All people who would like to work in the field of web development ask this question. The question is exhaustive, one can talk on this topic for a very long time. But how to learn how to develop websites, where to study and how long it will take.
Let’s try to briefly analyze what is happening now in this area and what opportunities are opening up for a person who is over 40 years old.
Time is money
Do not think about how long you will study. Because when you study, you learn something new. Even when you learn to typeset, you will create your pages, write code, set the style, you will learn things that you did not know about before. Indeed, in the process of writing code for your programs, you will have to create your own ways to add this or that property to the site.
If you want to become a programmer for money, then first you should think five times – is this your business?
And if you definitely decided that you want to become one, read on.
The first rule of development is very simple: to be a good developer, you have to love what you do.
You should enjoy writing code. Nowadays, programmers are called the gods of the world, because they create the coolest technologies:
- robots,
- new gadgets ,
- phones,
- computers,
- tablets,
- wireless headset,
Yes, at least, the same interesting game on the phone – all this is the work of programmers. You too can become one of them! Perhaps after many years of study and practice, you will love your job.
First step in development: where to start
Well, if you still decide to stop at the programmer, then we will continue. And in order to understand as simply as possible how to start your journey into development, let’s go through the main stages step by step.
Step 1: Learn HTML
Many novice programmers think that HTML is something complicated. In fact, HTML is not even a programming language. It is a hypertext markup language. The abbreviation HTML stands for Hyper Text markup language .
It’s like learning to walk – the foundation for your programming career. In HTML, everything is extremely simple – you just learn the tags that are in this language and remember the structure of the code.
Step 2: Master CSS
CSS is an important part of building a website. It stands for ” Cascading style Sheets “. After all, a web page without CSS is like a flower without petals.
The structure of this language is very simple: selector – curly braces – and properties in them. You will have to learn not the structure, but selectors and properties. Using CSS, you can make animation, decorate the site with a background color, create separate sections, set individual properties for each object, change the font, and much more.
Step 3: Dive into JavaScript
When a beginner is told: “You need to learn JavaScript ”, he begins to fear that this language is very difficult and he will have to learn it for a long time. It really is. But it will take about 1-2 years to learn it.
If you spend all this time learning the basics of JavaScript , you will already be able to create interesting sites. You can make a simple toy like a small arkanoid , tetris, tic-tac-toe or snake. You can create artificial intelligence right on the site. You can create your own calculator. Simply put, you will have the opportunity to create interactive sites.
Step 4: Let’s talk about PHP
Many novice web developers have also heard about the PHP language. But what does it do while HTML, CSS and JavaScript fulfill their purpose. What is the purpose of PHP? Actually PHP does the same thing as JavaScript . It creates scripts with which the site can perform a particular function.
In order for you to write in PHP, your computer’s local server must be connected to a PHP interpreter. But if you want to add a database, then link the page to MySQL . Now PHP is very popular and there is a reason for this. This language attracts programmers with its simplicity, even a beginner can understand it. The easiest way to understand PHP is by the example of the WordPress site engine .
Step 5 (Optional): Working with Python
Few people know, but even websites can be programmed in a really powerful, fast and safe Python language . However, writing websites in Python is not required. If you want to write a simple blog , then you don’t need to learn Python . HTML will be enough for you.
But if you want to create a large interactive site, then Django along with Python will help you. Why writing websites in Python is better than in PHP? Because PHP is too limited a language. It will not go further than page layout or creating stores on Open-Cart .
And if you ever get tired of writing websites? You will have to learn another language. But not in the case of Python . After all, it is easy to write wonderful programs on it. Both with an interface and without an interface.
Who to become?
After you learn HTML, JavaScript and CSS, you have to choose who you will become. You can study for one of these three types:
- Front end developer,
- back-end developer,
- Full stack developer.
Let’s take a closer look at who they are . Let’s start with the simplest.
- Front-end developer is a specialist who understands website design. As a rule, such a specialist must know HTML and CSS, because he will be laying out the page structure, and this will require knowledge in these languages. Such developers earn from $1500 per month.
- Back-End Developer is the developer of the website logic. The logic of the site is like the engine of a car. Engine mechanics make the engine start, consume fuel, and spin the wheels. You can already guess that the programming language of the website logic is JavaScript . To put it simply, HTML is the skeleton of the page, CSS is the style, and JavaScript is the mind. It is thanks to this language that we can watch videos on YouTube , search for them, like, comment. JavaScript code gives the site different abilities. Such programmers write in different languages: PHP, Python , Go , C++, C, Ruby and Java . Freelancing is highly valued back-end developers. They get paid $2000 and up.
- And finally, who are Full-Stack developers ? We can say that these are developers who have Back-End and Front-End skills . Such programmers develop web programs with a designed interface. Full-Stack and Back-End developers need to know how to use popular frameworks like Django , Flack and Spring . All programmers must know English, be able to optimize queries, create databases, and most importantly, be able to write clean, beautiful, correct code. In this job, you have to take everything you do seriously. Good Full-Stack developers get paid up to $10,000 per month.
But still, who is better to become? It depends on your taste, your desire to write code. If you want to create cool programs that will surprise other developers, you have a lot to learn. It will depend on your nature of your industriousness. In general, you need to devote at least two hours a day to study. You should practice a lot, look for material on the Internet, you can read books about algorithms, tutorials for HTML, CSS, JavaScript or PHP. After all, the main thing you need to become a programmer is the desire to become one.