Learning web design

[Will.]

I suck at it but I really want to be good at it. Or at least give it a better shot this time.

Where do you guys recommend learning from? Any cool tutorials you guys have seen or watched?

I can do basic HTML stuff using notepad etc.

What software should I be using? I have dreamweaver on my windows laptop and iWeb on my macbook.

I will have lots of time on my hands until I can find a full time job.

 

[Jon.G]

Dreamweaver is fine, W3S is the best place to read up on things.

http://www.w3schools.com/

Typically what I use to do is just Google what ever I wanted to do and then Google would find me good examples and basically develop an idea from there. If you need a hand with anything in particular give me a shout, I've just graduated from Web development and currently working freelance.

 

[Sparky]

Mate, Try to use notepad or on a mac it is worth buying (or illegally obtaining if you are morally unacceptable) to hard code. Start with Div's & CSS once you have mastered them the rest is basics

 

[Jon.G]

Dreamweaver just cuts to the point if you know exactly what your doing. Possibly if your starting out it could be confusing because of all the s**t DW tries to add in when using in built tools.

As said, hand coding is the only way forward. Make sure you do valid mark-up too, gets on my tits when pages are not validated via W3C.

 

[theduck]

Notepad2 ftw!

Also w3s is very good.

 

[Adam.]

Dreamwaver is a pita.

w3schools and learn the basics first.

 

[Will.]

Cheers guys.


I've decided to do it on my macbook. I've downloaded a program that is essentially a notepad. Got the basics so far (setting text size, colour (spelling it color pisses me off), bold etc).

Next is layout. This is the bit that always boggles my mind. Getting something to appear to the right of the screen after something else. Hard to explain as I don't have an example of what I want at the moment, but in the past its always confused me.

 

[Jon.G]

You mean color?

Look into CSS. Then DIV's and then Float positioning.

 

[Krispwee]

Once you get used to it it really is easy. I find it a lot better to design the core page design in Photoshop first then transfer that to DW / Notepad. As Jon.G says learn CSS as well, will make a massive difference on how professional a site can look. Then PHP/MySQL

 

[Sparky]

Quick Guide On CSS.
<div id="demo1"></div>
<div class="demo2"></div>

So CSS uses # for id (unique ones)
#demo1 {
width:80px;
}
and uses . for classes (which may be reproduced on the same page hundreds of times or just more than once)
.demo2 {
position:fixed;
left:20px;
top:200px;
}

Once you can put mentally everything into boxes and manipulate the div it is alot easier

 

[Scrooge]

^that confuses the hell outta me.:dapprove:

 

[Sparky]

^that confuses the hell outta me.:dapprove:

Divs are used in your html file (the webpage)
You then link a Cascading Style Sheet to the document so it knows how to style it.
each CSS instruction goes:
#or. name {
instruction:;
instruction:;
}

 

[Scrooge]

I think i'll start looking at the bare basics lol But from that I kind of think its like 'Simon says'.

 

[Sparky]

You need to learn to write in divs and css there are lots of guides, search html div and css. the div is the website and the css is what it looks like - tables are no use nowadays

 

[Will.]

I remember learning something about divs in college. Sort of rings a bell but never got the hang of it.

 

[Krispwee]

I must say I have never really used anything other than tables and as I'm bored today I have had a look at a few div tutorials and my word it makes things a lot easier to work with.

Edit: I would recommend using something other than Notepad to do it with though, preferably something that has a live view and different colouring for the code.

 

[Jon.G]

I must say I have never really used anything other than tables and as I'm bored today I have had a look at a few div tutorials and my word it makes things a lot easier to work with.

I'm going to cry.

 

[jon_r]

You need to learn to write in divs and css there are lots of guides, search html div and css. the div is the website and the css is what it looks like - tables are no use nowadays

That statement is somewhat incorrect. Tables are essential when developing HTML emails that WILL form part of most web designers work schedule.

Sure, learn divs and css - specifically start looking at css 3 and it's uses, but unless you want to be a hardcore front end dev then purely a knowledge of how it works is sufficient.

You'll find that most digital studios will have designers, front end dev's and then the geeks. It pays to know a little of each, but unless you're going to be a freelance one man band then i'd focus my energies on one skill.

 

[Mitchell]

That statement is somewhat incorrect. Tables are essential when developing HTML emails that WILL form part of most web designers work schedule.

Sure, learn divs and css - specifically start looking at css 3 and it's uses, but unless you want to be a hardcore front end dev then purely a knowledge of how it works is sufficient.

You'll find that most digital studios will have designers, front end dev's and then the geeks. It pays to know a little of each, but unless you're going to be a freelance one man band then i'd focus my energies on one skill.

This, but tables should never be used for layout, as this is not what they were made for.

When you say web design, there are so many elements to it - design concepts, mockups, implementation of the design into a CMS or coding, developing the site. Which bit are you aiming to get into?

I use Dreamweaver at work but seeing as i never venture into design mode or use it for anything except coding / FTPing, i feel it is very bloated and I swear the stability of it is getting worse, version by version. CS5 is constantly crashing on me. At home I use Coda, which does exactly what I need it to. It also has a lot of features that Dreamweaver has, but it is a lot less bloated and nicer to work with in my opinion.

I teach myself exactly how Jon.G said - Do what I can, Google any bits I get stuck on or need a hand with, find tutorials, forums and examples etc, then develop from there.

W3S has been found to be incorrect in many places, so i wouldn't solely rely on that for your learning it from scratch, just a heads up.

the videos over on css-tricks.com have been invaluable to me (and the website as a whole tbh!) - http://css-tricks.com/video-screencasts/100-lets-write-semantic-markup/ watch that for a starter in HTML5 and it should put you on the right tracks (I think!).

^
Thats a lot or ramble tbf, if you got any questions fire them in here, there are plenty of web designers like me on here who will give you a hand, I'm sure.

 

[jon_r]

Tables are the future

 

[Sam]

HTML 5 is the future.

 

[Adam.]

HTML 5 is the future.

AWW YEAH

http://adam-ftw.co.uk/

 

[Jon.G]

AWW YEAH

http://adam-ftw.co.uk/

<3

 

[Danny Lee]

AWW YEAH

http://adam-ftw.co.uk/

quite mesmerizing