Learning to code

K

Kev Clarke

Member
Evening all,

If i am thinking about learning to code and get into web design what do you recommend i start with?

I am looking to start with CSS & HTML, i have also been advised to add some JavaScript in as well.

Any advice to point me in the right direction truly appreciated.
 
Here are a tip that every beginner should know in order to learn the basic of coding, I've seen "w3 Schools", It has a proper intro to HTML and CSS to learn code that’s designed in a super cool format.
 
Website design isn’t about code. It’s more about content, imagery, layout, colours, typography, information flows, placement, organisation, calls to action, trust marks and a zillion other things.

The days of building websites by hand have almost gone. There are umpteen different platforms you can use to build a website with thousands of themes, extensions, plugins and scripts you can use to deliver functionality.

If you want to learn how to code as a hobby that’s great, but if you want to make any money you need to learn how to build websites using existing tools.
 
It really depends on exactly what you want to do.

For example, if you want to build sites using Wordpress you only need to practice setting up themes and plugins.

If you want to build sites from scratch then brackets for a Mac or visual studio for a PC is all you need.

There are tons of learning resources, some free some paid that you can use to get to grips with the basics.

As suggested above, get some cheap hosting and play. If you manage nothing more than a single page saying ‘hallo world’ you will have achieved something.

I started out with an HTML for dummies book and build my first site using a very old version of dreamweaver. I then brought a book on CSS and discovered how to structure a webpage. After this came Wordpress and I’ve never looked back. I don’t build websites anymore, I just build themes and plugins. These are a lot more lucrative and a lot less stressful than building websites - mainly because I don't have to deal with clients (who invariably don't have a clue what they want).

As an aside, this is about as simple as it gets:

Code: 
<html>
    <head>
        <title>My First Website</title>
    </head>
    <body>
        <h1>Hallo World</h1>
        <p>This is fun</p>
        <p><a href="https://google.com">Here is a link</a></p>
        <p><src img="https://testblog.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/hattie.jpg" alt="this is a picture"></p>
    </body>
</html>
 
Well, it depends on why you want to get into code. Here the thing if HTML and CSS is where you are going to stop, you can just use a wsywig editor and never have to bother learning it.

If however you want to go further in development and you will have to if you want a career in it as the bottom end of web development (coding ) is falling away due to do-it-yourself platforms. ) you are going to need to start learning more complex dynamic languages if you intend coding as a career and for that, you are going to need fundamentals, whether you go python, ruby PHP java whatever you will need to understand HTML and CSS.

Ironically despite the massive rise in DIY website builders, many people find more need for customization due to personalization happening in marketing right now for users. Maybe they will solve that with a DIY solution in time. For now, we re-write a lot of major plugins codes.

As was correctly pointed out above the look and UX of website is still something incredibly important and something that most business owners who go DIY struggle with and ask an agency to do for them

Heck, its so bad you have agencies advertising Wix design, Squarespace, and Shopify website design as services <<---- these are supposed to be complete DIY platforms.

In case I haven't scared you off, the best way to learn: Learn to set up a localhost, and start writing your own stuff. Use udemy (has some good stuff, spend time on stack overflow) to learn fundamentals and for when you get stuck. ) The fastest way to learn is to plan and code your own project doesn't matter how simple it is. Then scale it up think of what you can add. Its really rewarding.
 
Hi everyone, I’m not sure if this thread is relevant for my question but I saw there were some discussions on what coding and website building is and thought of my friend. He’s getting started on a business and trying to create a B2B and B2C forging website since he loves everything about his craft. I remember he attended an online Bootcamp for HTML and CSS but he said it wasn’t enough and he asked me if I could help him since I have a background in graphic design and little UX/UI.

Just a little bit of him and what he’s trying to do, he actually got started and he used Shopify since it was easier for now to handle and he can just tweak it and migrate as he progresses since he has products already so he needs that website created asap and at the same time he aims caters to the B2B space. He’s been reading on strategies and tips on how to sell on Shopify (I believe he was following this guide) and now he’s getting into the marketing side of things and hiring an SEO expert (not sure if this would be beneficial for us but linking his site here in case) to help him design its content strategy more inclined towards getting traffic and inquiries.

I was wondering if we want to migrate his website out of Shopify, what class or boot camps should he take? I’m trying to help him with the design aspects but in terms of website creation from scratch what class do you think would be be beneficial? What platform not a part of the DIY ones (shopify, wix, squarespace) would be his best bet? Do you guys have any suggestions?
 
ry0ryryry said:
Hi everyone, I’m not sure if this thread is relevant for my question but I saw there were some discussions on what coding and website building is and thought of my friend. He’s getting started on a business and trying to create a B2B and B2C forging website since he loves everything about his craft. I remember he attended an online Bootcamp for HTML and CSS but he said it wasn’t enough and he asked me if I could help him since I have a background in graphic design and little UX/UI.

Just a little bit of him and what he’s trying to do, he actually got started and he used Shopify since it was easier for now to handle and he can just tweak it and migrate as he progresses since he has products already so he needs that website created asap and at the same time he aims caters to the B2B space. He’s been reading on strategies and tips on how to sell on Shopify (I believe he was following this guide) and now he’s getting into the marketing side of things and hiring an SEO expert (not sure if this would be beneficial for us but linking his site here in case) to help him design its content strategy more inclined towards getting traffic and inquiries.

I was wondering if we want to migrate his website out of Shopify, what class or boot camps should he take? I’m trying to help him with the design aspects but in terms of website creation from scratch what class do you think would be be beneficial? What platform not a part of the DIY ones (shopify, wix, squarespace) would be his best bet? Do you guys have any suggestions?
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I can't give a very biased opinion on this as I really dislike Shopify and the likes. So take what I say with a pinch of salt, but for me WordPress stores that we design, and we have over a 100 under our belt most of which focus on our local region and national outperform Shopify, we don't have Squarespace here. I know WordPress has a bad rep and WordPress can get really ugly if you don't know what you are doing. But it's a great in-between DIY and completely design your own website space if done properly It can be very powerful. Much more cost-effective also. Very well supported.
 
What a useful topic! I'm thinking about learning to code. Having surfed web design and development blogs, I found out about Codecademy and Udemy, I guess, everyone heard about them. Also, it turned out that several years ago there was a free Harvard introduction to Computer Science online course. Does anyone know about them? Are they still available? What courses would you choose?
 
Last edited by a moderator:
New Perspective Studio said:
I can't give a very biased opinion on this as I really dislike Shopify and the likes. So take what I say with a pinch of salt, but for me WordPress stores that we design, and we have over a 100 under our belt most of which focus on our local region and national outperform Shopify, we don't have Squarespace here. I know WordPress has a bad rep and WordPress can get really ugly if you don't know what you are doing. But it's a great in-between DIY and completely design your own website space if done properly It can be very powerful. Much more cost-effective also. Very well supported.
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I'm on the same page!

I think Shopify is like the Klaviyo of email or the Canva of designing. Btw. I'm not saying these tools are bad, I'm just putting myself in the perspective of someone who wants to explore or harness their creativity and knowledge. Cause a lot of people are actually using these tools as leverage, take a look at this klaviyo agency (this is just for reference - feel free to remove if not allowed), or individual contractors who highlight Canva as their skill. It's not an easy feat to master all these tools. So kudos to these people!

The thing is it's a plug-and-play kind of thing that makes you not stand out among the rest. It limits your capacity to create a compelling design or learn about coding in general.
 
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