Course Description:
Examines the design and management of Web sites for electronic business applications. Topics include: aligning electronic business models with Web site designs, planning a Web site, understanding the principles and elements of effective Web site design, using Web development and design tools, and evaluating Web site effectiveness. Elements of consistent Web page design as components of overall Web site design are emphasized. Effective communication of concepts and analysis in written format and oral presentations is stressed. Teaching methods include class lecture, case studies, and Internet laboratory research projects.

Course Objectives and Expected Outcomes:
Students who complete this course will be able to:
· Identify and articulate key management issues of designing and implementing electronic commerce strategies within organizations
· Analyze the need and objectives of several types of Web sites, including intranets and extranets
· Develop a Web site management and development plan
· Develop an understanding of various web development technologies
· Design a Web site utilizing human factors principles and techniques
· Implement a full-functional commercial Web site utilizing appropriate software tools
· Evaluate the effectiveness of a Web site
· Understand the ethics and policy issues related to privacy, content selection, intellectual property rights, and other Web site design considerations

Recommended Prerequisite or Corequisite: MSIT 554 - Introduction to Electronic Commerce

Course Texts and Materials:
There are two textbooks required for this class. They are as follows:
 

The Design of Sites, Douglas K. Van Duyne, James A. Landay, Jason I. Hong, Addison Wesley ISBN 0-201-72149-X
The Web Collection, Shelly Bishop, Jim Shuman, and Barbara Waxer, Course Technology ISBN 0-619-10980-7

     Additional readings and materials will also be assigned on a periodic basis.

Other Required Course Materials:
Access to a PC with MS Office Including Frontpage, Macromedia Studio MX & MX 2004
Access to a PC with a recent version of Internet Explorer or Netscape (for access to the course website)

Course Requirements and Student Evaluation:
The course will use several evaluation tools to measure student performance including case studies, web site evaluations, in-class lab exercises/assignments, exams, and a research project.

· Appropriate cases will be selected from the textbooks, journals and newspapers, and other appropriate sources. Each case analysis is an individual assignment and will be submitted via e-mail.

· Students will develop a Web site evaluation checklist based on the course readings and then use the checklist to evaluate and rank order several E-business Web sites within the same industry or area of interest. A Web presentation will be developed documenting the checklist and its application. The Web site checklist assignment is an individual assignment.

· The research project involves developing a plan for an E-business Web site, a prototype design, implementation, and documentation of the Web site, and an in-class presentation of the project. The research project will be an individual assignment

Evaluation

Academic Integrity:
Quizzes, exams, assignments, and projects are to be done individually unless otherwise noted by the instructor. Ethical behavior is expected, cheating is not tolerated. Acts of academic dishonesty are taken seriously and dealt with harshly according to the University’s policies. Acts of academic dishonesty include: a) unauthorized assistance on an examination; b) falsification or invention of data; c) unauthorized collaboration on an academic exercise; d) plagiarism; e) misappropriation of research material; f) unauthorized access of an instructor’s files or computer account; or g) any serious violation of academic integrity as established by the instructor. You are encouraged to review the University's academic integrity procedures in the Graduate Bulletin.

Email and Web Use:
You should be familiar with the use of email and the Web as a prerequisite to this course. You will submit several written assignments for this course as email attachments. Identify in your email message the software that created the attachment by name and version number. Include the course number at the beginning of each message’s subject header when you send email messages related to this course. Email attachments that contain a virus will not be accepted.
The USD Copley library Databases Web page (http://marian.acusd.edu/dbs.html )  includes links to many useful resources for this course, including ABI/Inform, Academic Search, and Dow Jones Interactive.

Each student will be given an allotment of space on the ITMI server in which they will create a course webpage. All work produced in the class should be posted to this website and should be easily located. This is done so you can create your own final portfolio of work to show off to others when the class is over.

Writing
You can communicate your ideas more effectively by writing well. The better you write, the more likely your writing will demonstrate competence with the subject. Surveys of managers consistently show that they consider the lack of adequate communications skills to be the greatest deficiency of the graduates they hire. Managers agree that communications skills should be an important component of business courses. The quality of your writing will affect your grades on assignments and exams. Use an 11-point or larger serif typeface and one-inch margins for all writing assignments. Submit each assignment using one side of 8½" × 11" sheets of paper. All written work must meet standards for English language skills and usage. Marks will be deducted for syntax, semantic, and pragmatic errors, and for not meeting agreed upon submission deadlines. For assistance in writing professional business quality memos and reports please consult the 80/20 Style Guide for Professional Business Writing by Dr. Scott Kunkel (which can be purchased in the bookstore).

Attendance/Absence/Participation/Professionalism:
Attendance is critical for success in this class. Although attendance is neither recorded nor explicitly used to determine your final grade (unless you miss more than 50% of class sessions), you will find it much easier to keep up and master the material if you attend regularly. You are responsible for all material covered in class or assigned during a class even if you were absent. Please contact me as soon as possible if you know you must miss a class.  

Each student is also expected to provide a contribution through class discussions and group projects. Lastly, professionalism is also taken very seriously. It is very important that proper attention/respect be given towards instructor/guest lectures and student presentations and contributions.

Teaching Method
The student is expected to have read materials or completed assignments as listed on the course schedule prior to each class. The class discussions/lectures are intended to illustrate the primary concepts from each section and to provide an opportunity to answer any questions that may result from the readings.

Assignments:
Assignments are due at the beginning of the class period. There will be no late assignments accepted unless approved by the instructor. These projects are to be done individually unless otherwise specified and are to be submitted on the assigned due date and the assigned time.

Internet
All material will be distributed on the Internet. Class notes, instructional material, and student assignments will be posted on 'the net' in a class Website located at http://carl.sandiego.edu/msit588

Extra Credit
Students may obtain extra credit by submitting a proposal for extra topics to be discussed in class. More points will be awarded for presentations made regarding such topics. In order to obtain extra credit the proposal must be submitted and approved by the instructor prior to start of the project.

Grading

IMPORTANT DATES
Thursday 12 October 2006                                             Midterm Exam
Thursday 21 December  2006                                          Final Presentations (7-10 PM)

Notice Regarding IS Courses  
Courses in information systems are often quite different from other classes that you may have taken. To begin, in most cases there is a disparity in experience levels among students. Some individuals enter the class with a great deal of prior knowledge while others have no experience. As such it is difficult to develop a consistent class that satisfies all individuals at all time. There will be times that those who have experience will find the class a little 'slow' while those without prior knowledge get caught up to speed. Likewise there will be times that those students for whom the material is brand new may find the workload difficult. I will strive to help both camps of individuals by providing more challenging assignments and assistance when needed. It is important that you utilize my assistance in order to obtain the maximum amount of knowledge out of this course which in turn will lead to a great experience.

In addition, this course will be taught in an experimental computer laboratory facility which at times might appear to be disarray, or that the computers are dysfunctional. This is a result that the classroom is used by other IS courses including data communication where the computers are taken apart during laboratory assignments. All efforts will be made to provide a consistent working environment for learning, however, the student should be aware and prepared in the event their terminal is not working (ie all work should be saved in multiple locations).

The instructor reserves the right to modify or change any part of this syllabus at any time.