Portfolio
Iwan Brock
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Hotglue
Processing
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Hotglue
Hotglue is a tool that allows you to create web pages without writing any code if you don't want to. You can sign up for free and start creating a website by dragging photos, GIFs, videos onto the screen.
I really liked using Hotglue as it allowed me to experiment a lot with making a website. I work best in a visual environment and I found it easier and quicker to create and test my ideas using Hotglue over traditional HTML or other languages. For example, you can easily add an image just by dragging into the browser window and then you can resize it all visually, which is much easier than HTML.
That being said, Hotglue is limited in its use for creating larger and professional websites. I found it to be clunky when my site had multiple pages. For example, to make each page have red text for the menu bar on the side of the screen I had to rebuild the menu each time.
If you want to see my work in Hotglue, look no further! This website was made entirely using Hotglue.
Technically, Hotglue functions well. I have not had problems with Hotglue saving my work and have been able to see my websites on different devices such as a phone, iPad and laptop. For what it does Hotglue is very useful; you can quickly and easily create a website with images, videos, gifs etc, which anyone can view. No coding or web server knowledge needed.
Class testing of Hotglue

Click here to see the Hotglue site and find out more information.

(Check the Processing page to see this in action)


Portfolio: implementation and design
The Hotglue tool menus

An introduction to hotglue
Video from http://www.hotglue.me

Using Hotglue was really useful in the sense that it allowed me to learn more about the process of creating a big project such as this. Since I didnt have to worry too much about the coding for the website, it was all about the design so I could focus more on the the different steps I would need to take. The steps can be explained better using the Jesse James Garrett model.
As a class we tested Hotglue on several devices. This exercise was very useful as we were able to test on many more devices than I would be able to on my own.
The tests were useful as I learned about some problems Hotglue has. For example, when adding a video to the website Hotglue sometimes did not show the video at all, or it sometimes opened the YouTube app if the user was on an iOS device. I have used this research to improve my site by using Vimeo to keep the user in the browser, and adding a link to Vimeo in case Hotglue doesn't load the video.
Jesse James Garrett model

You can find out more about this model Here