Generally, web development is working on the website’s technical aspects. A web designer is the person that is in charge of the visual layout and design of the site, taking that vision and design from a static design into a completely working site, which is online and available to the world. It is important to emphasize that lots of web designers are also developers building websites that they design. Furthermore, occasionally, self-identified web designers are also going to offer design services. This is not a must, but is very common.
How will you know if the web design career is right for you? What qualities and skills are necessary in building a successful career as a web designer? A great starting point is to have a strong interest in computers – the web and the internet, and even if you have not learned to program yet. You will also need a strong measurement of patience, as well as have an inquisitive mind. Even though it is not important, if you have an eye for what looks good on the web, it is sure to stand you in good stead as well.
Useful learning resources
In terms of skills, a good place to begin is with learning CSS and HTML. It is the basic building blocks of pages on the web. Even though the “What You See Is What You Get” or WYSIWYG programs will make it possible for the web designers in order to bypass the necessity in learning these core skills, most of the web designers would be expected to be able to code through just a simple text editor. Another well worth mastering language is JavaScript. It is not just useful for adding functionality to the web pages, but it will also be able to be used in applications beyond the web.
Ajax will also be able to complement your CSS and HTML skills, and there are many different programming languages, from ASP to Perl, which can be effective and great additions to your web designer toolkit. To develop your understanding about web standards and about how various browsers could render pages in different ways, is another element that can help you troubleshoot sites more effectively.
Here is a list for some of the most useful websites where you can learn various programing languages:
CodeCademy (FREE)
W3 Schools (FREE)
Tuts+ (Payed, offer a 10 trial)
CSS Tricks (FREE)
There are a number online tutorials available out there this is just a tip of the iceberg and once you go into HTML and more programing languages you will find more and more resources online.
As a web designer, it is going to be useful keeping an eye on several other technologies, which rises in popularity. Multimedia content is being used increasingly on all types of sites, so to understand something the technology behind this can be useful. Furthermore, the use of tablet and mobile web computing has been exploding. There are more and more companies, which would want to make sure their website content, will show properly on these new platforms, and have a necessity in developing specialist applications for new devices.
Other than the technical knowledge, having proper soft skills will be able to make the difference, which will transform you from being just a geek to offering a valuable service. To be able to explain technical issues into a non-technical audience needs to be near the top of the list, as have listening skills in order to understand the needs of your clients, and the capability of working with others, such as other designers, developers, and account managers.
Use a proper text editor when going into programing
When starting to program make sure to use a proper text editor when you write. These are some of the most popular:
Notepad++ (Windows)
Sublime Text (Windows, OS X, and Linux)
Atom (Windows, OS X, and Linux)
Emacs (Windows, OS X, and Linux)
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