19 replies to this topic

[unnati]

Hi everyone,
It seems that all of you are masters in web designing techniques over here. M interested in designing a lot. But i am not at all aware about the basics of it. Will it be profitable to join some institute or something..?? Or i should start learning on my own through surfing..?? M confused.. where to start and how to start

Edited by unnati, 17 December 2008 - 04:25 AM.

[lolzaka]

Hmm, I would start with learning [X]HTML or/and CSS.

Try to look up tutorials on pixel2life or other sites

It will take some time, but when u understand it, its easy

Regards.

[derek.sullivan]

If you go to an institute, you may find yourself FAR behind in the class, NOW I know of community colleges that have web design classes (maybe that is what you are talking about), but I found the best way to learn is through experience + reading books/tutorials... http://www.w3schools.com is the place to check out if your a beginner, search around in the HTML, CSS areas of that website, then once you become a novice in web-design, come here more often and read some tutorials and start learning some programming languages such as javascript, php etc etc.. You can do anything you set your mind too. I started off using angelfire web hosting lol could barely get anything to work right, now I'm programming PHP and still learning stuff, just took time and patience. Never give up.

[unnati]

lolzaka, on Dec 17 2008, 01:36 PM, said:

Hmm, I would start with learning [X]HTML or/and CSS.

Try to look up tutorials on pixel2life or other sites

It will take some time, but when u understand it, its easy

Regards.

Thanks a lot. .. I'll go through it .... and will get back for further queries....

[unnati]

bigdfbc2008, on Dec 17 2008, 03:10 PM, said:

If you go to an institute, you may find yourself FAR behind in the class, NOW I know of community colleges that have web design classes (maybe that is what you are talking about), but I found the best way to learn is through experience + reading books/tutorials... http://www.w3schools.com is the place to check out if your a beginner, search around in the HTML, CSS areas of that website, then once you become a novice in web-design, come here more often and read some tutorials and start learning some programming languages such as javascript, php etc etc.. You can do anything you set your mind too. I started off using angelfire web hosting lol could barely get anything to work right, now I'm programming PHP and still learning stuff, just took time and patience. Never give up.

Thanks for your support.. .. I have started going through w3schools already.. As per your say i shouldn't join the institute.. Well even I think i will be the most dumbest in the students.. But what about other languages.. Can't i learn those over institutes.. As i think I am not a self learner..M not going to give up in any way.. but still languages.. and i heard that its very difficult to learn flash and some other things in it.. so what about them???

[rc69]

If you want to learn actual programming languages, i would recommend starting with PHP. It is very easy to work with and interpreted, so it's not as strict as most compiled languages. You can also embed it into HTML, which gives you added incentive to learn it over a compiled language.

If you're interested, you can read the following topic for some random information:
http://www.pixel2lif...showtopic=17298

[SatanicPenguins]

I'll have to agree with rc on the PHP. From there maybe head on to C, Really depends on what you plan on doing though.

[Modmedia]

I taught myself really. It's better to experiment yourself, try - then fail. Try, then fail again. Try once more, and get it nearly right... Ah the joys!

[harry819]

To be webdesigner first of all you have to learn html and css.
this is the basic of webdesigning.
Practice is the one thing which you have to do. Because practce make a man perfect so that do paractice to be perfect in webdesigning.

[derek.sullivan]

Practice does not make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect.

[rc69]

But practice does make perfect. Without practice, you can never fail. Without failure, you can't learn what you did wrong. Without learning what you did wrong, you can't learn how to do what you originally failed to do, correctly. Therefore, if you "practice perfectly" you will never actually learn anything. Instead, you will just continue to work under the assumption that what you do is perfect and can never be done better.

Advertisement: For further information on the attainment of perfection, take a class in ancient greek philosophy!

Edited by rc69, 21 February 2009 - 07:17 PM.

[derek.sullivan]

You learn something, how not to practice bad, and how to win without flaw.

[Mabrouk]

Just be creative and try to do something different dont just copy anyone. If you have a idea work towards it even if you dont get success instantly. You need to have patience for long term benifits.

[Marc]

I think what path you take also depends on what your ultimate goal in web design would be. Is it something you just want to do for fun and some freelance, or are you looking to get a full-time job?

If you're looking to work for a company, they might be more stict about requiring a degree. I was a Multimedia major in college and got my degree that way which has led me to my jobs working for larger companies so that is at least where I'm coming from. However, that also depends on the company since I've worked with guys who were just really skilled and it didn't matter that they didn't have a formal degree.

I will say that even though I got my basic knowledge from school, I really didn't "learn" everything I do now until I was actually in the work place. I guess what the real benefit of going to a university or institute is that they can give you a good base understanding of techniques and can teach you more about things like audience analysis and the more abstract concepts that are harder to learn on your own. But the real bulk of what you do on a day to day basis comes from your own learning and job experience.

Edited by Marc, 30 April 2009 - 01:56 PM.

[Evans Davis]

Well there are Lots Of Good Tutorials are Present on Internet,I have Learned a Lot From This Tutorials Try This Hope It'll definately Helpful For You also.

[thedanphillips]

bigdfbc2008, on Dec 17 2008, 01:10 PM, said:

If you go to an institute, you may find yourself FAR behind in the class, NOW I know of community colleges that have web design classes (maybe that is what you are talking about), but I found the best way to learn is through experience + reading books/tutorials... http://www.w3schools.com is the place to check out if your a beginner, search around in the HTML, CSS areas of that website, then once you become a novice in web-design, come here more often and read some tutorials and start learning some programming languages such as javascript, php etc etc.. You can do anything you set your mind too. I started off using angelfire web hosting lol could barely get anything to work right, now I'm programming PHP and still learning stuff, just took time and patience. Never give up.

Very inspirational

Yes, the best way to learn is from your own experience. DO NOT BE AFRAID TO MESS UP. You will. Always backup your files before making any changes, and don't be afraid to try something you're not familiar with. This is how you learn, just play with settings in CSS and position elements differently in your HTML and you'll find tons of different things you can do with clever html placement and css properties.

I've been designing for about 4 years now and I love just messing around in photoshop then seeing how I can lay out my psd mockup into html/css

[Garry]

The best way is to start as a trainee and also join some good Institute. Sure the timings would be hectic but it would make the person 'complete' in imparting training and the actual on the job output and experience.
Many times what people learn in institutes is quite different from the job perspectives and even client expectations. How would a person provide the best can only be learnt while working.

[davidjoshua11]

Well, I think you can do anything you set your mind too. I started off using angelfire web hosting could barely get anything to work right, now I'm programming PHP and still learning stuff, just took time and patience to designing some website like that.

Edited by rc69, 21 February 2010 - 10:26 PM.

[MarkupMatt]

Best thing to do is start slow. Pick the part of web development that best suits you and become an expert on that first, then move on to learning something else. Web development/design is really broken down into three parts: design, front-end and back-end. All three of these tie together to make a fully functioning, dynamic website.

The Basics:
Learn (X)HTML and CSS, these are the foundation of your website. After you've got a grasp on those, start learning JavaScript. There are some great libraries out there for JavaScript that allow you to do more without writing a lot of code (and are much easier to learn). If you are interested in learning JavaScript start with the basics, then move on to learning a library such as jQuery, MooTools, or script.aculo.us.

Design:
This is geared more towards creating graphical layouts via programs like Photoshop, Fireworks or even Gimp. I would start out with this if you have an artistic mind. Even if not, you'll still be able to practice the concept of making a layout. While it is possible to create a layout with purely XHTML and CSS, it's not going to be the prettiest thing in the world. That's why getting a concept of design is imperative. Once you've gotten used to making layouts, now it's time to move them to the web.

Front-End Development:
This is where you actually make your layout functional by using (X)HTML, CSS and JavaScript. You want your visitors to be impressed by your site, whether it be visually or functionally. This is where the role of a front-end developer comes in, it's their job to make the website functional for the user regardless of the situation. Start learning (X)HTML and CSS side-by-side with design. This will allow you to understand how you're going to transfer your layout to (X)HTML markup by slicing your layout and scripting it into an .html file.

Back-End Development:
This is where the "magic" happens. Back-end (which refers to retrieving data from databases or information passed through the server) is used to create dynamic websites that change as information is added or deleted. Some common back-end applications are forums, social networking, content managements systems or even games. This is achieved with the use of server-side programming languages such as PHP, Ruby and ASP. Like JavaScript many server-side languages have their own frameworks that allow agile development of web pages. For example, PHP has CodeIgniter and CakePHP, Ruby has Ruby on Rails and so on. Like I said before, always learn the basics then move on to a framework or library.


Pick the field you like the best. Even though they all tie together as one, become an expert on one first then move on to learning the basics of another. Learn (X)HTML and CSS first, then design and front-end development together. You can create a functional website without any back-end programming, so save that for last. Pixel2Life is a great resource for tutorials on pretty much anything. Another great place to go is W3Schools, they teach you the basics of almost all server-side scripting and programming languages.

I wouldn't recommend going to an institute unless they have good programs. Most institutes only focus on a certain set of languages, so if they don't offer a language you want to learn, you're out of luck. The method that worked for me is by looking at examples. Break down each part of it and understand what it does. Pair that with tutorials and general learning guides and you'll be developing a website in no time!

[JemsRoker]

Your Website's success depends on your willingness to add new updates, delete old news, find helpful resources for your visitors, deliver what you've promised, and provide a useful and informative contribution to the World Wide Web. The Internet is an ever changing market. To stay on top, you must stay informed. Within this site, you'll find many useful resources to help you keep informed about Internet changes and news. Web design uses all the same elements as print design. You need to explore the space and layout, handle fonts and colors, and put it all together in a format that puts your message across. Color is everywhere. It's how we dress up our world and how we see things. Color has meaning beyond just "red" or "blue" and color is an important design element. These color resources teach how to use color effectively in Web design. Free Web templates can be complex and fully fleshed out or they can be bare bones.