What to learn webdesign and coding how to start ?

[2013]

I've always had a interest in webdesign and coding but lack the patience,

Ive seen a lot about learning to code lately and its sparked my interest..

On the web side of things i use wordpress and magento (only know the basics)

My questions are.

1. What language should i learn to start.
2. How long would it take to learn something, I could use and remember ?
3. I hear a lot about using C++ or python to start but the only one Ive seen is php and java, what are the others used in ??

 

[AHarvey]

Normally, you'd start with HTML/CSS, then progress to javascript (with jquery), PHP and SQL. You'll hear a lot of talk about HTML5, HTML5 is basically HTML, CSS and Javascript all thrown in to one package

That will cover most things for web design.

It's not how long it takes to learn something, it's that you have to keep using it otherwise you forget it. I learnt how to use the bootstrap framework 6 months ago, can't remember a thing now.

C++ and C are really the daddies of programming and they cover your main software types, not really anything web related but learning it will create a great understanding of programming basics and theory. It's not easy though and you have to be extremely motivated. Throw C# into the mix as well as people often recommend this language, and you've also got microsofts web language which I believe is asp.net but I've zero experience of that.

Python, great language, easy to learn and lots of resources out there. It can be used for lots of things, including web stuff. I've used it for several things from pulling live website data to simple software. It's great for data science things. It's a good first language but the main criticism it receives is that because it's a high level language some programming concepts you would pick up with C for instance you don't learn about.

If I was you, pop over to https://www.codecademy.com/ and have a play with their courses. Covers a lot of subjects for free and gives you a decent start, it doesn't cover a lot of things but will give you enough knowledge to be able to research things on your own. I think if you lack patience this method will give you the boost you need to decide if it's for you or not.

Ultimately, what a lot of people don't tell you is that programming isn't about the language used, it's a state of mind, how you look at problems and solutions. If you can get that way of thinking down, you will pick languages up quickly enough. Also ignore anyone that says one language is better than another, a language is a tool, you pick the right tool for the job

There is also a good thread on here you may find useful:

http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18577095

 

[ZeroUK]

If you're specifically interested in design, then ultimately you want to be learning HTML, CSS & Javascript with JQuery.

Server side languages (C#, PHP, Python etc) aren't necessary but may be worth you learning eventually.

I'd do as AHarvey mentioned and jump on Codeacademy.

Alternatively if you are interested in learning programming in general, Havard universities CS50 introduction to computer science is a great place to start - https://www.edx.org/course/introduction-computer-science-harvardx-cs50x

 

[liamcrane]

Just started doing a very similar thing myself, used code acadmay to learn the basic HTML/CSS and bought myself an HTML5/CSS course on Udemy for £9 (Was on offer) to really get my head into web developing or design. Not decided for sure yet which way to go time will tell.

Good luck though on what you decide to do and dont forget to report back on how your doing

 

[Varwen]

I've been doing a bit of learning on and off for the last couple of years, but never really tried to go anywhere with it. I signed up to TeamTreehouse a few years back, but never really stuck at it due to travelling/work etc. and never really finding time.

A week or so ago I spotted a junior web developer vacancy at a studio near me and thought "what the hell, I might as well give it a go", and threw together a one page website in a weekend to send off. Turns out they'd already filled the vacancy, but I impressed them so much they'd like to interview me anyway and have already started talking salary.

The page I threw together was www.ryangee.design, and the parallax background/moving heads image were just open source jQuery plugins that I customized to fit my page.

I'd done a fair bit of reading around and tinkering by myself, but I think one of the online courses would be a great place to start - I doubt I'd have gotten half as far just on my own.

I think the key also is to compliment whichever course you choose with your own research - the courses cover everything you need to be competent but if you can think of something you'd like to add just google it and have a play - web creatives are a talkative bunch so there's infinite resources out there if you're eager to learn.

I've never used codeacademy, but I'd recommend Treehouse if you're stuck. They offer everything from web design to programming, and even app development. I think they may even do a free trial?

(Note: if you use my referral link you get 50% off your first month, but I'm not sure this is allowed since I'd also get a discount on my sub. Mods please remove if against the rules, just trying to save someone some pennies!)

Hope at least some of this is of use!

Var

 

[2013]

Thanks guys,

I'm still not 100%, I want to learn both web and programming but there's a lot to learn and no idea where to start.

So many programs NodeJS, PHP, Ruby, .NET, Python, C++, Java

What should I start with to build the ground works ?
What would be good small project that will allow me to use what I'm learning, so can put it into practice.

 

[Varwen]

I'd try and tackle python first - the syntax seems to be a lot more beginner friendly when skim reading. I found that made it easier to get stuck in to and less frustrating, rather than having to flick back and forwards between that and google working out what all the different symbols do in c++ or java.

You'd still learn most of the important concepts of programming which would stand you in better stead to tackle more complex languages later on .

EDIT: as for the small project, I think that's another reason to go for codeacademy/treehouse - they tend to teach by guiding you through a project so you absorb the information and also see how it's put into practice in real world examples which I found really helpful. As I said earlier though, adding your own ideas and working out how to implement them is the best way to solidify your understanding. Maybe you could start by building a game that guesses a number you thought of between 1 and 100? - it suggests a number and you say higher or lower. If you do it right, the computer should need a maximum of 6 guesses iirc... Then try adding features or modifying it - perhaps add a mode where you guess the number a computer is thinking of and the computer says higher or lower?

 

[AHarvey]

Python is excellent, you can be up and running quickly, my issue with it is that it's not always noob friendly when you start to need extra packages installed on Windows systems. A lot of the documentation will make sense to an experienced programmer, to a noob it can be confusing.

You will never master any language and if you try and learn them all then you'll suffer in the long run, or get overwhelmed and quit.

What attracts you more? web stuff, mobile apps or traditional OS software?

 

[2013]

Web stuff, then mobile apps

What would you recommend, any free learning sites I could use ?

 

[Randomface74]

Start with Java or C# (ASP.NET MVC). Try to make something, report back.

 

[AHarvey]

Web stuff, then mobile apps

What would you recommend, any free learning sites I could use ?

OK, so HTML5 things really would be your first call.

Look at the codecademy link i posted above, that will give you and overview and a decent understanding.

Then look at other sites like Lynda if you want nice video tutorials and don't mind paying, or there are lots of other free resources out there.

Once you've html, css and javascript down, you'll be looking at frameworks such as bootstrap and jquery. Then probably learn the basics of PHP and SQL.

There are other areas to look into that don't include coding, photoshop etc for the graphical side, how to create and slice up and image to turn that into a website, UX (user experience) etc

 

[chroniclard]

People still use PHP?

 

[Chaos]

The Harvard CS50 course which is free has just restarted for 2016

https://www.edx.org/course/introduction-computer-science-harvardx-cs50x

It covers C, PHP, and JavaScript plus SQL, CSS, and HTML

 

[2013]

Thanks everyone,

I've taken a look at https://www.edx.org/course cs50, It looks interesting so I've signed up.

Let's see how well I do, hopefully I will learn a think or 2.

 

[ZeroUK]

Good luck! Let us know how you get on.

 

[2013]

Thanks,

Just finished Problem Set 0, building a game in scratch, but I cant get my head around the binary and ASCII (questions ask in the submission form.

any tips ?

 

[Varwen]

Just curious to hear how you're getting on OP?

I've never used scratch so I'm of no help with your query, but I always learn best if I've got someone holding me accountable - have you made much progress?

 

[2013]

Thanks for asking.

The course is hard to understand and follow, I don't know if it because its american or something else, some of what is discussed does not sink in so I use Google to learn more.

what I am finding useful are the online courses, I'm using a few different ones (khan academy, codeavengers) they are much easier to follow and understand.even if I don't learn with the main course these seem to be working much better for me,

I just need to practice along the way.

 

[Varwen]

I've found courses that I don't get on with too - usually it's just that one module or teacher's particular style rather than that the content is too hard though. What languages did you choose to focus on?

 

[2013]

I've found courses that I don't get on with too - usually it's just that one module or teacher's particular style rather than that the content is too hard though. What languages did you choose to focus on?

I started on cs50 as a base but ive found it confusing so I pushed it to 2nd place, Instead ended up starting with html and css.

I dont know why but looking at the online courses, they are a lot easier then a lot of college courses, (using Dreamweaver and reading a booklet)
I'm doing bit of javascript. but im not sure if I should learn javescript or python, they bother look similar to me.

once I get into these a bit more, ill want to try and add PHP.