Web Certification Program Course Descriptions

This course provides participants with a solid foundation of HTML, Web graphic design and Web layout. Current techniques, tools, standard tags, hyperlinks, etc. are covered.

To insure relevance and the interest of class participants, this course content is constantly upgraded and keeps pace with the rapid acceleration of Internet Technology. This lab-based class uses exercises and an interactive format to insure participants are mastering the tools being covered. Ample time is given in class for completion of work towards a final project. Participants must be familiar with the basics of PCs and Windows. Basics of Unix, and Internet Protocols (ftp, telnet, http) will be covered in the first class. Prerequisites - none at this time.

This course provides an overview of what is involved with putting a web server on the Internet. Installation, configuration and maintenance of different Web server software (Apache, iPlanet/Netscape and Microsoft) will be demonstrated and discussed. Topics include HTTP protocol basics, domain name registration, server installation and configuration, performance tuning & sizing, virtual hosts, server-side programming (CGI, JSP, Servlets, ASP, SSI), statistics & log file analysis.

This class gives participants the ability to add functionality to their Web site. Students learn advanced layout techniques through the use of HTML 3.0 tables and frames. User interface techniques, such as tools for forms processing, are covered in detail. Basic CGI using PERL is demonstrated, and students learn how to install and use CGI scripts. In addition, the course covers access control and password protection, as well as the use of Server Side Includes and metatags. This is a lab class and progress is reinforced through homework and periodic in-class assignments. A final project offers participants the opportunity to apply what they have learned. Prerequisite is WM 102 or proven proficiency.

This course covers the "current events" of Web site authoring: Cascading Style Sheets, Dynamic HTML, etc. Compatibility across platforms and between browsers will be highlighted. Appropriate design and navigational standards for CSS will be emphasized. Content will be changed and modified as the industry standards evolve. Students will be expected to complete in-class assignments as well as a final project. Prerequisite is WM 102 or proven proficiency in HTML.

This course will provide a basic understanding of creating and modifying images for the web. Using Gimp (www.gimp.org), a freeware image program, students will learn and experiment with techniques used to produce artistic, professional looking graphics. Concepts include, but are not limited to, image editing, layers, resolution and color palettes as well as creation of imagemaps and buttons.

This is a hands-on class and students will present a final project in the last class. Prerequisite is WM 102, or proven proficiency in HTML, and proficiency in Windows.

If you've always wondered how professionals make such amazing images, this is the place to start.

This course will teach students the principles and concepts of designing, creating, and incorporating dynamic WEB effects and site-control manipulation via the methods and functions contained in the JavaScript programming language. Student will be taught how to include JavaScript from various sources, perform mathematical functions in a WEB page, create user-to-browser interaction, create forms & validate form input, design and create user-defined functions, pre-load WEB images, and extract system date & time. Other topics include user-response page linking, parameter value passing, event handling, frames, windows creation, pop-up messages, loops, style sheets, and other features available through JavaScript. The prerequisite for this course is HTML.

Students will learn to quickly develop database-driven web applications with Dreamweaver. Dreamweaver lets you visually develop web applications while still maintaining total control over the ASP code. Connect a web site to a database to create searchable on-line catalogs, forms for capturing customer information, and even sophisticated resume posting systems. Students will learn how to create a simple Record set, add dynamic text to a page, set attributes and format your data. Students will also learn how to use server behaviors to create pages with simple search functionality, results pages, detail pages and more.

Simply put, E-commerce is commercial activity conducted via the Internet (Wiktionary), but the subject has grown considerably since on-line shopping was invented by Michael Aldrich in 1979.  

In this class students will explore the theory and technical aspects of E-commerce. Topics include but are not limited to: business considerations, customer service, components of an e-commerce web site (mailing lists, shopping carts, etc.) and technical requirements, methods for attracting and retaining customers, and site performance tracking and evaluation.

Students will experiment with learned techniques via analysis of existing e-commerce sites, hands-on exercises in the classroom, and weekly homework assignments.  Students are encouraged to develop an e-commerce site, real or theoretical, of their own over the course of this class.  Classes are taught in a PC/Unix environment.   

Prerequisites: WM102 or a solid working knowledge of HTML and web site construction, WM106 or a familiarity with script functionality and installation. 

Flash has become a must-have tool in every Web designer's toolbox. Learn how to create animations to spice up your web pages. This course focuses on the Flash MX 2004 interface where you'll learn how and when to use the variety of tools and panels, create images from basic vector shapes, create symbols, import photos, graphics, sounds. students will make buttons, motion and shape tweens and be introduced to ActionScript, the powerful engine that makes it all interactive. Students will learn by doing. There are many hands-on labs throughout the course. Students learn on the Macintosh, yet all skills transfer to PC.

What makes an intermediate Flash developer? Action Script programming is what takes a Flash designer to the next level. Action Script is the scripting language of Macromedia Flash. A scripting language is a way to communicate with a program; you can use it to tell Flash what to do and to ask Flash what is happening as a movie runs. This two-way communication lets you create interactive movies. After you have learned basic Action Scripting, you'll take advantage of Flash features beyond what you learned in the beginner’s course. You'll learn more about creating an interactive movie. You will become familiar with basic actions and know how to assign them in the Actions panel and then even write the code for more advanced actions.

WM 138

Search Engine Optimization

"Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of improving the volume or quality of traffic to a web site from search engines via "natural" or un-paid ("organic" or "algorithmic") search results as opposed to search engine marketing (SEM) which deals with paid inclusion." - Wikipedia. 

WM138 explores web site content and development from the angle of achieving higher search engine rankings. Students will learn how to properly code HTML to be search engine friendly, as well as explore best practices required by major search engines. Topics include but are not limited to: how search engines work, selection and proper use of keywords, site registration with top search engines, pay-per-click advertising, and search analytics. Prerequisite: HTML.

XML is one of the most popular industry formats for document publishing and web application development. It is an extensible and elegant solution that is being rapidly incorporated in next-generation document, web and eBusiness application strategies. As such, XML skills are in huge demand. For example, technical writers who understand web technologies (e.g. HTML, Javascript, XML) are able to command higher salaries in the job market The purpose of this course is to expose the student to the tools and procedures required to create XML designed WEB pages. The course will cover the structure and design requirements utilized in generating XML WEB pages including such topics as creating well formed and valid documents, processing CDATA, defining and using entities, data binding, utilization of element attributes, Document Object Model scripts, and displaying XML documents using XSL Style Sheets. The student will learn to utilize XML in the creation of dynamic WEB pages that provide real-time processing and content filtering of data to present WEB. Prerequisite: HTML

Students graduate from Webmaster certificate programs with many of the integral skills needed to design and develop aesthetically pleasing web sites with advanced functionality. This class will teach these students the business and marketing skills needed to set up a web design company that allows them to use their web development skills to generate profit.

SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol) is a lightweight platform and language neutral communication protocol that allows programs to communicate via standard Internet HTTP. Applications communicate using Remote Procedure Calls (RPC) between objects like DCOM and CORBA, but HTTP was not designed for this. RPC represents a compatibility and security problem; firewalls and proxy servers will normally block this kind of traffic. A better way to communicate between applications is over HTTP, because HTTP is supported by all Internet browsers and servers. SOAP was created to accomplish this. SOAP provides a way to communicate between applications running on different operating systems, with different technologies and programming languages.

PHP has an advantage over locked-in solutions such as JSP and ASP for most Web development work because it is a cross-platform technology. PHP is rapidly becoming the most widely used Web scripting language and PHP skills are now considered essential for many Web developers. PHP is also a growing Web technology which enables web designers to build dynamic, interactive web applications, incorporating information from a host of databases.

Developing Dynamic Websites with ColdFusion MX is a course that provides web designers and developers with the knowledge and hands on training they need to begin developing interactive websites using the Macromedia web application platform ColdFusion MX using the Dreamweaver MX website authoring tool. Students will learn how to build secure, interactive, database-driven web applications that maintain session state across pages. Prerequisite: Familiarity with Dreamweaver

Students will learn to quickly develop web applications with Dreamweaver. Dreamweaver lets you visually develop web applications while still maintaining total control over the HTML, JavaScript and Dynamic code.