University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
School of Information and Library Science

INLS 181: Internet Applications

Course Syllabus

Course Catalog Description (new): INLS 181 Internet Applications (3 hours). Implementation and evaluation of Internet applications and services. Concepts for effective design and standards compliance. Emerging trends and issues.

Pre-requisite: INLS 102 or comparable knowledge including HTML authoring and design, Unix fundamentals, and familiarity with all aspects of PC use.

Course Objectives: INLS 181 gives broad knowledge of data communication systems, with a focus on Internet tools and applications. Upon successful completion of the course students will have:

1. An understanding of Internet protocols for data communication
2. Knowledge of Internet standards and the standards development process
3. A user-based approach to information systems design and evaluation
4. Skills and concepts for real-world implementation of Internet-based information services

Computer Use: This course requires student ownership of a portable computer in accordance with the SILS Laptop Requirement. Students will bring their computers configured to access the UNC wireless network to class daily (unless otherwise announced by the instructor). This requirement applies to all students enrolled in INLS 181-01, regardless of whether the SILS or CCI laptop requirement applies to each individual.

This is a Paperless Course: The course syllabus, assignment descriptions and notes will be online, linked from these INLS 181 Web pages. Student assignments will also be online. For more details about moving towards paperless courses, see Prof. Newby's Paperless Pages

Evaluation: All assigned work must be completed in order to receive a passing grade in INLS 181. Late work is downgraded at a rate of one point per business day or partial day. All work is to be added to your online course portfolio for evaluation. Instructions for the portfolio will be given in class.

Evaluation for the course is based on four items:

1. Three assignments during the semester. Described on the assignments page. 45 points total.
2. Midterm exam. In class on Wednesday, October 23. 20 points.
3. Final project. Described on the assignments page. 25 points.
4. Class preparedness and participation. Note that one point may be reduced per day the laptop computer is required but not brought to class, possibly resulting in a negative value for this grade component.5 points.

Texts: Three texts are recommended, none are required. Readings will be assigned for each class day, and will also include online documents from other sources. Generally, readings will come from the Niederst text. Students should complete readings before the scheduled class, and review afterwards as needed. Readings from these texts can be supplemented or replaced by other books or Web-based content identified by individual students.

Niederst, Jennifer. 2001. Web Design in a Nutshell, 2nd ed. Sebastapol, California: O'Reilly. ISBN: 0596001967. Weekly readings will generally come from this text.

Brill, Gregory. 2002. Codenotes for Web-Based UI. New York: Random House. ISBN: 0812992164 (Print); 1590618165 (Adobe eBook).

Nielsen, Jakob & Tahir, Marie. 2002. Homepage Usability. Indianapolis: New Riders. ISBN: 0-7357-1102-X.

Grading: Graduate and undergraduate grading for the course will be as follows:

Points	95-100	90-94	85-89	80-84	78-79	75-77	70-74	70-79	0-69
Grad	H	P+	P	P-				L	F
Ugrad	A	A-	B+	B	B-	C+	C		F