[adamramsey91]

I would like to specialise in something.. not too sure what I have only started designing in HTML & CSS.

I have not studied in Uni & i am a technical engineer for a networking company might be worth stating my age also I am 21.

Maybe to specialise in SQL, CSP.. I am not so sure where to start with all this?

Could someone point me in the right direction? I am more than willing to put in the hours to learn whatever it takes.

Thanks.

[andyl]

I'm 20, but judging by your username we're only a few months out. I've done a number of freelance projects since I was 18, focusing on Wordpress and custom PHP apps. For these, you need very decent HTML + CSS knowledge, so get that down first. No matter what you go into, those need to be an absolute second nature to you - that's the easy bit, if you like.

Take a look at customising Wordpress or another popular CMS. At first it will most likely be complete non-sense to you, but there's so many basic/intermediate/expert tutorial/documentation websites out there you can build up your knowledge very quickly. Don't just look and close it all down. Start with the most basics, trust me you'll pick up the pace quickly. Theming Wordpress can be as easy as making a basic HTML + CSS website, but with the benefits of a powerful CMS behind it. Assuming you've got somewhat of an eye for design, you can then offer CMS websites with a fairly basic HTML + CSS skill set.

Alternatively, you could get yourself stuck into the slightly heavier custom PHP area. This is where I started, but realised that most of the time I was reinventing something that's already been coded, given an API, and got 1,000,000 forks on github. I exaggerate, but you get the gist. Starting here will undoubtedly help you with Wordpress (built with PHP) - think of it as a slower but more rewarding route. Make sure you dive into PHP 5, I found it difficult to get myself out of old PHP 4 habits I mistakenly got into.

Patience is the biggest part of web/software development in my opinion. It's not strictly difficult, it's all logic at the end of the day, but it's extremely nit-picky with missing characters, symbols, etc.. You'll also find out that it can take a lot of work to do seemingly simple tasks. If you do learn a language, such as PHP, you'll find you can pick up a number of other high-level computer languages relatively quickly.

So, set yourself up with XAMPP (choose your OS), install Wordpress, find a basic theming guide, and screw up time and time again. After a few attempts, you'll start to get the hang of it. At that point, start a serious project, such as a blog for yourself (always good to have a blog/portfolio if you want to get into this). Wordpress would be perfect for that.

See if you like it first.

Just my $0.02. PS. Belated welcome to the forums.

This post has been edited by andyl: 09 January 2012 - 11:10 PM

[adamramsey91]

Thanks for you're reply andyl.

Yes I guess I am getting a bit ahead of myself in terms of career prospects in this field, I am still playing around with basic HTML, CSS and finding my feet with that. (I thought Web Desinging in general would be a lot easier than it is) but I keep finding myself coming back to it so it is defnitly something I am wanting to take seriously.

Have heard a bit in regard to Wordpress. My brother has a blog on some of his hobbies using it so maybe I should speak with him and find the pros and cons of it.

I started off on a bit of a role with desining logos, images in Fireworks but fell flat on my face when it came to coding it. So i have taken myself back to W3 Schools.

Thanks again for your help I really appreciate it.

Adam