Adobe Photoshop CS2
I will use Adobe Photoshop CS2 to create the necessary graphics and ensure that they are optimised correctly for the web.

E-TextEditor (1.0.30)
E-texteditor will be use to create the XHTML (Extensible Hypertext) and CSS (Cascading Stylesheet) code.

CMS
To keep the website updated I will be using a CMS (Content System Management). As I will be using Textpattern for the A13 assignment I have decided to use this CMS for my portfolio.

XHTML 1.0 Strict
All of the XHTML code I will use for the website will conform to the XHTML 1.0 Strict. XHTML will only be used for the website content and to define its structure.

CSS version 2.1
With the XHTML code creating the structure the CSS will be to control the websites appearance. Using the XHTML and CSS combination will help to reduce the overall page weight and reduce loading time.

Email
To receive email from my email account I will be using Mozilla Thunderbird 2 and the IMAP (Internet Message Access Protocol) protocol. To send emails I will use the SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) protocol.

Primary audience - Employer

Neil owns a local design company based in Leeds which specialises in web design and development. Where possible they try to use new technologies to create innovative solutions which meet their client’s brief.

Neil I looking for a developer to a new developer to add to this team and has received a number of portfolio’s to asses. He is looking for both the basic XHTML (Extensible Hypertext Markup Language) and CSS (Cascading Stylesheets) knowledge.

He is also looking to find someone who has additional knowledge such as: PHP (Hypertext Preprocessor), MySQL and a passion to learn and use new technologies.

Both at work and at home Neil has access to a high speed internet connection and spends at least 9+ hours online a day. To browse the web he uses his Apple Mac laptop with the latest version of Mozilla Firefox installed.

Secondary audience - Client

Michael runs a small local business providing a range of services such as: building, carpentry, plumbing etc… Due to the credit crunch Michael is finding it increasingly more difficult to find and feels a small website would allow him to gain more work.

With relatively limited computer skills Michael can perform basic online tasks, such as: searching, buying products etc.., but finds more complicated tasks difficult.

After receiving a free laptop with his new broadband deal he is trying to improve his computing skills. Currently he spends around 2 hours a day on the internet using his laptop which runs Windows Vista. His broadband deal gives him access to a basic 1mbps connection which he used Microsoft Internet Explorer 7 to browse the internet.

Tertiary audience - Student

Lisa is a 20 year old student currently web design at her local university. During her time on the course she is always looking at various portfolios to gain inspiration and monitor the latest web technologies.

During college hours she has access to high speed wireless connection which she connects to with her laptop, which runs Microsoft XP. To use the internet she uses the latest version of Mozilla Firefox.

At home she uses her desktop computer, running Microsoft XP, and is connected to a 2 mbps internet connection. Most of her time online is spent visiting social networking sites and performing research for her university work.

Validate to XHTML 1.0 Strict and CSS Version 2.1 standards.
Meeting the standards put in place by the W3C (World Wide Web Consortium) for both XHTML (Extensible Hypertext Markup Language) and CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) will help to:

• Make my site more accessible
• Help towards SEO (Search Engine Optimisation)
• Reduce the overall loading time
• Increase compatibility across both standard web browsers and also on mobile internet devices.

This will be fairly simple to measure as the W3c provides validation tools for both XHTML and CSS.

Create a portfolio that is easily updatable and flexible.
Having a portfolio that is adaptable to any situation and easy to update is essential as I will need to tailor my portfolio for specific instances such as: job interviews, presentations etc…

To measure this I could create two CSS style sheets which when individually applied to the same XHTML structure produce different layouts for my portfolio. With regards to how easy it is to update the website that will be firmly measured by my knowledge of the CMS (Content Management System) I choose to implement for the site.

Satisfy Priority 1 of the WAI guidelines 1.0
To ensure that my portfolio is accessible to as many people as possible I will ensure that it satisfies all of priority one of the WAI (Web Content Accessibility
) guidelines.

To measure this I will use the Checklist of Checkpoints for Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0. By ensuring I meet each relevant point of the priority one guidelines on this list I will have met this target.

Improve the search engine performance of my portfolio
Although all the above goals are important they are will be largely irrelevant if no-one visits my portfolio. One way of increasing my web presence is through SEO (Search engine optimisation). This will increase my ranking with the major search engines such as: Google, Yahoo, Ask etc…

To measure this I will perform regular keyword searches, using various search engines, and record the results. I will also use the Google Analytics service to track the most popular keywords which have lead to users viewing my portfolio.

The final semester is here and my time on HND Interactive Media course will be over in the blink of an eye. With only the final few assignments to complete my focus will now turn to future employment and gaining the skills which I will require for a career with the web industry.

SMLP
The SMLP (Self Managed Learning Plan) is a very important part of the final semester. For this assignment I have chosen to learn PHP (Hypertext Preprocessor) as I feel that this is a key employability skill.

Learning PHP will allow me to expand my search further as I seek employment and add another ‘string to my bow’. My previous experience with PHP is very limited but it has given me a thirst to learn more. Creating dynamic websites that are easy to maintain and are able to interact with the user are becoming commonplace, especially with the increasing popularity of AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML).

The main aspect of the self managed learning plan is that it is ‘self managed’. Planning and executing an entire assignment with no outside help is a daunting prospect but something I am looking forward to.

Over the course my time management has increased dramatically but I feel that this assignment will have the most effect on it. During the assignment I will have to plan every detail to ensure that I don’t spend too much time on a single area as there will be no-one to ensure I don’t fall behind.

Portfolio
Designing my portfolio is going to be a very key task. My portfolio will need to be flexible and easy to adapt to any situation such as applying for a new job. I am looking forward to this project as it will allow me to create a professional portfolio and give me a place to showcase my work.

Final presentation
With the final presentation just around the corner I am both nervous and excited. The final presentation will be the last thing I do on this course and as presentations are not really my strong point it brings with a certain amount of stress.

With content of the presentation being the work I have created over the last two years on the course I plan to use my portfolio as my visual aids. Depending on the layout of my final portfolio I may decide to create a separate section of the website specifically designed for the presentation.

This will help me organise the presentation and help me with my timing as this has been one of my problems with previous presentations.

Employment
After this course I hope to gain employment as a web developer. Although I am aware that due to the current economic state it may be very difficult to find a full time job I feel that spending another two or more years in education will be of no real benefit to me as the thing I really need is real world experience.

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• Php.net
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• All the latest PHP news and a complete functions list. It also contain numerous links to other PHP resource sites.
  
• http://www.php.net/
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• Sitepoint.com
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• Contains numbers PHP tutorials covering various subjects. It also contains a PHP blog which features articles from professional web developers regarding the latest PHP news and developments.
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• http://www.sitepoint.com
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• w3schools.com
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• W3Schools has an extensive list tutorials segregated into basic, advanced, database and XML.
  
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• http://www.w3schools.com/PHP/DEfaULT.asp
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• Planet PHP
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• Contains an extremely large list of PHP related blogs. Contains links to each blog and also the latest posts from each one on the main page.
  


• http://www.planet-php.net/
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• Tizag
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• Extensive list of PHP tutorials over various topics. There is also an active forum that could be used to get help or information.
  


• http://www.tizag.com/phpT/
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• PHP Solutions, Dynamic Web Design Made Easy - By David Powers
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• This book goes through step by step instructions for adding dynamic content such as: feedback forms, online galleries etc...
  
• 
  
• Sample available at Google books
  


• PHP 6 and MySQL 5 for Dynamic Web Sites
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• This book provides detailed instructions for various PHP tasks and how to use it in conjunction with MYSQL databases
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• PHP 6 and MySQL 5 for Dynamic Web Sites - Larry Ullman
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• Developertutorials
  
• 
  
• Another tutorial website that offers a wide range of information for varying degrees of difficulty.
  
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• http://www.developertutorials.com/tutorials/php/
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• PHP Builder
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• A 9000+ community of PHP beginners to enthusiasts. This website offers articles and a code library.
  
• 
  
• http://www.phpbuilder.com/
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• Good PHP tutorials
  
• 
  
• A relatively new PHP tutorial site that is continually expanding with new tutorials and members.
  
• 
  
• http://www.goodphptutorials.com/

PHP Hypertext Preprocessor is one of the most widely supported server side scripting language. It is powerful language that is most commonly used to create dynamic websites and it can also be used to create CMS (Content Management Systems).

I have been using this language to manipulate and configure the ZenPhoto CMS, we are using for the National Diploma project within the A11 assignment.

Due to studying programming on my last course I am familiar with some aspects of the language. I can create IF statements, Loops etc… but I feel my current knowledge of the language is very limited. I want to learn how create more dynamic websites and have the ability to understand

From looking at numerous job sites and reading many job adverts I have found that using PHP alongside MySQL databases is a necessary skill to have, within the interactive media industry.

During my time on the SMLP (Self Managed Learning Project) assignment I hope to gain a large amount of knowledge of both these subjects and the relationship between them as many employees are looking for skills in this area.

With the popularity of Wordpress increasingly PHP is also a useful language to know as it can be used to create plugins. It is also used by many other CMS’s and blogging software so I would be able to use and edit these with very little training.

In conclusion I think that learning PHP is essential for any web developer as it is a skill required by a large number of employees. Learning PHP will also provide me with a solid foundation for learning future programming languages such as: Ruby on Rails etc… and how they are related to databases.

Sumer assignment
During the summer I found it quite difficult to maintain the same amount of discipline I normally have with the assignments.

This meant that I was doing work as and when I could. With this method I found a lack of consistency crept in my work.

Due to this I referred the assignment. This wasn’t the best start to the year but I helped me to see what things I needed to improve.

A9 – Outside the box
The CSS(Cascading StyleSheets) assignment with John was a lot different than I expected. This was mainly due to the introduction of the test instead of creating a page for CSS Beauty.

Already having a good knowledge of CSS I felt confident about the assignment but there is something about tests that always make me nervous. Having the practice test really helped me to understand exactly what was required, for the real thing, and what improvements I needed to make.

Overall I enjoyed this assignment and although I attained a Merit I feel that I let myself. I could have gained a Distinction had I annotated more of my sketchbook work and provided more evidence of me practicing with different CSS techniques.

A11 On the Job
The A11 assignment I have enjoyed the most out of all the assignment over the length of the course. I feel the team, blu-box creative, is working really well together.

Having most of the work finished for both of our current projects the pressure is off slightly and it is just a matter of making sure we don’t get complacent and not get the work finished.

With my roles as a developer I have learnt a great deal about CMS’s (Content Management Systems) and how to choose the correct one for the job. With this knowledge I am looking forward to the A13 assignment, Content Is King, after Christmas.

I also found the usability testing really interesting. This gave me a chance to see how other people will be using the websites we have created and possible problems they may encounter.

A12 – Culture Vulture
This is a really interesting assignment. Having to create idea after idea for an unknown product is really mentally draining. Having a selection of pens, crayons, pencils etc... has really helped me.

The presentation for this assignment was something I was hoping to use to give me more confidence for future presentations. With the presentation only lasting 5 minutes I felt disappointed.

I had planned to present for around 7 minutes and I had achieved this in nearly all of my practices. When the actual presentation came around I let nerves get the better of me and I rushed.

This is something I going to work on in future presentations as I won’t be long until it’s time for the final presentation.

Conclusion
Overall the start of the second year has been really good and I have enjoyed all the assignments and I have especially enjoyed working for professional clients.