This assignment may be done in teams of up to three people.
Team members will receive the same grade.
Select a topic relevant to communication systems and design a web site that explains the topic to an audience with a basic engineering knowledge and some familiarity with communications systems.
Choose one of the following formats for your website.
 | Detailed description and analysis of a current standard in electronic communications. Describe the technology and standard, including how it works, what it is used for, how it compares with its competition, and whether its use is heading up or down. Example: Apply this to Bluetooth. |
| Detailed comparison of competing standards in an areas of electronic communications. Example: Compare USB with Firewire. |
| Summary of recent research into new areas of electronic communication. Example: Discuss the theory and practical uses of bouncing microwaves off of the dust trails of meteorites. |
Submit an outline of your project. If multiple teams choose the same topic, the earliest to submit their proposal gets the topic; other teams must choose a different topic. Your outline should include your topic and sketches or outlines of each of the pages you will make for your website. For example, if you plan to have six pages in your website, you should include sketches or outlines for all six pages. These do not have to be finely detailed, but should present a picture clear enough for the instructor to evaluate the appropriateness of your project.
The following topics have been claimed - duplicates will not be allowed:
Here is an example from a previous year: Mobile Telephones on Airplanes
You may use any method you like to make a web site. Here are some suggestions in case you don't have another preferred method.
| Your web page must focus on the communications technology, and not related items. For example, if your topic is deep space communications, do not discuss different types of rockets or spacecraft - instead discuss the electronic signal and it's processing. |
| Be sure to include details on the signal type(s), modulation type(s), packet format(s), etc. as applicable. |
| Devote some space to comparing your technology with related standards. |
| Remember, the audience is engineers with some training in communications (think of yourselves!). Don't develop a web page for a general audience - give details about the communications technology and explain how it works. |
| The web page should include at least 1500 words of text and 5-10 illustrations. At least one illustration must be an original creation. |
| Divide the web page up into screen-sized pages. |
| Include links to all the major references you use. |
| Be careful about relying on Wikipedia too much - the information there is not always reliable. Always use alternate sources to confirm Wikipedia information. |
| Cite the sources for all significant facts and illustrations that you use. |
| Be creative with animations, color, and embedded media. |
| Your website should not look or feel like any other website. If a person were to compare your website to one of your sources and think "It sure is obvious that this was a source", then your website isn't unique. |
| Your website should have a combination of information that isn't available anywhere else. |
| Your website should have original contributions consisting of either new ways of looking at things or new ways of explaining a subject. |
Caution - Because you will be using other web sites as sources for your own web site, there may be a temptation to copy material directly. Remember that if you copy any material (words, illustrations, photos, charts) you must put it in quotes (if it is text) and cite it properly. Failure to do this constitutes plagiarism, which is a form of cheating.
Each website is expected to reflect high-quality, original work. Websites will be evaluated on:
|
Completeness - Covers all required topics in appropriate detail |
|
Accuracy - Details are verifiably correct and accurate |
|
Appropriateness for audience - Website should be appropriate for its intended audience - engineers with no specific training in communications |
|
Website quality - Website is well-composed and appealing. All links are intuitive and work correctly |
|
References - All sources are appropriately cited |
Send a link to your web page to the instructor via email.
Kevin Bolding November 21, 2011