08-11T22:43:53Z Just a test entry to get things moving.... bohn0025 Just a test entry to get things moving.

    ]]>