Finally an interesting and somewhat useful chapter

I know. I am shocked too. When the author started talking about the T. Rowe site and who wrote it, and how the company was started, and changed and, blah, blah, blah; I started thinking here we go again, another chapter filled with useless information. Then all of the sudden, the author started talking about the production process, and the old website, versus the new and, how the changes improved the function of the site. It actually made sense and I found some information I could use. I really like the distinction he made between customization and personalization. I have been thinking about my website and what I would like to do with it in the future. I was thinking I would like to make it more personalized for my users. But it turns out that I want to make it customizable, so that the user can determine what is important to them and what they want simplified. I was also wondering if I should have a redundant menu option at the top of my main page. Turns out that the top menu is my global navigation, and it appears on every page so the user can navigate from one page to any other without going to the home page. I know this sounds funny to those who are old hands at this, but it was news to me and something I would have overlooked for sure.

Making a flow chart

The chapter on using a flowchart to illustrate how my website will work was interesting, but it did not come together until we actually used the Microsoft word shapes in class that I really understood how to make it work for my website.
I was worried that creating this flowchart was going to be really difficult. Last semester I did a project that used words and shapes in Illustrator and it was, to say the least a nightmare. I am glad that this program is so easy to use and i am actually looking forward to making my flowchart

Holding out for the information the writer promises to give in later chapters.

I found the reading in Chapter Eight a little bit uninformative. And I have a bit of a criticism for the writer. The reason I found it less informative than the others chapters, is that the main areas it covered in detail are areas I am not really interested in, and do not foresee writing in, specifically games. I know this will come as a bit of a shock to most, but I do not play any of the video games that most guys are interested in. So writing a video game is very low on my list. The criticism I have is that the author for all of his education and knowledge about interactive media and the need to be engaging has not learned how to write a book that is really readable. But I am willing to forestall my judgment until we get further into the book and see if he gets more focused on areas that matter to me. I did like the second to last section where he talks about the need to learn how to learn and that being able to explore what if is important. As a writer and an artist I find that a creative imagination willing to explore uncharted territory is my most important asset. :)