Concordia University Course Catalog on CD
Concordia University - St. Paul wanted to create a CD that contained all the information in its print-based course catalog. The University planned to distribute the CD to high school guidance counselors, libraries, and others who talk with high school seniors about Concordia. The CD was built to be accessed through web browsers to assure broad ease of use.
Responsibilities
- Create information design and information architecture of CD.
- Design navigation scheme.
- Create graphic design based on Concordia's established identity.
- Manage project deadlines and deliverables.
- Collect written content.
- Build HTML and graphic files.
- Select CD production vendor.
- Coordinate the production and delivery of finished CDs.
Considerations
Concordia University - St. Paul distibutes the upcoming year's course catalog to high school guidance counselors and libraries to provide information about the University's offerings and encourage students to apply for admission. Administration wanted to publish the 2005-2006 catalog on CD as a way to save printing costs and allow interested parties to access the information through their computers.
Working with Blinc, I met with the Concordia Vice President of Academic Affairs to develop an approach that would meet their needs. We advised Concordia that setting up the CD to be viewed through a browser would guarantee that those who would receive the CD will have the software needed to view it. Although posting a stand-alone website with information was considered, Concordia felt that the users of their annual course catalog wanted the material on a CD that was not dependent on an Internet connection. Because Flash and other browser-based display technologies can vary greatly depending upon the version being used, we decided to develop the CD using HTML.
Concordia wanted all the material they traditionally published in their course catalog on the CD. The catalog content had to be segmented and reordered to be accessible through a browser window. Although we suggested the CD include a index to give users an additional way of accessing the material on the CD, Concordia decided against it for budgetary reasons.
Documentation
- Site Map (PDF)
A picture of the architecture of the CD.
