Funding | Planning | Design | Production | Testing | Marketing Design Meetings | Flowcharts/Storyboards | Project Tasks | Prototyping | Just Do It Design Meetings All aspects of the project design should be agreed upon. Everything about how the program will look and feel should be discussed. The purpose is to determine a skeleton of the project structure. Issues such as navigation, screen layout, program sequences, etc. need to be worked out (e.g., sequencing issues, browsing options, etc.). When all is said and done what should come out of these meetings is a high degree of agreement on how the project will look and feel. Design issues for instructional multimedia Developing Interactive Instructional Materials: A Model Developing Multimedia: A Method to the Madness Flowcharts and Storyboards Flowcharts and storyboards save time and money by keeping the project focused and organized. The quality of a project is enhanced by having a detailed plan to follow. This aids in effective use of resources and the organization of the workload. Several sites that will help you understand the purpose and use of these design aids are located below. Studio 1151 Flowcharts Studio 1151 Storyboards Dr. Sara McNeil's Instructional Design Class, CUIN 6373 Intro to Flowcharts Flowchart Symbols Flowchart Humor Breakdown Project Tasks By breaking down each of the project tasks, you will be able to estimate the time requirements for each task completion. Sequencing of tasks will become obvious and the number and type of personnel required for each task will be easier to determine. This will also aid in resolving resource utilization conflicts. The Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT) is a proven management tool that will aid in project monitoring. Project lifecycles and phasing PERT Charts Defined Examples of PERT Charts Microsoft PERT Chart EXPERTtm Prototyping Prototyping gives us an opportunity to create a smaller scale version of the project and test it. Based on the results of this testing, needed changes can be made to the project. This process is often squeezed by the dual forces of time and money. However, done properly, it can actually prevent problems in both of those categories. Below is a site that explains prototyping and provides some examples of how it can help. Prototyping Multimedia : Experiences from the "Information Systems in Context" CAUT Project Just Do It Now that you understand the process why not give it a try. Nova Southeastern University has a web site where you can do some instructional design.   - Return to Top - Multimedia Best Practices University of Texas System Comments to g.culp@cc.utexas.edu