Briefs – what is it?

1. A brief is a set of instructions telling you how to do a piece of work.

2. The brief can be instructions for all sorts of tasks:

• an essay
• a dissertation
• a project
• an assignment
• a seminar paper
• a report
• a tutorial

3. A good brief for any assignment should comprise everything you need to
help you understand what is required from you.

4. A brief might include any of the following items:

• Topic – what is it about?
• Audience – who is going to read it?
• Form – what will it look like?
• Function – what is its purpose?
• Deadline – when must it be completed?
• Consultation – how much help will I get with it?

5. We will look at each of these items in more detail in a moment.

 

Briefs – why do I need to know this?

1. You need to understand as much as possible about the function of the
brief, because it is a crucial piece of communication.

2. Misunderstanding the brief can have bad consequences in your
course of study, and could even lead to failure.

3. Tutors may not always themselves be aware of the quality of the
communication, so you need to develop skills in making sure the brief is
readable, complete, and comprehensible.

4. Students have both rights and responsibilities. They are responsible for
requesting decent briefs which contain all the relevant information.

5. They have the right to expect to receive a brief which covers all the
information they will need to complete the task.

Drupal as CMS

This is the latest stage in my attempt to get acquainted with content management systems. I’m reading a book on Drupal, which is reputed to be one of the most technical and difficult of the CMS options available.

That may well be the case, but the fact is that in explaining the basic architecture of a CMS system, it’s certainly clarifying matters for me.

I can see the basic concepts of a database, with software such as PHP pulling up content to display in pages, and I think the issue of plug-ins or modules is becoming a llittle clearer – though of course the chances of getting all this to work successfully is still fairly remote…

But we press on

WordPress as a CMS – latest

I’ve done further research, and even came up with a site comparison survey which listed the plusses and minuses of Drupal, Joomla, and WordPress. All the wisdom gathered so far adds up to this: they each have their own strengths and weaknesses.  But nobody I have consulted yet has managed to persuade me that a normal human being can handle Drupal without two years’ training in a sealed room. That narrows it down to two – and since I’ve dabbled with Joomla and been defeated, I’m currently allowing myself to be persuaded that WordPress, although it started as blogging software, has now developed sufficient features and add-ons to make it a real CMS.

Next – can it easily be integrated with an eCommerce application, and can I use a Google search box on every page?

More research

WordPress is based on blogging software – so far so good. But will it support a fully-fledged eCommerce site with multiple sections and functions? That’s what I have been trying to establish today. I don’t know the answer yet, but will pursue the matter further.

Blogger Vs WordPress

I have been blogging using the Blogger site for the last few years – and have been quite happy to do so. But this WordPress software and GUI seems to offer far more features annd control.

The problem therefore is does one move from one address and platform to the other – or remain loyal?

Advice please.

Content Management

I’m researching the options for re-designing my existing site at http://www.mantex.co.uk using a content management system. I’ve looked at Joomla, and been dissuaded by the level of difficulty – and today somebody recommended WordPress. So here I am, trying it out.

Hello world!

Welcome to WordPress.com. This is your first post. Edit or delete it and start blogging!