(Ship Room Raters Project ) Status Report

Memo

Date:          November 16, 2009

To:              Dr. Carla Kungl

From:         Ship Room Raters

Subject:     Status Report

Purpose

This is a status report based on the current progress we have and are making on our website.

Summary

We have been accumulating research on potential Shippensburg off-campus housing through websites and surveys handed out to current students. We have begun to work on the website and we are currently about half way done. We have completed the home page as well as the individual homepages for the individual sites contained within. We still have to analyze the data from the surveys we have received back and include it in our website. We are currently on schedule to complete the website and present it to the class on December 11, 2009.

Introduction

Last month we decided to create a website that would provide Shippensburg students with a resource to turn to when looking for new housing around Shippensburg. We obtained permission to pursue this website on October 28, 2009. Since then we have continued to obtain research on the topic and follow through to allow our site to  be as thorough as possible. We believe we are qualified and determined group.

Research

Task 1: Work Schedule. The work schedule has been continually altered and adjusted based on the time it has taken to accomplish each task.

Task 2. Created logo and letterhead. The logo and letterhead were created in Adobe indesign on September 25, 2009.

Task 3. Gantt Chart. The Gantt chart was created organize and demonstrate tasks and their expected date of completion.

Task 4.Work Plan. The work plan was drafted, proofread, and submitted as a memo to Dr. Kungl on October 2, 2009. The work plan included both the work schedule and the Gantt chart and information about our group policies, project leader, and activities.

Task 5. Proposal. We created a thorough explanation of what we wish to accomplish with our website. The proposal was completed on October 28^th, 2009. The proposal elaborated on our goals, described the website, and our qualifications to complete such a task. The proposal also included a flow chart of our site, a mock sketch of what the site will look like, and a copy of the survey we planned to hand out to Shippensburg students. Permission was granted to pursue the website based on our proposal.

Task 6. Secondary Research. We sifted through data that was already available to us through websites, brochures and other promotional materials from each housing unit. We obtained information on many topics such as price, amenities, locations, and more. We have completed our primary research on the housing units. 

Task 7. Primary Research. After we were granted permission to do the site, we distributed surveys to Shippensburg students who have lived in off-campus housing around ship. We are currently still compiling the data from these surveys.

Task 8. Building the Website. So far we have created the website’s home page and the individual home pages for each housing unit. The home page conveniently links to each of the housing units (Bard Townhouses, Rock Towne Townhouses, College Park Commons). We still have to create pages for the results of our secondary research and primary research. We have completed our ‘About Us’ page and our ‘Contact’ page. The website is roughly around half way finished, and we are on schedule to complete it on time.

Future work

Task 9. Usability study. We will research our classmates’ sites and our own to check for broken links, errors in spelling, and other potential mistakes.

Task 10. Presentation. After our website is completed, we will present the finished product to the class. We have yet to determine how it will be presented.

Updated Schedule

Below is an updated copy of our Gantt Chart (Figure A). Additionally, please see attached updated work schedule (Table 1) for information on hours spent and hours remaining on each task.

Figure A. Gantt Chart

Task

Date of Tasks

Work Schedule

Create Logo/Letterhead

Draft Work Plan

Proofread Work Plan

Submit Work Plan

Gantt Chart

Secondary Research

Primary Research

Draft Proposal

Proof Web Proposal

Submit Web  Proposal

Create Survey

Distribute Survey

Home page design

Draft Indiv. Websites

Usability checks

Prepare for Presentation

Presentation

Weeks

1

2

3

4

1

2

3

4

1

2

3

4

1

2

3

4

September

October

November

December

(The lightest shade of grey represents beginning the task. As progress is made, a darker shade is used. Black expresses completion of the task.)

Conclusion

We have completed tasks 1 through 7. In regards to the website, we are currently ahead of schedule and we are expecting to finish task 8, which is building the website, on time. Tasks 9 and 10 will be completed on December 2^nd and December 11^th, respectively.

We have encountered no problems working as a group and we are satisfied with the current status of our website.