The journey of learning web design can be an exciting and rewarding experience. With the proliferation of technically savvy individuals, more people than ever are looking to develop their coding and design skills to launch successful career paths.
At the outset, aspiring web designers should focus on learning the fundamentals. Software like HTML and CSS (also known as Hypertext Markup Language and Cascading Style Sheets, respectively) form the foundation of all websites. Until a web designer is proficient in these languages, they won’t be able to move onto more creative tasks like graphic design or coding interactive features.
With understanding of the basics, aspiring web designers can begin to apply their creativity. Graphic design, animation, and more traditional web design tasks are now the focus of the website builder. The goal is to move from creating a page of plain code to an aesthetically pleasing page of content.
Interactive elements can also be added to the page, depending on the web designer’s vision. Javascript is the dominant language for such features; web designers can learn JavaScript through tutorials or classes to create slideshows, video players, and other interactive objects.
As a project nears completion, the web designer must go through the additional steps of making sure a website meets industry standards. Browser compatibility, accessibility standards, and other issues must be addressed to ensure the website looks and runs correctly. Testing the website should be done periodically during the development process to spot and fix any issues.
Ultimately, web design courses should cover the full range of concepts from learning to creating. Web design is not a one-time process; continual participation in the web development community is required to stay at the top of the field. By taking a web design course, aspiring web designers will soon have the tools necessary to launch a successful career in the web development world.