I want to be a professional web developer, please help

by 83 replies
92
I don't know anything about developing a website and i have a strong passion for it. Please help me on what to do. How to do it. Is it possible through self-education. Please tell me everything i need to know. I want to know how to get my hands dirty. To know how to code is what i want. And to be
professional in it. Thanks
#programming #developer #professional #web
  • I would suggest you just start typing things into Google like 'How to make a website' and 'HTML for beginners,' etc.

    It is very much self-teachable, as that is how I got started. There are literally thousands of tutorials and guides on how to set up the most basic of sites.

    Go through the tutorials at w3schools and also codecademy.com.

    Just keep Googling and reading articles. Reading and research is how you teach yourself!
    • [1] reply
    • Thanks.... I have been doing that for more than two months but I haven't found a way
  • What exactly are your questions about site building? Design? The code itself? Elaborate some more!

    My best suggestion would be to go to one of these 'free template' sites, download a template, and play around with it. Change numbers, change different text. Save after EACH change, and go refresh your page, what did it do?

    Or, you could set up a normal 'skeleton' HTML document, and just add one element at a time. Play with div tags inside the body for example. Nest them, nest them, then nest some more and throw some text in the middle, or an image. Notice what each change does.

    The only way you can learn is by continuous researching and, probably more so, by doing. Two months to master a skill is ambitious, but not likely.

    Good luck!
    • [1] reply
    • The code itself... I want to know how to get my hands dirty. to know how to code is what i want. And to be professional in it. Thanks sir
      • [1] reply
  • Start Googling and teach yourself. There are probably a lot of courses you can take too.
  • [DELETED]
  • I would say forget about the frameworks and all that for now and focus on actually understanding the language itself.

    If you have absolutely no clue where to get started:

    HTML5 Introduction

    CSS3 Introduction

    These pages should explain what you need to build a basic skeleton template that you can then use on your next projects.

    You can find skeleton templates online too, but I believe it's best to build your own because you will learn a ton of stuff this way!
  • Thanks to you all
  • The HTML websites are a great place to start. Also play around with making WordPress sites until you can get some good progress going.
  • [DELETED]
  • I don't know how the rest started but I started by learning in these steps:
    1. HTML (Use daily)
    2. CSS (Use daily
    3. Javascript (depends on project)
    4. ASP / MS SQL (in college - I don't use either anymore)
    5. Coldfusion (don't use it anymore)
    6. PHP Web Programming (Use daily)
    7. MySQL Database w PHPMyAdmin (Use daily)
  • Start by taking a professional course that will teach you the basics and most importantly, how to think as a programmer.
  • Banned
    Free Courses which are good: https://www.codecademy.com/
    • [1] reply
    • This in my opinion is the best way to get started. I'm completely self taught and this is the resource which started my learning. Its really fun too, its fully interactive so you learn by doing! Give this a try OP, trust me.
  • Start with udemy website. It is a great website to learn anything, millions of high quality of courses are available there (free and paid).
  • You want to be a Web Developer? Here are some things that I you should know

    There are 2 types of Developers:
    -- Front-End Developer
    -- Back-End Developer

    Front-End Developer
    This guy designs the look and feel of a website. Such as designing navigation bar, side bars, footer, header etc. For this, you need to learn Html, CSS and Javascript.

    Back-End Developer
    This guy deals with all the programming stuff. Such as connecting to the database, fetching data and handling all the user inputs etc.For this, you need to learn PHP, Javscript, Ruby, ASP etc.

    Just like people are saying above, Google is your best friend. Use it and it will help you all the time and will teach you everything.

    For more help, you can ask me too
    • [1] reply
    • Possible to learn both sir?
      • [2] replies
  • I am learning myself.

    it is definitely self teachable.

    I am basically creating my own website myself, learning everything from scratch as I build it.

    At the end it will feel great that I've done it all myself, plus I'll have a very handy skillset that I can make some money off.

    I wish you luck.
  • hey
    See developing a website is not that difficult. now there are many tools that help you developing your website according to your design. word press is one of them. and if you want to learn coding than its a long run way. for that you have to learn html, css, php, java-script, j query etc. you can use w3schools.com for learning these concepts. all the best.
  • Your learning adventure should include a lot of time on youtube. Lots of good stuff there for learning how to build websites.
    • [1] reply
    • A great place to start is code academy there you can find many tutorials in HTML and CSS, i think Javascript also. You can't go wrong on this site. Just google code academy. Good Luck.
  • Good tips here...start with HTML5/CSS3 and how to build responsive sites from hand without frameworks. Then you can move onto using frameworks/grid based systems and the last big step is learning server side programming. (C#, PHP, Ruby, Java, Python, etc)

    I think to be a good Web developer you want front end and back end skills and everything in between. A jack of all trades...
  • [DELETED]
  • I think that buying books or finding online tutorials is a good beginning. You can start with something like this:

    Furthermore, after start learning the basics, in case you want to setup a development environment on your computer so as to start building your own website you can do so by following this: .. Secondly, if you need a good code/text editor, you can choose a free one like this:

    Good luck!
    • [ 2 ] Thanks
  • I learned the basics of front end, mainly back end web dev during a computer science degree. I'm pretty crap at front end design! But we can't all be one man bands.
    Anyway, my point is I learned from textbooks, there's a lot of great material out there. Why not contact your local university and ask what textbooks are required for their software development course?
    I would make recommendations but I last touched a textbook about 6 years ago and things move so fast these days I'm sure my recommendations would be obsolete.
  • word-press and repisite are the sites that provide you direct platform to build your website without any technical knowledge.
    moreover you can learn php, css and html to build simple websites. and java script and jquery are used to
    make you website appearance more advance
  • you can search in youtube. Youtube have so many good web development vedio tutorial. I also learn in here. youtube is best source for beginner.
  • [DELETED]
  • start with this course https://www.udemy.com/complete-web-developer-course/ definitely you will become a professional web developer
  • [DELETED]
  • First of all You have to know about HTML, CSS. Then you can learn JAVASCRIPT for creating a website. Then you should have to know other programing language like PHP. You will also know about web platform like WordPress.
    Note: HTML, CSS, JAVASCRIPT are the basic and foremost.
    You can learn these by searching Google and youtube. there have alot of free tutorials about it.
    Thanks
  • Banned
    [DELETED]
  • You should start from HTML, CSS, PHP, and JAVA etc. programming languages from a good computer learning center situated in your location.
  • Banned
    [DELETED]
  • It was in my case.

    But I already started in 1999 so I've been learning new technologies and standards as they were being released.

    I code "by hand". All I need is a simple text editor. But in the beginnings I used a WYSIWYG program. Every step I took with the program then I looked at the source code to see what changed. That's how I started to learn HTML and CSS. Then I started with basic JS, then server side scripting...

    You have it easier today. There was not YouTube back then. And the amount of resources you can access is amazing. And the tools. Amazing tools. And you don't have to learn Flash! Not that I was of much use in my career but I needed the basic skills anyway.

    Reading is good, I also recommend you to get some books (about HTML and CSS first), but I'm with jaywilsonjr and the best you can do at the very least is to find someone that can give you a hand in person. A friend, a course, whatever. It'll be faster and more enjoyable.

    PS: if you are serious about learning, don't forget this name: StackOverflow.
  • Start learning coding from any school or college, and just slowly and steadily keep going, and also do practice by searching different codes and projects online and hope you will learn things quickly.
  • any developer can join me on facebook page for programming help.
    https://www.facebook.com/The-Master-...1783/timeline/
  • You should use "w3schools"
  • I started with web coding when I was 14 ... I never hit anykind of bootcamp or coding school. I think learning by doing is the best. Start with YouTube and watch basic HTML-CSS tutorials. Start to create your first site. Create more websites (just for fun) and try from site to site to improve the quality and the functions.

    Learning to coding is something that takes a long time. You will atleast need 6 months (if you start from zero) to become a experienced web developer.
  • [DELETED]
  • For best result, use codeacademy.org

    You will love it.
  • If you want to be a good developer then you need to learn a lot like php, java, ajax, jQuery, Mysquel, HTML and many more. And therefore I will suggest you to follow w3school.
  • [DELETED]
  • You can learn
    + Frontend Developer : HTML 5 , CSS3 Javascript, Jquery, Reponsive , PSD -> HTML, Angular JS,
    Node JS ...
    + Backend : PHP, Framework, Database, Bigdata ....
    + List web :
    - Mega site of Bible Information
    - Udemy
    - Codeschool.com
    - Treehouse
    + You can put answer in Stackoverflow.com
  • There are many ways you can opt to become a website developer. First of all you need to know if you are really interested. In programming field, you have to build your logic.

    Join a company who gives you professional training (paid training) and give you job in the same company. That is the best way to achieve your objective.
  • It's an old thread, but I'm willing to express my thoughts.
    First, you have to learn HTML and CSS.
    After that decide what you want to do. If you enjoy fixing WP issues, customazing themes, learn Wordpress. If you want to maintain other websites, learn PHP, CSS.
    Anyway, you have to be skilled in HTML, CSS, PHP, JavaScript, Wordpress.
    • [1] reply
    • If you're interested in learning how to code all by yourself, first choose what language YOU personally like the best. Then download example projects and study those.Visit planetsourcecode.com once you finish deciding what programming language you want to do.
  • [DELETED]
  • [DELETED]
  • Banned
    [DELETED]
  • [DELETED]
  • I know how study it, because i have wordpress plugins on wordpress.org/plugins.

    You need learn for start is html+css. After this you need learn php+mysql+javascript..After this you need learn how to manage linux vps servers.

    And you need for this is 2-5 year time.
  • [DELETED]
  • Yes, It is possible to learn from online portals,you can easily learn HTML,CSS5 and PHP from there.
  • You could lookup udemy, there a few good tutorial on programming. It won't cost you much though.
  • Do you want to be a web developer or a web designer? Of course you can be both (which is great), but you also need specialization in individual aspects. At its most basic, you'll need

    1. HTML
    2. CSS
    3. JavaScript
    to start off in web development.

    And yes, it is entirely possible through self-education. There are thousands of resources that you can find online that will kick off you learning, and then there are more detailed ones to increase your levels. You can find blogs and forums with all kinds of discussions. I'll add some links towards the end.

    To follow as a web designer, you'll need to learn Photoshop or any other raster graphic software. Even a freeware would do. You can also try for SVG later on.

    As a web developer, you'll need knowledge of back-end languages like PHP, Python or Node.js.

    If, by this time, you are truly a master of JavaScript, I'd suggest you try Node.js. It is JavaScript based, very powerful and has a fast development framework for websites and web applications. And despite the popularity of PHP, Node.js will be enough to fulfil all your needs. You can find an excellent comparison of their performance on this link
    Node.js Vs PHP | Performance Comparison - Node js or PHP

    I wish you luck for your web development career.
  • Yes you can learn by self taught.

    Start by reading programming book sin your local library. If the resource is not available, you can always download ebook.
    View programming tutorials from youtube.
    Sign up for an programming course.
    And most of all, practise coding yourself.

    Learn HTML, CSS, php, database, OOP languages like Java and C, Operating systems like Linux and WIndows, frameworks like Code Igniter, cms like Wordpress
  • It's great you have a strong passion for something you know nothing about, just start learning HTML and practice, follow tutorials, through practical experience you will learn!
  • Banned
    [DELETED]
  • Start with Html/css and to learn html/css W3School is best source of learning. Then Wordpress is much easy.
  • Banned
    [DELETED]
  • Also do not discount coding meetups in your area. They are a good source of contacts, networking and perhaps they will discuss stuff you are interested in. Some companies are now doing code tutoring too.
  • There is lot of stuff over the internet. You can check youtube videos for learning coding. But what should be learnt first.. you should learn html/css first. The best place for it is W3school. Convert few psds into html/css. Then learn php and other stuff.

    Best of luck bro..
  • [DELETED]
  • The best way to learn web development is to start from scratch. Learn html and css first and design a simple website. After that, study php and database. Create a simple CRUD function. Learn OOP using Java and C. Then do real programming projects.
  • If you want to be a programmer, you can learn to code from the codeacedemy site, they will teach you how to code. You need to learn HTML and CSS to create the design of the User Interface. Both of these languages are compulsory for programmers, after this you need to learn PHP, JAVA or .Net to create the functionality of the system. You can learn these languages from udemy, lynda or w3school websites.
  • Check out Learn Python

    1. Use your current computer. It doesn't matter if you have Linux, OSX, or Windows. What matters is that, right now, you want to learn to code, so you should go learn to code, not learn to setup a new OS.

    2. Just use gedit. Don't use vim, vi, emacs, or any "hardcore" editor. On a Mac if you're using a non-English keyboard, use Textwrangler. Learning a new editor is not learning to code.

    3. Start now, do what I tell you in the book. Type code in, do not copy-paste, make it run, fix it until it does, do the extra credit, then go on to the next one.

    4. Other programmers will tell you to use their favorite tools, just ignore them. Just use gedit, Terminal (cmd on Windows), and python. That is all. Nothing else. Everything else is a distraction.

    5. Finally, do it every night, for 2 hours a night, and take a break on one day. You'll be surprised how quick you can get through the book, and you'll get stuck sometimes, but keep doing it.
    • [ 1 ] Thanks
  • I was in your shoes 11 months ago, so let me give you some real-world advice. If you have a friend that knows any language (Python, Ruby, PHP, etc) start there. They will be there when you have questions, and having a person to turn to is the most important thing. However lets say you don't have a friend to turn to- start wit h Python.
  • I think it best to learn how to code by working on an actual project. You seem to already have a project in mind, and I think that would be a fine project.

    Break it up into steps. First write a program that opens a file, reads the book titles and displays them on the terminal. Then write a program that makes some sort of network connection; maybe download the HTML contents of a website. Etc., etc., until you've learned how to do the various subtasks involved with your project, and then assemble it all together.
  • Agreed. I'm self-taught and have been working in the industry for 12 years now. The way I got started was that I had a project I needed to do, so I figured out what I needed to know to get it done. The same is true with my iPhone app -- I knew nothing about Objective-C when I started it, and it's 3 years old now. Learning for the sake of learning is fine, but learning how to build something you want to build and really seeing it come to life is a pretty phenomenal way to learn.
  • I also agree. I tried reading a book on Objective-C, read the first two chapters, and ditched it for the iPhone SDK. I messed around, and tried making some ideas come to life. It took me a couple months, but eventually I was fluent in Objective-C.
  • As the OP hasn't been on this forum for over 6 months I think you are wasting your valuable time giving him any advice.
  • From experience, I'd definitely second the 'actual project' part, particularly around breaking it down/picking the right level of project. Ideally you want something that you can pull off in a day or two, then apply what you've learned to the next project, or extend your first project so that it does more.
  • FWIW, I think that is subjective. Some people learn better that way, but I don't think it's a universal truth. People are individuals when it comes to learning.
  • I am in the process of doing exactly this.

    If your ventures are web apps, my recommendation would be to learn Ruby on Rails. You will be able to build demo apps within a few months of 8-10 hours per week.
  • You need to take a bottom up approach. Fill your time studying the very basics (i.e., programming languages, components, specifications, history, etc.). Online video lectures [beginning with] Programming Languages was where I ended up learning the greatest amount in the first weeks.
  • Python should be a reasonable first language but you might have need for others later. Use a simpler editor at first so you can concentrate on coding, not working the editor itself. The editor should be able to show line numbers so when your program reports errors on a line number you can find it. Syntax highlighting is a plus. Code most everyday (take some breaks) but please think your problem through before committing to a solution! Be sure to read code from others to pick up tips/style. Work through some books or something.
  • [DELETED]
  • Look for a mentor who is already working on a real-world project. The problem with learning things on your own is that the examples from which you are self-learning are (by design) too simple and often unrelated to a result that you want.
  • Everything can be self taught, if you truly are passionate find tutorials on youtube and read books. you'll learn in know time with a bit of dedication.
  • Download a free css/php template, and use something like dreamweaver to start editing it, start making websites. This is the best way to learn. You will not be ready to get a job until you can work without the GUI interface and just work on the code directly, but you can defiantly learn how to do that in dreamweaver.

    I have found most programming jobs require you specialize in one language, and usually ask you to do some sort of mysql etc in whatever that language as a test at interviews. I don't like working on in only one language, I prefer to work in many at the same time, so I lost interest in working for other people.
  • Use codeacademy and w3 schools both have an interactive design feature so you can see the product of your work instantly after learning certain ideas and features of coding
  • The great thing about a mentor is that they (should) will have a real life problem for you to solve and they can help you work through some of the subtleties of the problem.
  • I used to think that anyone can learn to code (this was when I was 18). I find, now, that there are people that are more naturally inclined to it and some people that will never be able to, because their brains don't work that way. I would gently encourage you to be open to discovering where you lie on that spectrum and not to be too disappointed if you've tried but still find yourself swimming in molasses.
  • The best advice I can give you is to write as much as you can before you start coding. Putting a program or app together is 60% critical thinking, 20% writing, and 20% error management. If you've already got some ideas, try to break them down as much as possible.
  • ++ to keeping a journal. It keeps you in check, because even though you say will will devote so much time a week to it, you won't. I had to start setting personal goals on a daily basis. That drive alone is helping. Keeping a blog is great for peer support too. I don't get many comments on mine, but it definitely feels good when someone stops by to say, "Hey, this is cool stuff."
  • I'm new to coding as well, but so far what I've gathered is that WHAT language you learn is less important than actually sitting down and getting dirty with code.

    When I was trying to decide what to learn I narrowed the search down by just heading to the book store and flipping through some books on various languages. Ultimately, I ended up with a choice between Ruby and Python. I couldn't tell what the major differences were, so I just decided to pick Ruby. I figured that there was no real way of recognizing the nuances of ANY language until I actually had one under my belt and could better understand what makes each one tick.
  • There is plenty of good material on where to start with programming. Most of the links other people have provided here are very good.

    A fairly good resource is Google Code University
  • [DELETED]
  • I think google and youtube will be your best friends. At first try to learn about HTML, CSS, Javascript and the go for any programming language. I will suggest to learn PHP. After that try to learn any framework (PHP). You can learn laravel or codeigniter.

    But mind it : HTML, CSS, Javascript, PHP, Framework.

    Best of luck
  • [DELETED]
  • Use the following sites to start out:
    • Udacity - Offers a select few free video courses.
    • Team Treehouse - Video courses with monthly payment. Also has interactive quizzes (like a more professional version of codecademy
    • Udemy - Certain online courses are free, others you need to purchase. Recommend courses by Edwin Diaz

    For web development, start with front end (HTML, CSS, Javascript & jQuery) then go back end (PHP, MySQL).

    After that, its essentially browsing documentation & buying books specific to your needs as a developer. Learning frameworks is also extremely useful.

    Be diligent, but don't forget to have fun with it. Happy coding!
  • Banned
    [DELETED]
  • I want to answer this question not just for you but for all the people who want to learn the web development skills. You start with HTML, CSS and jQuery and then move to PHP.

    It will take 30 days for you to learn the HTML, CSS and jQuery which is the backbone of web development. The 30 days course is given here - HTML, CSS and jQuery in 30 days
  • There are many ways for you to learn how to develop a website. You could try w3schools or watch videos, learn from the developers and follow every new technology integrations on the market.
  • [DELETED]
  • [DELETED]
  • If you want to be a really good level dev, you need to know all this things at some point:

    1. Front-end frameworks / languages (now the most trendy are AngularJS, ReactJS). at least at some point (including html, css).

    2. Back-end frameworks / languages (i guess from the bootstrapping point of view best options are python/ruby and their frameworks.). Do not suggesting PHP - sure it's still in use and a lot of support need to be done for PHP-based projects, but nowadays most of devs switched to other languages/platforms (https://www.quora.com/Which-backend-...-learn-in-2016 (not much different for 2017) ). JAVA is also good for educational purposes.. but personally too much heavy and time consuming to maintain for production.

    3. Design pattern and practices. Much of the guides and so on leave this things to the very end, but actually it is pretty important that your code is actually based on business requirements, clean and can be understood by others. Check Domain Driven Design for example.
  • Banned
    [DELETED]
  • Hi there,
    Here is a nice solution for you free of charge.
    1) SignUp to: https://www.visualstudio.com/dev-essentials/
    2) in there you have a code for 3 moth access to pluralsight.com
    3)Use their paths concept in the field you want and they will take you from begginer to advanced
    4)If you realy want the knowledge you can do it!
    To your success!!!
  • It is of utmost importance that you combine theory with PRACTISE. Don't just watch youtube videos - you will most likely understand the content but you will not be able to remember / apply it if you never actually WRITE it. Therefore, I would higly suggest you online courses that combine theory & practise. For example Treehouse or Codeacademy. Get your basic knowledge there, then switch to udemy and buy premium courses for PHP/JS/NODE.

Next Topics on Trending Feed

  • 92

    I don't know anything about developing a website and i have a strong passion for it. Please help me on what to do. How to do it. Is it possible through self-education. Please tell me everything i need to know. I want to know how to get my hands dirty. To know how to code is what i want. And to be professional in it. Thanks