Student C

Senior Project Final Essay

April 14, 2017

Website Coding & Design

For my Senior Project, I have chosen to code and design a website. Since I am in the

early stages of learning numerous programming and coding languages including HTML and

CSS, this was the perfect chance to put my knowledge of both programs to the test. One of my

career goals is to become a game designer or web coder, so this project was a good start in

working towards my goals.

When I was first coming up with the general design for the website, I went through

dozens of possible layouts. Possible formats were a blog and others were more professional.

Finally, I decided on a pretty common layout, which included an area for a small news insert or a

brief description of the group that the site was being built for. However, this layout was enough

for me to test my CSS abilities.

Once I had a general understanding of what I wanted on the page(s) and how I wanted

them to work, I began my project by setting up a basic framework. I also slowly added the main

parts (Header, Body, Footer) in the general layout. Before I finished the real layout, I then added

some interactive features onto the website. I first tried to get a post system to work on the front

page. This would mean that you could enter text, hit “submit,” and it would display.

Unfortunately, I ran into problems with connecting to a database, the ability to store data in the

database, and having access to the data when needed. After various SQL and PHP errors, I ended

up removing this issue.

 Another function that I attempted to add was a user system where someone could

essentially register on the site and have an account that they could use to log on. Again, I ran into

the same issues with connecting to the database and getting passwords entered to verify through

the one stored in the database to authorize a log on if they matched. After another failed attempt

at adding interactiveness to the site, I removed the remaining bits of both features and went to

work fixing up the HTML coding. I also took out unneeded tags and recoded certain parts to be

more efficient and practical.

Once I had gotten a lot of the useless and inefficient HTML fixed, I started to take a look

at the CSS and overall design. While it wasn’t completely awful, it wasn’t as good as I knew I

could create. I ended up getting rid of all of the original CSS and starting over, ensuring that I

had one part to my specifications before moving on. This ensured that the new design had more

content then the last one. I then added small boxes with a title background that could have small

bits of information added to them. Last, I added some footer links that could have links to social

media, along with a small information section on that feature. I finished off the new design by

adding small developer rights to the bottom with my online screen name.

At this point, I started adding the new design to the other blank HTML pages I had set up.

I checked that it was as close as I could get to the main page so it would have a unified look all

around. This process was a bit of a nightmare, but it was worth it. Although it was not the first

website that I have made, it was the first one I have made where I managed to keep a unified

design throughout the pages.

After I finished up adding the design to other pages, I made one final attempt at

implementing users. Using some new information a friend had given me, I still couldn’t get it to

authorize a log on. I attempted to add a post system on the home page again at this point and
managed to get it to connect to the database. However, I wasn’t able to get it to display the text

that was stored. I ended up removing all the PHP I had added and tidied up the coding to be a tad

easier to read it. I made small adjustments to the CSS pages in order to get them unified a bit

more, removed the logon box and fixed the CSS adjustments I had made to account for it.

This project has taught me a lot about CSS. When I first started, my knowledge and

abilities in CSS were lacking. I could get basic styling done, but beyond that, nothing more. This

project refined my skills HTML. While this is a fairly basic website, it still taught me more about

the basics of coding than any other assignment would have and allowed me to use these skills in

a practical manner. I have also learned a lot about PHP integration. While I haven’t learned

enough to get it to work fully, I am a lot better problem solving than I was before undertaking

this project. Before this project, I was not able to get connections to a database to establish

correctly. The several attempts I have made left me with a good understanding of how to proceed

in the future and I intend to continue researching this topic until I am able to get a fully

functional system in place. One key takeaway that I have is to make sure that the script connects

to the database and to close the connection once it receives the information that it needs,

otherwise you will end up flooding the database.

This project has also taught me the importance of planning before building a website.

When I decided to take a shot at implementing the PHP, I had a rough time getting the logon box

in the right place without completely altering other aspects of the site. If I had been able to

account for what I needed ahead of time, it would have been much easier to set up the basic

framework. It also would have prevented other issues in the design of the website, makes it

easier to know where exactly in the code a function is if you have to remove it or edit. Last,
planning ahead of time allows you to complete something in a timely manner instead of sifting

through every single line to find what you need to remove.

Above all, and in my opinion the most important thing, this taught me was a good work

etiquette and ability to setup and keep to a schedule. The couple other website designs I’ve

worked on before there was no real deadline that I had floating in my mind. I was just able to

work on it whenever I felt like. With this, I knew when it had to be done and it kept me on track

with coding and writing what needed to be done to get it finished in time. One thing that if I ever

go into business doing this is an absolute must.

One thing that I tend to start thinking a lot is what I am going to do when I finish school.

While, as a child I always wanted to be a police officer the older I got the more I realized that it

would require a huge life style change to even be able to consider. I started to get more into

programming, things like C++ where you’re able to take a few thousand strings and make it into

a fully functional program. Or HTML, PHP, CSS, and Java and be able to create amazing

websites that generate millions of hits.

Overall, my more realistic career goal is to go into game development or web design.

This project allowed me to delve into that and see if it was an actual possibility, it allowed me to

test the waters and see if it was something that I actually enjoyed doing. And it just reinforced

my choice on wanting to go into programming when I finish school.

Knowing that with today’s generation living majority of their life online you realize that

the demand for good web designers are at an all-time high. Companies that haven’t yet are

starting to look for people to make them a website that could possibly generate more business.

While I am far from selling my services to a company this allowed me to see where I am at with
my abilities and compare them to other websites around the internet. It allowed me to see what

things I need to spend more time learning and what things I know to heart.

In ending, this project gave me a starting place. This project is now a baseline that I will

use over the next few weeks, months and years, so that I can compare my new work to it and see

how far I have come. This project has taught me more of the complex ideas that are needed for a

website that really makes it stand out. I have learned so much about features that make a website

visually appealing and functional without writing useless code. While my final career choice

may not be to go into web design, this project still has taught me a lot of techniques and

understanding that could be used for many programming languages. It has taught me that like in

life, you must have integrity in coding; otherwise you will end up having to go back and fix it

later.
 Reflective Essay Rubric
60% or under 70% 80% 90% 100%

-Not double- -Not double- -Not double- -Double-spaced -Double-spaced and in

spaced or in MLA spaced or in spaced or in and in MLA MLA format.
format. MLA format. MLA format. format.
-Clear, logical and
-Essay is unclear -Essay is -Clear, logical -Clear, logical and sequential essay.
and not unclear and not and sequential sequential essay.
sequential. sequential. essay. -Fully describes the
-Fully describes nature of the project
-The description of -Briefly -Fully describes the nature of the in detail and depth.
the project is describes the the nature of the project in detail
unclear and lacks nature of the project, but and depth. -Comprehensively
detail. project and clarifying details explains how the
additional could have been -Explains how the project is relevant to
-Does not fully details could provided. project is relevant and relates to future
describe the have been to and relates to career goals.
nature of the provided. -Explains how future career
project or provide the project is goals. -Identifies skills and
clarifying details. -Describes relevant to and knowledge developed
some of the relates to future -Identifies skills during the project.
-Does not fully process of career goals, but and knowledge
describe how the planning, could have developed during -Describes and
project is relevant executing and provided more the project. justifies the process of
to and relates to completing the reflection. planning, executing
future career project. -Describes but and completing the
goals. -Identifies some does not justify project.
-Briefly skills and how the process
-Does not reflect describes how knowledge of planning, -Goes above and
on insights gained the project is developed executing and beyond reflecting on
from the project, relevant to and during the completing the insights gained from
questions or relates to future project. project led to the project, as well as
further topics for career goals, skills any questions or
research. but could have -Does not reflect development. further topics for
provided more on insights research.
-Less than 3 pages reflection. gained from the -Does reflect on
in length. project, as well insights gained -5-7 pages in length.
-Does not as any questions from the project,
reflect on or further topics as well as any
insights gained for research. questions or
from the further topics for
project, as well -5-7 pages in research.
as any length.
questions or -5-7 pages in
further topics length.
for research.

-Less than 5
pages in length.
Student C, you have gone above and beyond in synthesizing the takeaways you have gained from
your project and in demonstrating that you have mastered the career-related learning standards
that drive this project. In doing so, you’ve also earned 100/100 points on this reflective essay.
Your reflections and syntheses show that you’ve thought deeply about the skills, knowledge and
understandings that you’ve gained through this project, as well as how these concepts will
influence your postsecondary path.