“Look ma, I made me a website thingy…and stuff”
Let’s learn a little bit more about how to build a website using the knowledge from W3 Schools:
What Is W3 Schools?
Well, let’s ask W3 Schools:
At w3schools.com you will learn how to make a website. We offer free tutorials in all web development technologies.
Simple right? Whether you want to build a static or dynamic page using a whole host of web languages such as: PHP, HTML, or ASP.Net, etc… W3 Schools can show you how. They not only offer tutorials, but also sandboxes (try-it-yourself pages) to test out what you have learned before trying it on your own website.
Why Should I Care?
Well, if you have ever wanted to build your own website, then you should at the very least understand the basic of web development. Whether you are thinking of starting a non-profit or looking to build up a portfolio for your budding photography business, a website can help you get your idea out to the world.
While you don’t have to have a Bachelor’s in Web Development and Design to build a decent website, if you want your ideas to come across as professional and well-thought out, you need to know what you are doing.
Also, web designers can be expensive…unless you have a lot of extra dough or are building a website for a large company, doing it yourself can save you precious dollars.
Can’t I use a Template Site?
In recent years there has been an influx of cookie-cutter, cut-and-paste template sites that have popped up. While these sites are useful for layman, there are two reasons I would suggest still learning the basics of web development:
-
These sites still charge a fee for the convince of cut and paste. Knowing how to do it yourself can again save you money
-
These sites tend to look and feel very generic and do not in any way offer the consumer a look at the real you
Furthermore, if something goes wrong with your website and you used one of these cut-and-paste services, you normally will have to start all over from scratch whereas if you knew basic web code, you could go in and fix the issue yourself.
How Long Does it Take to Learn?
It depends on two factors: Your learning ability and how complex you want the site to be. If you are building a simple static site that displays your photos, you can learn basic HTML and CSS in one day.
If you are looking to offer more dynamic options such as search functionality, comments, guestbooks, flash animation and other dynamic options, it could take a few weeks or even a month or two to really get it all down.
Did You Build This Site from Scratch?
No, this blog is “semi-homemade” I use Blogger’s publishing interface, a very heavily modified template from BT Templates, and other gadgets. Using W3 Schools, however, has allowed me to go in and personalize many aspects of this site and make it my own, including the color design, header, header placement, font, etc…
In Conclusion
W3 Schools is a great site for anyone looking to start learning or continue learning about old and new web technologies. If you already have or are thinking about starting a website, I highly recommend bookmarking W3 Schools and checking back often. It will be worth your time.
Until Next Time…
