Students face off in Web building contest

Lines of code blanketed the computer screen in front of senior informatics major John Palmer. He scrolled through the hundreds of numbers and letters, tweaking a few minor details, and then checked the progress of his creation: a Web site oriented toward recruiting students for the IU School of Informatics. His site consisted of a variety of greens and oranges, a color scheme he said he chose to symbolize "gardening" -- signifying students developing within the informatics program.\n"As long as you know what you are doing, the design is really up to your imagination," Palmer said. "I know that sounds hokey but that really is what attracted me to design in the first place."\nDuring a normal day, Palmer said designing Web sites acts as his "creative outlet." But Friday, Palmer was on a mission. As part of IU's School of Informatics' third annual WebFest, he was competing against another team to create the best Web page possible in only five hours. Judged by other student attendees, the winners would receive $50 Best Buy gift certificates.\nInformatics majors, computer buffs and video game enthusiasts attended WebFest from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday at the School of Informatics. Aside from the Web design contest, students competed in video games such as "Halo 2" and watched movies such as "Hackers" and "I, Robot." Sponsored by the Informatics Undergraduate Club and coordinated by the IU School of Informatics, WebFest aimed to give students a chance to interact with the informatics community while learning more about the benefits of the undergraduate degree program. \n"We want to bring people in, entertain them and let them know the benefits of being part of informatics," said Patrick Etienne, a senior informatics major and Webmaster for the Informatics Undergraduate Club.\nAcross the hall from the Web designers' lab, a group of students gathered around a tiny television to play "Guitar Hero." The video game centers around pushing fret buttons, strumming and pulling levers on a fake electric guitar while keeping pace with patterns depicted on the TV screen to \ncreate well-known rock songs. \nPlaying the faux instrument, senior informatics major William Woods tested his guitar-playing skills in front of a small audience of fellow gamers. Woods pounded furiously on the multi-colored keys on the neck of the guitar. With every button he pushed, more notes from Deep Purple's "Smoke on the Water" sounded from the television.\nWithout warning, Woods dropped to his knees and began to play the guitar in authentic rock star form, leaning back and tilting his head toward the ceiling.\n"There we go," Woods said, missing a few key notes. "That's it. It's over."\nWithin seconds, the game ended. Defeated, Woods passed the guitar to the next player and sat down to relax. \n"It's not as easy as it looks," he said.\nBefore WebFest ended, names were pulled out of a hat to award prizes including informatics polo shirts and two $50 Best Buy gift certificates. As for the Web design contest, Palmer's cultivation-themed site won the first-place award. His opponents, a team consisting of senior informatics major Adam Lueken and senior finance major Shai Shefer, earned informatics sweatshirts for their efforts and design. \n"What we like about John's page, aside from its visual appeal, was the content organization," Feigle said. "It was a very user-friendly design that made it easy to pick out key messages and goals of the School of Informatics."\nAs for Palmer, he said building the Web site was less about the contest than simply being able to practice the skill and hobby he enjoys. \n"I just wanted to flex my geek muscle," he said.