Following up on my previous blog about choosing an MSU theme for the Capturing Campus Cuisine webpage, this post will focus on the user interaction and experience. While the major sections of the webpage of this project had been previously decided, I was still not completely sure how I wanted the users to move through and interact with the site. After discussion with my partner on this project, Susan Kooiman, and the director of the Campus Archaeology Program, we decided to have the headers of the sections organized going from the themes of food practices, to our research methods used to learn about the various food practices, then the complete meal reconstruction conclusions, followed by the interactive atlas and additional resources.
Previously, I had considered having the “Food Practices” and “Research” tabs be a landing page that included short descriptions and an image for each sub-theme. See image below:
However, after realizing that these brief descriptions will be included in the landing page (About tab) of the site, it would not be necessary. Instead, I modified the header to contain dropdown menus for the “Food Practices” and “Research” tabs.
Now that the organization of the site is complete and the flow of interaction for users is finished, there are several more steps that need to be completed before the site can go public. What I am currently working on is the interactive atlas of Michigan State University. This section of the site will allow visitors to interact and learn about the Early Period of MSU’s history foodways. I hope to include historic maps, photos, and points to illustrate various areas of campus that have been used for food production throughout MSU’s history. If you have any ideas of what you would like included in this feature please reach out!
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