ENGL 381: advanced software documentaion
spring 2010

syllabus


T/Th 11:15-12:30

DuBois Library Rm 1667 (OIT PC lab)
and Bartlett 35

David Toomey, instructor
office hours (Bartlett 481: T/Th 1:30-2:25 and by appointment
dtoomey@english.umass.edu

Gabriella Segalla, teaching assistant
lab hours held in Bartlett 210B; times TBA
__________________________________


course description

This course continues and extends the work of ENGL 380.  Students will further develop their understanding of principles of software documentation, page design and information design as they produce portfolio-quality documentation using industry-standard software (specifically Adobe InDesign, and RoboHelp and Adobe FrameMaker).

assignments

30% InDesign project
10% RoboHelp project
40% FrameMaker project (shared grade)
20% documentation plans (the second of which will have a shared grade) presentations, participation

The assignments in this course are challenging.  Your initiative, perseverance, and willingness to problem-solve and use one another as resources will be crucial.

objectives

  • learn to work as part of a team
  • learn InDesign, and RoboHelp and FrameMaker, and plan and produce portfolio-quality user documentation with those programs
  • practice and build upon conventions and principles introduced in ENGL 380 and develop a deeper understanding of the relationship between form and content in documentation

participation
This is not a lecture course. Your presence and your voice are essential. You will be expected to contribute to class discussions and workshops through your thoughtful reading, writing, questions, comments, and sharing of discoveries.

Regular attendance, participation, and completion of readings and other homework are expected. You can help your grade by regularly making contributions such as: responding to and building on the comments and ideas of other class members, sharing information, and asking thoughtful questions.  Please refrain from checking email, web surfing, and using your cell phone during class.

course policies

Submit assignments on time:  Penalty for late work: 1/3 of a letter grade (e.g., a “B” drops to an “B-“) for each day late.  Being absent does not excuse late work; if you plan to miss class, it is your responsibility to make arrangements with me before your absence to hand in your assignment early.

Plan to attend every class: The classroom is an intellectual community, and your participation in that community is necessary to its well-being.  Accordingly, attendance in all class meetings is expected.  If you miss more than two meetings without sufficient cause, your final grade will be lowered by half a letter grade (e.g., from B to B-). 

If you do miss a class, it’s your responsibility to contact a classmate and figure out what you missed. This is not an online course, so please do not request course recaps via email.  If you will be absent due to a religious observance or school-sponsored trip, please contact me in advance to let me know you’ll be gone.

Broken printers and similar crises do not excuse late work.  Stock up on ink or toner or printer points.  Save often.  Back up your work.  Leave ample time for printing. 

Back it up.  Backing up your work means saving it in more than one place, to more than one device/computer/server.  (For example, if you keep your files on a USB memory stick, make sure to regularly copy those files to your home computer.)

Plagiarism is unacceptable and may result in a failing grade for the course. If you are using the ideas of another person in your writing, you should cite your source, using quotation marks to signal direct quotation.  Passages that re-express another writer’s ideas in your own words should include appropriate citation information.  If you are unsure about how to cite your sources, please ask me.

software:

The course teaches three software programs: Adobe InDesign CS4, Adobe FrameMaker 9.0 and Adobe RoboHelp 8.

InDesign is available on the computers in DuBois 1667 and all UMass OIT labs, including the Mac labs.

RoboHelp and FrameMaker are available only on the 10 PCs in Bartlett 210B. 

Adobe offers free 30-day trials of InDesign CS4, FrameMaker 9.0 and RoboHelp 8.  All are available for download from the Adobe website.  NB: RoboHelp and FrameMaker are PC-only programs, and only one free trial is allowed of each program per user.  If you wish to download a free trial on your personal computer, I suggest doing so three weeks in advance of due dates for major assignments requiring this software.  Reminders are supplied on the course calendar below.

required texts:

Sandee Cohen.  InDesign CS4 for Macintosh and Windows: Visual QuickStart Guide.  Peachpit Press, 2008.  ISBN-10: 0-321-57357-9; ISBN-13: 978-0-321-57357-5. 

Adobe Creative Team.  Adobe FrameMaker 9 Classroom in a Book.  Adobe Press 2009. 
ISBN-10: 0-321-64750-5; ISBN-13: 978-0-321-64750-4.

(Both are available at Amherst Books, 3 Main Street Amherst). 


other supplies and expenses:

You may be asked to bring printed copies of drafts to class workshop sessions, and to submit paper copies of assignments.  Plan and budget accordingly, whether that means buying printer points, extra ink cartridges, or allowing adequate time to print in a busy computer lab. 

Use CD-Rs, a USB drive, or your UDrive to transport and back up your work.  It is your responsibility to back up and protect your files.  Do not rely on lab machines for storage.