Comments on: CSS Web Design Basics

By: Joey

Joey — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 08:54:37 +0000

There is no substitute for a good book. If you are serious about being a good web designer, get this book – it is amazing, it got me up and running in no time. It shows you how to build web sites the way the professionals do it. Can't recommend it enough!

Head First XHTML and CSS (link below)

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/059610197X?ie=UTF8&tag=theseccamtut-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=059610197X

By: jseifert1984

jseifert1984 — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 20:05:45 +0000

The best Hands down would be
http://www.w3schools.com/
I learned my basic skills there before going on to school to get a degree, my first year was so easy because I knew everything from them!!

By: homer742

homer742 — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 20:03:47 +0000

Knowing XHTML and CSS without the fancy editors is a very good thing. Go to W3 online schools to take you to the next level. Yes, Dreamweaver and Front Page do a lot of the dirty work for you, but your knowledge of the code CAN take you to a whole new level beyond that.

Flash is also a cool application that can produce wonderful pages…but it costs. If you are a student (or know one), you can get Studio 8 from Adobe for a couple hundred – which is a heck of a deal.

Remember – content in HTML and presentation in CSS. If you haven't learned that yet, keep going!

By: Mat

Mat — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 10:18:22 +0000

HTML is the basic formatting language, which is used in every website, so you must learn this first. Then, you can learn CSS to learn how to spice up your site and make it look a lot better.

These languages are just for websites and are inputed directly into the code, but then you can learn some real programming languages and start with maybe JavaScript or PHP. JavaScript is a client scripting language and PHP is a server side scripting language. These can be used for different situations and are really helpful in any kind of website.

Hope this helped you =]

P.S. check w3schools.com for more info

By: Alex M

Alex M — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 21:54:34 +0000

For CSS check out the website: http://www.csszengarden.com/
Also, get the associated book, "The Zen of CSS Design": http://www.amazon.com/Zen-CSS-Design-Visual-Enlightenment/dp/0321303474/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1230916174&sr=1-1

I would not spend time learning PHP and ASP.NET pick one technology and stick with one. Server-sde programming depends on your host. If you are doing your own hosting, then you know what you can support.

I would only focus on learning what you need to know for server-side programming. Dataase access, forms authentication, form validation are the most common across any website.

By: Ric

Ric — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 17:42:19 +0000

You specifically said web *design*, so:

1. General design and layout – that means knowing how to use a pencil and paper to draw up a design, indeed.
2. HTML/XHTML
3. CSS/XML/XLST
4. JavaScript

And maybe
5. Server-side scripting (PHP, ASP, Perl – in order of popularity)
6. Database Management (MySQL, SQL, PostGres)

If you're talking about web *development*, then it's a slightly different list:

1. HTML/XHTML
2. XML
3. Server side scripting (PHP, ASP, Perl)
4. Database Management (MySQL, SQL, PostGres)
5. Client side Scripting (JavaScript, or VBScript in a controlled, Internet Explorer-only environment)
6. XSS/XLST
7. Basic layout and design

The difference between a web *designer* and a web *developer* is that – ideally – a web designer should need no knowledge of the intricacies of scripting and programming (or even CSS, for that matter, other than realizing what is and isn't possible).

It's the web *developer's* job to make a design work.

By: ~*Stephanie S

~*Stephanie S — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 10:22:14 +0000

Front side of the business:

Flash
Dreamweaver (frontpage is a breeze)
.net and whatever implementation you're looking for (ASP, VB, C#)
HTML, XML, PHP
ASP is a big riser now, since it can do a whole lot.
Security Techniques! (ftps, https, VHTML etc)
IF you're a aspiring web dev and know good security procedures, then you're golden

Stay as open minded as you can and learn CONCEPTS. Don't get bogged down in specifics, because then you'll get pidgeon-holed and become obsolete. However, if you know basic web design principals its just a matter of symantics and syntax to become a brain-child with a new toy or program.

Also make sure you know scripting (JavaScript, php scripting, CSS…) so you can make stuff look nicer

Backside of the Business:
Database TEchniques.
SQL, MySQL, Oracle, Access, ColdFusionMX

DataMining techniques are a biggie. Server administration; know your way around a MS Exchange server. Know about IIS controls on Servers. Learn about Linux (and why people use linux boxes).. again; its concepts and not details…

By: DrNutrition

DrNutrition — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 01:40:54 +0000

You may be technically competent within a year but you will be a million miles from an expert. Be a little realistic. And you'll need more than Flash and CSS to be an expert. Try SQL, PHP, ASP.net just for starters.

To be a good designer takes years (if you're lucky) of practice and experience. Too many self-taught "web designers" think they're awesome because they make EVERYTHING on their web pages stand out. This is very poor practice. A web designer needs to know how to communicate effectively with graphics. A graphic design course will see to that for you. But don't expect to learn it all in a year.

Everything else you mention can be learned, to a reasonable level, in a year with the right attitude. The O'Reilly books are your best bet for that. Set yourself pretend projects and when you get stuck, refer to the books.

I don't know of any video tutorials. I prefer books – easier to quickly refer to a particular subject with a book.

http://www.w3schools.com is free, but only skims the surface of each language it teaches.

By: R

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 00:32:11 +0000

Make a Webpage:

Full Web Building Tutorials: http://www.w3schools.com/
Beginner's HTML Tutorial: http://www.htmlbasix.com/
How to Create a Webpage: http://www.make-a-web-site.com/
HTML Tutorial: http://www.hypergurl.com/whatishtml.html
So You Want To Set Up Your First Site, Huh?: http://www.htmlgoodies.com/tutorials/getting_started/article.php/3479561
More info: http://www.hypergurl.com/
Web Site Blog: http://www.instant-web-site-tools.com/blog/
http://www.w3schools.com/site/default.asp
How to Start / Create Your Own Website: The Beginner's A-Z Guide: http://www.thesitewizard.com/gettingstarted/startwebsite.shtml
So, you want to make a Web Page!: http://www.pagetutor.com/html_tutor/index.html

http://www.snappages.com

HTHs,

Ron