User Interface Design

COMS 4170 · Spring 2025

Our Goals:

1. Understand users and build websites that suit the needs and abilities.
2. Design useable systems through iteration and feedback.

    Instructor
  • Prof. Lydia Chilton
    OH: Mondays 2:30-3:30 in CEPSR 612

    Please contact staff through Ed or Slack (coming soon)
TA Office hours
    The office hours times and locations are on the calendar below. You can view or subscribe to the calendar here: google calendar.

    The calendar include zoom/hangouts links for remote OH.
Weekly schedule
  • Section 001
    Monday, Wednesday
    1:10–2:25pm
    IAB 417
  • Section 002
    Mondays 7–9:30pm, Wednesday TA meetings
    Pupin 428

Syllabus

Monday Wednesday Friday
January 20

No class
January 22

Usability Heuristics
Lecture Video
Homework 1

January 24

Homework 1 Warm up due

January 27

Information Design
Lecture Video

January 29
Grids and Layouts
Homework 2
Lecture Video
January 31

Homework 2 Warm up due

February 3
User Interaction Models
Lecture Video
February 5

JavaScript, Widgets, and Events
Homework 3
Lecture Video
February 7
Homework 3 warm up due
February 10
Events and Feedback
Lecture Video
February 12

Direct Manipulation
Homework 4
Lecture Video

February 14

Homework 4 warm up due

February 17
Menus and Navigation
Lecture Video
February 19

Saving Data on the Server
Homework 5
people.zip
Lecture Video

February 21

Homework 5 warm up due

February 24

Navigation Bars and Homework 4 Review (no slides)
Lecture Video

February 26

Database-Backed Websites
Homework 6
Lecture video

February 28

Homework 6 warm up due

March 3

Color, Type, Gestalt
Lecture video

March 5

Inclusive Design
and Accessibility
Midterm Project
Lecture video

March 7

Midterm Project warm up due

March 10

No class. Extra office hours.

March 12

No class. Extra Office hours.

March 14

Midterm Project due
March 17

Break — No class
March 19

Break - No class
March 20

Break - No class
March 24

Design Project Kickoff & User Research
Lecture video
Homework 7 out
March 26

TA meetings: Brainstorming and Team formation
Individual Warm up due before TA section time
March 28

Group Warm up due
March 31

Low-Fi Prototypes
Lecture Video

April 2

TA session: User Research and Idea Selection
Homework 7 due
Homework 8 out
April 4

Warm up due
April 7

TBA

April 9

TA Meetings: low-fi prototype feedback
Homework 8 due
Homework 9 out
April 11

Warm up due
April 14
Technical Prototypes
Lecture Video
April 16

TA Meetings: Low-Fi iteration Feedback
Homework 9 due
Homework 10 out
April 18

Warm up due
April 21

Graphic Design
Lecture Video

April 23

TA sessions: technical feedback
Homework 10 due
Homework 11 out
April 25

Warm up due
April 28
Review + Designing with AI
Lecture Video
April 30

TA session: Graphic Design Feedback
Homework 11 due
Homework 12 out
May 2

Warm up due
May 5
Last day of class
May 7
No class
May 12

Final Project due at 11:59pm.
No exceptions. Late assignments will receive a zero. (even 1 minute late)

Grading

Grade Buckets
92% <= A  <= 100%
90% <= A- < 92%
88% <= B+ < 90%
82% <= B  < 88%
80% <= B- < 82%
78% <= C+ < 80%
72% <= C  < 78%
70% <= C- < 72%
60% <= D  < 70%
 0% <= F < 60%

No A+ grades will be given.
Grade Breakdown
  • Design Section Participation: 10%
  • Weekly assignments: 60% (5% each)
  • Midterm Project: 10%
  • Final Project: 20%

Late Policy
2 Late Passes: You may turn in 2 assignments late with no penalty or excuse needed. Simply email your TA telling them you intend to use a late pass before the assignment deadline.

Each late assignments must be turned in no more than 5 days (120 hours) after the original deadline. There is no difference between an assignment being 1 hour late or 99 hours late.

Late passes cannot be used on the Midterm Project or Final Project.

If you have an illness or emergency with extenuating circumstances, email your TA and Prof Chilton to explain the situation. Include the name and contact of your advising dean so we can coordinate a plan with them.


Class participation
Class participation is based on your attendance and active participation during the design feedback sections in the second half of the class.

If you cannot make the regularly schedule time for your section meeting, email your TA in advance of the meeting and suggest 3 times in the next two days to schedule a make up.

Regrade Requests
If you believe there has been an error in grading your assignment, please contact your TA within 3 days of your grade being released.
  • Send an email to your TA and cc Prof Chilton.
  • The subject of that email should be "Regrade Request HW #n". Where n is the number of the homework.
  • Tell us what problem number you would like to be considered for a regrade and why you think your answer deserves more points.
On any assignment that you request a regrade, we reserve the right to regrade all parts of the assignment, not just the ones you indicated.