ICT GCSE Major Project : A Media magazine aimed at teenagers in the school

Daisy Goulding

Year 10

ICT GCSE Major Project

Analysis

Project Title: A Media magazine aimed at teenagers in the school

The Situation:

Ras Al Khaimah is a small emirate (equivalent to a county) based in the United Arab Emirates in the Middle East. It is about 80 km from Dubai, a neighboring emirate with an entertaining and lively capital.

Ras Al Khaimah is a small city with all types of nationalities such as English, Pakistani, Egyptian and of course Arabs living there. It has few public facilities, only last year was Ras Al Khaimah’s first shopping centre built which has a cinema, restaurants and a variety of shops and there are few other entertainment’s in Ras Al Khaimah, so many people travel to Dubai to be able to fill up their social lives. Most people worship Islam, and there are a numerous number of mosques in the city, there is one church in Ras Al Khaimah where Christians can go to worship.

Ras Al Khaimah English Speaking School or RAKESS is a moderately sized school, based in Ras Al Khaimah (in which you must be able to speak English), which has around 350 students in all of primary and secondary.

It is a private school for both boys and girls, and has many facilities including a swimming pool, tennis courts and 4 fully equipped I.C.T labs.

One of the problems of Ras Al Khaimah is its social life, it only has one shopping centre and many people have to entertain themselves by visiting cinemas and buying P.C games and videos. There are few entertainment magazines which may include reviews, music pages and what’s on in the United Arab Emirates and none for Ras Al Khaimah. Mostly the cinema viewers and people who are interested in that topic are teenagers, and many students would think it would be good if a friendly, local magazine was produced for the school, outlining reviews, and social activities happening to refrain people form going into boredom. One magazine which used to be produced for the school called the Rakess Update which did outline some reviews and cinema interests, but it was unprofessional, and did not contain a great deal of information useful to teenagers and other ages and was not up to date so after a while the magazine was cancelled and a school web-site was made instead. The Rakess Update to be able to be more successful it needed:

Better Promotion
More Organisation
More Efficiency
More Communication

If these things were added to this magazine then the students would have preferred it and it would be have been a lot more successful and popular.

The Problem:

The problem with the current updates on the entertainment was the Rakess Update was unprofessional and unorganised and did not include a great deal of information that was relevant to the student body of RAKESS.

The Rakess Update did have pages that were colourful and interesting with topics that were varying in public interest, but having spoken to students what the Rakess Update really needed was:

A wide range of information that benefited everyone
More organisation, there was no general layout or template of its cover or pages.
More promotion. No adverts were made to promote their magazine.
More efficiency as most people producing the update were new to computers and it took a long time to be able to produce a decent article for the Update.
More communication. There was no interaction with the students about what could be in the magazine.

It needed a basic topic or structure. The magazine included all types of topics from racing cars to cooking. It needed one topic, which it could expand and explore.

The Existing System:

At the moment there is nothing about entertainment for RAKESS and no local magazine for Ras Al Khaimah but there are a few magazines based in Dubai, that give info about entertainment but nothing interesting and lively for RAKESS. The old Rakess Update did have a few pages about entertainment and media but nothing substantial and in depth for the student’s use.

The people that ran the Rakess Update were one Year 9 class, as they were not doing their GCSE’s and were the oldest students considered able to run the Update. It was always released at Christmas and each student would produce a few pages about a reasonable subject of their choice. The subjects were very varied and never were involved in one topic. The topics could range from Harry Potter to cooking and it was quite unbalanced. Even though it was a good idea to try and create a magazine that tried to create topics for everyone, the magazine was unbalanced and none of the subjects were expanded so there would only be one page for games, cookery, movies and it did not provide enough information relevant for the user. I feel that I need to improve and expand my new system from the Rakess Update to create a system that is very informative and involves one subject: media that is more beneficial to the user.

There are three main magazines that can be counted for as existing systems; I have added Public Magazines such as the U.A.E’S local entertainment magazines, which are meant for the public but can be counted as existing systems, even though I have not added processes and storage to the Public Magazines as part of the existing system as I cannot get this information which is usually private and not stored on the Web.

The School Newsletter:

Password

Confirm Password

I agree to the terms of service and privacy policy

The School newsletter is an existing system as it is a newsletter outlining what’s going on in the school. It’s very basic and is in black and white format, and does not give in-depth information, just simple facts. It does not go out of the school, as I intend to do, but does inform people of current happenings around school. The School is published weekly and it contains the following items as the sample newsletter I have put in the analysis shows:

Information on people who have won awards, and commendations
Events that are upcoming
News from ...

This is a preview of the whole essay

Information on people who have won awards, and commendations
Events that are upcoming
News from the secondary and primary
Principals note.

-The next two pages show the school newsletter and some information regarding it before I carry on to the rest of the analysis.

On this page is a print screen of the school newsletter on the school’s web-site. It is in colour here, even though the original newsletter is in black and white format.

As you can see the newsletter is bland and contains more writing then pictures and from the questionnaires I know that students want:

More pictures then information
More interactive such as competitions, games
A good layout with colour.

The print screen shows secondary news, and as you can see it is in black and white format with no pictures or even graphics and all the writing in one kind of word format is very boring. I can see many ways of improving this to satisfy the students.

The next page shows the newsletter as it is distributed in black and white format.

The Rakess Update:

I have mentioned the Rakess Update before, I regard it as the main existing system, even though it stopped being produced about a year ago, copies are still left around the school and nearly everyone has a copy at home. It was the main source of information for RAKESS of entertainment information.

Public Magazines:

I have included Public Magazines as these are an existing system as they give information to the client on entertainment and media guides.

Data:

I’m going to produce a media/entertainment magazine aimed can be aimed at secondary school students that will be aimed at Rakess, but I will try to aim at all school students in any environment.

It will be used by students in secondary, based on an entertainment magazine such as Empire or perhaps smaller magazines such as “What’s On” and will be in colour format.

I intend to produce one sample magazine as I plan to produce as my main I.T project to go with the sample magazine a template package on CD-Rom.

The template package will be based on the idea “Make your own magazine” which anyone can use to produce a magazine each year efficiently. It will include a number of templates for students to use and pictures and perhaps different styles of fonts, so all the next producers of the magazine will have to do is to add the writing and a few new pictures each time the magazine is produced. The sample magazine is to give evidence and help to the next users so they can have a guideline. Producing a CD-Rom for the next user, is basically a way of being to produce and keep the magazine going thorough out the school.

If the magazine is successful, I intend to produce a web-site which after producing the magazine will seem easy as I have to simply put what I have on to a web-page and it will make the magazine computer friendly and also making a CD-Rom, magazine and website will make the project available to everyone in the school which ever way they use it.

I will use ideas from other magazines such as reviews, requests, interviews to make the magazine as entertaining as possible, but I will make the content as up to date as possible. I will research CD-Rom packages to see whether I can produce something that is useful for the next producer, but as producing a CD-Rom package is too complex, I will produce one that is a basic skeleton to a package that can still be helpful.

Inputs of the Existing System:

The inputs of the existing system are currently the following items that are collected and used.

The School newsletter:

The school newsletter does not currently have a lot of information on entertainment or media. I intend to improve from the school newsletter, as it only contains information about the school, but I think entertainment information and media based for the students is more for the school then about the school. The exact inputs that are put in to the processing of the newsletter are:

Secondary and Primary News which contains information on the happenings in both the primary and the secondary such as exams, clubs etc.
From the Principal which is a few notes that are directly from the Headmistress- basically a note to the parents about fees, etc.
Upcoming events which is a column, that basically regards what is happening in the school, such as plays, concerts and recitals.
Awards which names the students that have won awards

Commendations and Certificates about what students have achieved something in the school such as a swimming badge etc.

The Rakess Update:

The Rakess Update that currently out of use, did have some pages on entertainment and media. Its content was not in –depth. I am using an example of one of the Update’s to show what it exactly included:

An entertainment page with information on films and music
An interview with usually an important business contact from an influential business in Ras Al Khaimah.
News features from the school such as an article from Sports Day with pictures.
A games page with a simple selection of games for primary clients.

This is usually what the main features are in the Rakess Update, but sometimes other features are added if the time of publishing is extended.

Even though I cannot find out the processes or storage of the public magazines of the U.A.E I will add it into the Inputs as it is an entertainment and therefore can be included as an existing system.

Public Magazines:

There are some good entertainment magazines in the U.A.E such as Gulf Entertainment that is a popular magazine distributed throughout the U.A.E and contains reviews, public opinions, interviews and news. The layout is in colour so it is entertaining to look at. I would like to base my magazine as it is not world-wide and is based on a magazine like Empire which is world-wide and so very in-depth. I would like my magazine to be entertaining and based entirely at a school environment, as I would like to involve the students in making opinions and submitting reviews.

Processes of the Existing System:

After researching the existing systems I found out that currently the information in the existing systems are processed in the following manner. I have not added the Public Magazines as publishing and storage information is private to the business:

The School newsletter:

The school newsletter as it is in black and white and does not contain any scanned photos or pictures, as is simply made by using a simple template in Publisher. There is no scanner or digital camera used, and the information is collected from the school such as awards, clubs etc. and it is then written up into the template.

The Rakess Update:

The Rakess Update as it was produced differently each term, had no basic template or design stored on a computer. So when class produced the update, it would be in a different layout each time. This made the Update a lot longer to produce but when I produce my new system I intend to have a template and a basic layout. The Rakess Update did use colour graphics, and it had access to a digital camera, so pictures of students could be scanned on to the update. The content of the magazine, as I have mentioned before was up to the user, so the information they needed was usually collected or if making an entertainment page, it would be attained from the Internet.

Storage of the Existing System:

The storage of the existing system is where the information is currently held. As the Rakess Update is now out of use, it is not held on a computer, but there are numerous copies that the school still own and I have got my copy from a student who still collects the Rakess Update.

The School Newsletter:

After research, I have discovered that the newsletter is produced and developed by Mrs. Simpson before it is distributed each week. She stores it on one computer; so constant transportation does not have to be used, with floppy disks, zip disks etc., which are easy to lose. It is stored in her user area, which is kept safe by a password, which only she has access to. It is kept on Publisher, and is kept in the form of a template so she can just collect the information and put it in the template.

The Rakess Update:

The Rakess Update, as it was produced differently each term with different layout and content each time, it did not have a special area or safety measure in which it was stored. The Update was made by a group of people, with a different person producing each section, so the person would store the content on their user area, until it was produced and ready for distribution then the work would be deleted and the Update would be produced by a different user with the same methods.

Client/User/Public-

These are the three main people that will help with the structure of the new system.

Client:

Ms. Watson is the Headmistress of RAKESS, so I will have to conduct a questionnaire with her, to see if she approves of the new system, and whether she thinks it will benefit the school.

User:

After considering making a sample magazine then a CD-Rom template to show the user next year, anyone can consider making the magazine next year, which can become re-usable. A club or a group of students can continue making the magazine using the CD-Rom and it will be very simple as the template and fonts are already present, just the information needs to be attained.

Public:

The public is my main concern as these are the students that I intend to aim the magazine at. I will conduct a questionnaire for the students, to see what they want in a student entertainment magazine and I will write this up in User Needs, so I keep to guidelines on what the public want and need

The Current Client/User:

I’m going to carry out interviews with people involved with the existing system and who uses it: I would like to find out:

what problems they feel there are
their views on the current system
their ideas for possible solutions
what their views are on having a new system
if they think it is appropriate and if they will use a new system
whether the client agrees it is a good idea

My main aims for the questionnaires are to mainly find out:

if the user will find the new system and improvement and if they will use it for their own benefit.

If the client happy to support the new system and thinks it will be useful to the school.

Questionnaire:

As for my ICT major project I’m producing a school entertainment and media magazine, I’m going to conduct some questionnaires to find out what people involved think of current systems and what they would think of a new system. For the questionnaire, I’m to ask a pupil from each class from Year 7 up to Year 13 about what they would like in a system and this will give me ideas on what my magazine will be like and how the students want it to be like.

My questionnaire for the students who will be the ones using the magazine, will be very brief, just to find out vaguely what they want and need in a media magazine. The questions will be conducted in this way, basically with yes or no answers. Here is an example of what I will be asking the students:

Do you think a new magazine should have pages on cinema, music, games etc?

Tick the correct boxes:

Yes No

As I carry on with the major project the questions will become more in-depth and more specific on what they want in a magazine. The next page shows a filled in copy of the questionnaire, outlining the user needs.

User Needs:

Having investigated the user needs I have learnt that the user requires a system that enables them to do the following:

After the questionnaires, I learnt that most people found the Rakess Update good, and as I intend to improve upon the Rakess Update, my new system should be a lot better.
Everybody thought the media magazine was a good idea, as the survey showed that everyone spent a lot of they time at the cinema or listening to music, so I know that hopefully the magazine will be beneficial.

I wasn’t surprised by the fact that most people wanted the magazine to contain more pictures then information, as they thought it is always more interesting with pictures so I intend to add a lot of pictures, to satisfy the students.

Many people also liked the idea of games and competitions, and also a good layout with colour was also very popular.

After the first questionnaire which was very basic, just giving me an idea of what the students would like; I now know that a fun-loving magazine with lots of colour including games and lots of pictures.

Proposals:

Requirements Specifications: (next page)

I’m going to create a new system that will allow the user to be more satisfied. In order to do this I will stick to what other entertainment magazines have and keep to.

The magazine will always be aimed at school students.
The layout will be colourful and eye-catching so the user can appreciate it more but I will keep to money limits.
The layout will be based on teen/entertainment magazines which are approximately:

50% graphics per page
high quality graphic images
combination of pictures, black/white
a general layout of the magazine using templates
perhaps adverts aimed at teens in magazines (films, cds, clothes etc.)

I want to also keep the content to entertainment magazine standards:

Keep the information relevant and interesting to the user.
Not include any swearing, or any disturbing articles or pictures.
Provide a wide range of information and content for the user for all students but not varying too much form the subject.
Provide a range of information for both girls and boys.
Use other magazines to create good articles and media archives.
The magazine has to be up to date to be able to keep up with the user and the current times (news, films etc.)

Checklist for my magazine:

This is a checklist, to keep me organized during the making of the magazine.

These are targets that I intend to keep, so I keep to the same plot in my magazine:

To keep the magazine informative and interesting that is an expansion from the entertainment section in the Rakess Update.
To use successful and popular entertainment magazines to get ideas and keep to guidelines for the magazine.
To provide a range of information for both girls and boys.
To use pictures and information fairly on the magazine.
The magazine to be strictly aimed at a school environment.
The magazine can be transferable so it can cater for anyone in schools.
To use black and white as well as colour pictures to cut down on costs.

These are the basic aims that I want to keep to when producing the magazine, so I know what basically I will using and adding to the content of the magazine.

Alternatives solutions:

Instead of using a magazine for creating a system that was used for entertainment information I could have created a:

A web-site would have been useful and another way of giving across information. A web-site would have been useful as:

I could make the magazine on a web site, as it is more interactive.
I could have added more use of media on a web-page such as downloads, videos etc.
Many people use the web more often nowadays, a more professional outlook at promoting a magazine
Easier to manage as I could use regular updates, instead of producing a magazine weekly or monthly.
Easier producing a web-site as use of paper and resources are much more harder for the making of a magazine

But there are disadvantages to a web site magazine:

People may not have easy access to a computer.
Many people cannot afford Internet
Many magazines are produced before making a web- site to insure success.
It is much more easy to access a magazine then a web site
As it is to be aimed at a school environment, it is better to have reading material then computer screens.
As aimed at school environment, many students may not be computer literate.
More social uses, as if aimed at school, students may look at it together and students may not have the time to look it up on a computer, or simply may not be bothered, and using a magazine may bring a school and its pupils closer together if published through out the school and not use a web-site which I believe separates people rather then brining them closer together which I think a school environment does not need especially if the magazine contains the students.

Even though there are many advantages to making a web-site magazine, I had decided to stick with a magazine from the advantages listed above and I think as the old Rakess Update was much more popular then the current Rakess Web-site, a magazine will do a lot better in a school.

There are other ways of producing a magazine without it being in magazine layout. I could have produced a CD for the magazine but this is very unwise as:

I would have to produce a lot of CD’s as one disc would not cater for the school.
It does not involve the pupils as much as magazine would.
It would have been very expensive
Some people may not have access to a CD-ROM
It would take a lot of hard work to produce a number of discs.

These reasons are enough to believe that a magazine would be the best and most beneficial to the school and its pupils.

Inputs of the new system:

After researching current systems, I have decided to make the new system, using the guidelines I set myself earlier using colour and black and white to save money. Using the preferred choices of the students I want to design my magazine on the Rakess Update and other entertainment magazines, to make a magazine that includes the school, but also outside activities as well. In my magazine I would like to put in:

Reviews of books, films,
Games and trivia
Use surveys which involves students
Requests, interviews etc.
News

I will need a scanner and perhaps a digital camera, to input pictures of students, etc. I will also need access to other entertainment magazines for ideas, and the Internet, for pictures of actors, etc.

Outputs for the new system:

I am going to put what I want to produce in the magazine as an output to satisfy the students:

For my new system I would like to produce a magazine with the following outputs:

Reviews that give information on entertainment information such as cds, films.

I would like to produce a horoscopes page if possible that is for both girls and boys

From the questionnaire, I know that people want a good layout with lots of colour, so I would like to put this in my magazine.

Lots of games and competitions for the younger students, as in the questionnaire many people wanted games, etc.

I would like to put in peoples views, and requests, e.g. students views on favourite film, book etc.

Interviews that I could get off the web, or conduct myself.

Frequently Asked Questions so I answer peoples queries or requests.

I would like to output a web-page for the school magazine to promote and also I would like to use more then one use of technology for the magazine.

These are all the things that I would like to in put and process to make my magazine suitable for a school entertainment magazine. But as I carry on with the designing I will probably get new inspirations and more ideas,

but at the moment I would just like the basic outputs for the magazines at this.

Processes for the new system:

In my new system I will have to use a lot of processes in order to output my magazine:

To produce the articles for the magazine I will have to use Word to produce the drafts and writing up other questionnaires and surveys.
I will use Publisher to produce a template that I can write up the content into when it is produced and also make it easier for the next user.

I will have to experiment with Publisher and Corel Draw for the kind of layout I want after doing the designing.
I will have to search the Internet and use a digital camera to put a suitable amount of pictures in the magazine.
I will use Front page to produce a web-page and then sign up to a site to promote my web-page. I could attach the web-page to the school web-site.
I could have to use Excel to keep data from surveys and make graphs to show results to help in making of magazine.

Storage of the new system:

For my project one of the most important things is safety, I am going to have to think of the best ways to keep the new system safe.

I am going to try and use one computer as its good for storage as if I keep all my files on one computer then its less likely to get lost and for transportation reasons as I don’t have to use floppy disks all the time which are easy to lose and don’t have enough space. To keep the system safe on one computer against viruses and unwanted users, I will have to look at different ways at keeping storage safe such as:

Read-only memory is a computer memory that cannot be changed by a program or user. It also keeps the data safe even after the computer has been switched off.
A user area, which I can keep safe with a password so only I can access the data.
Instead of using more then one computer and having to use floppy disks all the time, I will use hard disk on one computer that has a storage capacity much bigger then floppy disks.