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The Hive reprises HOTNES training program By John Bennett The Savannah College of Art and Design’s student-run Internet community will offer the second installment of its Hive Online Training Network Educating SCAD series Jan. 22 - Feb. 26. This year’s HOTNES sessions will focus on helping students prepare portfolios including Web sites, DVDs and print packaging. The sessions are taught by the staff of The Hive and are free and open to SCAD students. “One of the key elements of landing a job when you get out of SCAD is the work you’ve created while here. Not only is the work important, but also how you present that work to potential employers. HOTNES v. 2 revolves around creating your portfolio,” said Q. Manning, art director for The Hive. “The goal is to have you leave not only with a stunning collection of your work, but also to have picked up some new skills in programs like HTML, CSS, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Encore and DVD Studio Pro.” Nick Dubois, publicity director for The Hive, said HOTNES will help students make their work stand out from the crowd. “Students should sign up for these courses if they want to get ahead,” Dubois said. “Malcolm Kesson, a professor of visual effects at SCAD, would explain learning new things as giving yourself a box you can stand on. This makes you more likely to be noticed.” Dubois offered another selling point: “Who wouldn’t take advantage of free education?” While they don’t receive any financial compensation for creating and teaching HOTNES courses, Hive staff members do profit from the experience. “I love to teach. I also love to help people,” said Ben Willis, assistant director of The Hive. “I feel that the Internet is an incredible resource and offers so many opportunities for exposure. So if I can help someone get exposure to the right business or client, I’m happy.” Manning said by helping prepare other students for the professional world, he and fellow members of The Hive staff also receive valuable training that will aid them in their careers. “Planning classes can be beneficial because it’s a lesson in time management and structure, but it’s also a small lesson how to lead other people and pass on knowledge -- something that’s important as you rise through the ranks of most corporate jobs,” Manning said. But like Willis, he said he finds the classes to be fulfilling on a more personal level. “We just enjoy passing on our zest for these topics to other people. A little dorky? Absolutely, but we are passionate about what we do,” he said. Brandon Ashworth, director of The Hive, said the 2005 version of HOTNES differs from last year’s series in that it includes not just Web design, but also DVD authoring and packaging creation. “We had an idea of where we should go with the classes this quarter from producing them last year,” Dubois said. “By creating lessons that are mainly for portfolio purposes, we are opening HOTNES to more majors.” Above all, Willis said, the previous HOTNES series provided his colleagues with the confidence and purpose they needed to expand the second group of programs. “Working at The Hive, sometimes you never know if anyone cares or even hears you,” Willis said. “The great turnout from last year really encouraged us and I think we helped a lot of people. We learned that we were doing something right.” The Hive was launched on Sept. 11, 2002, to provide a venue for student involvement and discussion across all majors. The site is designed, programmed and maintained by students. Often called the college’s online student center, it boasts more than 3,300 registered users and is open to SCAD students, faculty, staff and alumni. The Hive staff originally conceived HOTNES as a way of giving back to the student community and sharing what they had learned in the creation and administration of The Hive. Students from less technology-intensive academic majors were identified as an audience that might benefit particularly from the program. “Students shouldn’t be worried that we’re all genius tech heads over here,” Manning said. “We have some knowledge, and we want to pass it on in an easy-to-understand manner. That’s HOTNES.” HOTNES classes will be offered Saturdays from Jan. 22 - Feb. 26. Each class will last from noon - 2 p.m. and will be held in Montgomery Hall. For more information or to register, visit http://thehive.scad.edu/hotnes/ or e-mail thehive@scad.edu. HOTNES class schedule Lesson 1: Fundamentals Jan. 22, noon - 2 p.m. Learn basic HTML tags, how a Web site works and how to manage disk space. Lesson 2: Advanced HTML Jan. 29, noon - 2 p.m. Learn advanced HTML skills, expert table structure, CSS and positioning. Lesson 3: Photoshop for Web Feb. 5, noon - 2 p.m. Learn to use Adobe Photoshop in designing Web pages. Lesson 4: Photoshop for DVD Feb. 12, noon - 2 p.m. Learn to use Adobe Photoshop to create background, buttons and menus for DVDs. Lesson 5: DVD Authoring Feb. 19, noon - 2 p.m. Learn the basics of DVD authoring using Encore DVD and DVD Studio Pro. Lesson 6: Portfolio Packaging Feb. 26, noon - 2 p.m. Learn how to create a professional yet creative identity package. |
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