Module: Advanced Creative Coding

Latest Module Specifications

Current Academic Year 2025 - 2026

Module Title	Advanced Creative Coding
Module Code	ICT1021 (ITS: CM287)
Faculty	Communications	School	Humanities & Social Sciences
NFQ level	8	Credit Rating	10

Description

Appropriate development environments and scripting languages will be used to acquire key skills and present concepts inherent in production of non-linear media to the students. Programming techniques and principles will be extended to enable students to produce truly interactive / responsive media. Offering best practice for novice programmers and interaction designers this module will help students gain new skills for writing programs and developing applications for a variety of platforms. Students will engage with interaction design and development for exhibition, mobile devices and the Internet. Students will follow pitch-prototype- user test, iterative development process.

Learning Outcomes

1. Outline the principle programming structures and concepts.
2. Identify appropriate structures to construct and application.
3. Develop appropriate algorithms and data structures as solutions to a range of problems.
4. Apply the principle programming techniques in developing simple applications.
5. Test and debug their own applications.
6. Develop appropriate plans for online and offline interactive media
7. Design a responsive / interactive piece of media which behaves and reacts reliably to user input.
8. Scope and scale a multimedia project regarding personnel, skills needed and time available.

*Type*	*Hours*	*Description*
Workload	Full time hours per semester
Lecture	12	Theory and Case Study based
Lecture	24	Lab session practice based, demonstration, feedback and problem solving exercises
Directed learning	30	Weekly class challange, problem solving exercises
Directed learning	30	Pitch of ideas and prototype of responsive systemmedia survey
Independent Study	64	independent learning time
Assignment Completion	40	Online Interactive Media Application
Assignment Completion	50	Responsive media installation / Mobile device application
Total Workload: 250

Section Breakdown
CRN	10822	Part of Term	Semester 1
Coursework	0%	Examination Weight	0%
Grade Scale	40PASS	Pass Both Elements	Y
Resit Category	RC1	Best Mark	N
Module Co-ordinator	Dónal Mulligan	Module Teacher

Type	Description	% of total	Assessment Date
Assessment Breakdown
Digital Project	Online Interactive Media Application	40%	Week 7
Digital Project	Responsive media installation / Mobile device application	50%	Sem 1 End
Presentation	Pitch of ideas and prototype of responsive system	10%	Week 10

Reassessment Requirement Type
Resit arrangements are explained by the following categories; RC1: A resit is available for both^* components of the module. RC2: No resit is available for a 100% coursework module. RC3: No resit is available for the coursework component where there is a coursework and summative examination element. ^* ‘Both’ is used in the context of the module having a coursework/summative examination split; where the module is 100% coursework, there will also be a resit of the assessment

Pre-requisite	None
Co-requisite	None
Compatibles	None
Incompatibles	None

All module information is indicative and subject to change. For further information,students are advised to refer to the University's Marks and Standards and Programme Specific Regulations at: http://www.dcu.ie/registry/examinations/index.shtml

Indicative Content and Learning Activities

Designing for Interactive systems
Scoping a project, defining the user/audience needs and expectation. Researching and choosing appropriate technologies for a project

Control and logic in interactive applications.
Conditional Structures, controlling rich media integration, storing and retrieving remote data, integrating remote data. Parent /Child / Ancestor scripting, Object Oriented Approaches -objects, methods, classes

Understanding Users / User Consideration.
Defining interaction, personae and user modelling.

Planning and Prototyping
Algorithms, Pseudo-code and pilot testing for functionality. Planning for scale-up for multiple users and platforms.

User testing
Testing techniques to gain reliable feedback.

Indicative Reading List

Books:

Saffer, Dan: 2007, Designing for interaction: creating smart applications and clever devices, New Riders, Berkeley,
Andrew Sears (Editor), Julie A. Jacko (Editor): 2009, Human-Computer Interaction: Designing for Diverse Users and Domains (Human Factors and Ergonomics), CRC Press,
Vora, Pawan: 2009, Web application design patterns, Morgan Kaufmann Publishers/Elsevier, Boston,
Norman, Donald A: 2005, Emotional design: why we love (or hate) everyday things, BasicBooks, New York,
Rogers, Yvonne: 2011, Interaction design: beyond human-computer interaction, Wiley, Hoboken, N.J,
Hofstadter, Douglas R,: 1980, GÃ¶del, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid, Penguin, Harmondsworth, Middlesex,
Pirsig, Robert M.: 1984, Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance., Morrow, New York,
Klanten, Robert: 2010, Data flow 2: visualising information in graphic design, Gestalten, Berlin,
Iliinsky, Noah P. N; Steele, Julie: 2010, Beautiful visualization, O'Reilly, Farnham,
Ira Greenberg: 2007, Processing: Creative Coding & Computational Art: Creative Coding and Computational Art, FRIENDS OF ED ACADEMIC,
Shupe, Rich; Rosser, Zevan: 2011, Learning ActionScript 3; 0, O'Reilly, Farnham,
Casey Reas & Ben Fry: 2007, Processing A Programming Handbook for Visual Designers and Artists, MIT Press,
Van Der Spuy, Rex: 0, Foundation game design with Flash, Friends of Ed, Berkeley, Calif,

Articles:
None

Other Resources

1: Website, A List Apart Magazine, A List Apart,
418364: 1, Website, interaction-design.org,
http://www.interaction-design.org/: 418365, 1, Website, I miss my pencil.com
http://imissmypencil.com/: