Hi guys, I'm new here, I posted my introduction with a few questions in the intro sections but I've been told to post the questions somewhere else where I was more likely to get an answer, so here I go: (sorry this is a bit long, and I couldn't find a more appropriate section for it, so I just whacked it in here)

 

Having recently finished my exams, I have decided to take my web-design lessons one step further, and started doing loads of tutorials etc. Also I have bought a new domain and hosting, and I plan to create a portfolio page in the near future, and have already started working towards it (would post a link, but I'm sure I've read somewhere it's against the rules) However I do have a few questions etc. So here I go:

 

I had a really really long look around the net for a good Slicing and Coding in CSS tutorial, but I couldn't find any - so could someone point me to one, I would really appreciate it.

 

Another thing, I really want to become a web designer. And I know it might sound a little bit dis-respectful to all you professional web designers out there when a guy only just starting out asks you lot for advice, rather than looking for it on the internet, but I would really like some one-to-one advice sort of thing...so it'd be great if one of you could point me in the right direction, show me a few good websites etc etc. I have loads bookmarked, but I'm not really sure which one to follow, hence I'm asking for your help.

 

The reason I want to become a web designer/developer is because I want to be able to work from home. One of my main hobbies include poker, so I think poker and web design would go together nicely. I'm very ambitious and a keen learner so I think I can live up to the task of becoming a good professional web designer (I've self taught myself everything I know)

 

Lastly I've got loads of books on PHP, JavaScript, DHTML etc...and I was just wondering are they any good (I don't mean the books, I mean JS or PHP - are they any useful for designing websites ? Are they essential to becoming a good web designer etc ?)

 

Sorry for this rather lengthy first post, I'll try to keep them short from now on.

 

Thanks,

Darius

 

 

P.S. The reason I've chosen this thread title is to attract more viewers - sneaky I know :devil:

Any help then guys ?

 

Sorry if I made this thread to long and boring to read. But I really need to know these things

Just a quickie here, JavaScript and PHP are by no means essential to becoming a good web designer but they certainly help. If I was to recommend one to learn first I would go with PHP.

Just a quickie here, JavaScript and PHP are by no means essential to becoming a good web designer but they certainly help. If I was to recommend one to learn first I would go with PHP.

 

Thanks,

 

One question down, many to go lol

Alright I'll try to tie up some of your other questions before I watch an episode of The Sopranos and go to bed

 

Also I have bought a new domain and hosting, and I plan to create a portfolio page in the near future, and have already started working towards it (would post a link, but I'm sure I've read somewhere it's against the rules)

 

As far as I know it's not against the rules to post your website address, though posting it in the Website Reviews & Feedback section is a must.

 

I had a really really long look around the net for a good Slicing and Coding in CSS tutorial, but I couldn't find any - so could someone point me to one, I would really appreciate it.

 

Generally any good CSS/XHTML resource should give you the knowledge to implement slicing a design, try HTML Dog and Web Monkey for a start. Also the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) website is also a good read

 

Another thing, I really want to become a web designer. And I know it might sound a little bit dis-respectful to all you professional web designers out there when a guy only just starting out asks you lot for advice, rather than looking for it on the internet, but I would really like some one-to-one advice sort of thing...so it'd be great if one of you could point me in the right direction, show me a few good websites etc etc. I have loads bookmarked, but I'm not really sure which one to follow, hence I'm asking for your help.

 

This isn't disrespectful in any way, I'd imagine most of us here have got to where we are by asking how somewhere along the way, don't worry about it . For starters I'd try the two links I posted above and Tizag.

 

I hope all goes well and your ambition of working from home becomes a reality, I'm trying to do it myself now and hopefully it'll work out. Once you get started you should definitely consider posting some websites in the Website Reviews & Feedback section. The first few websites you post might get a lot of critique, try and understand that this is not us being arse-holes but rather us trying to guide you in the right direction to becoming a great designer.

 

Good luck and most of all have fun!

.................

Good luck and most of all have fun!

 

 

Thanks man, you have been very helpful so far

 

Nice to see so many helpful people on a forum like this

 

Also, good luck with your quest

Hi Darius,

Sorry I didn't answer this yesterday, I've been far too busy feeding my Stargate addiction

 

I had a really really long look around the net for a good Slicing and Coding in CSS tutorial, but I couldn't find any - so could someone point me to one, I would really appreciate it.

 

For slicing and coding, there's an in depth tutorial here: http://www.celoxdesign.net/free-css-tutori...ayout-43/page/1

 

The problem with "slicing and coding" is that it entails pretty much the whole page building process and so there is a lot to it. You need good knowledge of HTML and CSS and to know what is and what isn't easy to do. That way you quickly learn to intuitively slice up a design into its basic components in a way which is easy to code. This is a hard thing to master, and I sometimes have to go back and reslice when I find something I'm coding would work better another way.

 

This is pretty much "the way things are" with any kind of computer programming and design. There are so many ways to achieve one thing, and the way you go about it depends completely on your own way of thinking and problem solving process. You'll prob need to read through a few tutorials until you find one that fits your way of thinking.

 

 

Another thing, I really want to become a web designer. And I know it might sound a little bit dis-respectful to all you professional web designers out there when a guy only just starting out asks you lot for advice, rather than looking for it on the internet, but I would really like some one-to-one advice sort of thing...so it'd be great if one of you could point me in the right direction, show me a few good websites etc etc. I have loads bookmarked, but I'm not really sure which one to follow, hence I'm asking for your help.

What kind of advice are you looking for here? Business advice? And what kind of websites do you mean? The internet is a rich resource. There are absolutely millions of websites about every aspect of website design. I would never tell you to "follow" one website, as the more resources you use, the more points of view you learn, the more rounded your perspective will become. Use a feedreader, aggregate news from all over the web, a couple of key web design related sites are smashing magazine, sitepoint and alistapart.

 

Lastly I've got loads of books on PHP, JavaScript, DHTML etc...and I was just wondering are they any good (I don't mean the books, I mean JS or PHP - are they any useful for designing websites ? Are they essential to becoming a good web designer etc ?)

JS and PHP are very useful for designing certain types of sites. This is where you have to think about what aspect of web development you most want to be involved in. JS is used for adding functionality, but it should only be used to add something extra for those with it turned on, and those without should still be able to browse your sites successfully.

 

PHP is a whole different ball game, it is meant for back end development, dealing with information. It is a server-side language and so allows you to do completely different tasks to anything that HTML + CSS + JS can offer. This includes all database management tasks, so if you want to build websites which store information, offer user accounts or anything like that, PHP is necessary. It is considerably more useful than JS, but if you want to be well rounded you should at least be familiar with both (i.e. you can read them and understand what is going on even if you cannot write code yourself).

 

Feel free to clarify your advice question and I'll try to throw a few more pearls of wisdom your way! Just remember there is no "one size fits all" answer to the kinds of questions you are asking.

 

Eris

Here's something that should help you out a bit. It just appeared in my FeedDemon http://nettuts.com/site-builds/from-psd-to...s-step-by-step/

Thanks a lot, Eris - much much appreciated.

 

The kind of advice I was really looking for, I've bookmarked all the sites you have mentioned, will have a look at them later on today.

 

As for further advice, I meant anything that could help me become a web designer. Thinking about it now though, I think you have mentioned everything I needed to know at the moment. Although there is one thing I'm wondering about.

 

How imaginative do you need to be to become a successful designer/developer ? I mean I have followed a few tutorials, and have found them easy and understood everything, but when I sat down and thought would I be able to create a website from scratch all by myself the answer was no.

 

How do you guys get ideas for your websites ?

 

Also, thanks a lot for the link Cabbage, will get cracking on that tutorial right now

I often have the same problem with inspiration.

 

I collect websites that I think are beautiful, buy magazines, collect cutouts and images and all sorts of things which I use as inspiration. I think you also have to be a little bit patient, and ready for the fact that it might be 3am when the idea comes!

Thanks a lot, Eris - much much appreciated.

 

The kind of advice I was really looking for, I've bookmarked all the sites you have mentioned, will have a look at them later on today.

 

As for further advice, I meant anything that could help me become a web designer. Thinking about it now though, I think you have mentioned everything I needed to know at the moment. Although there is one thing I'm wondering about.

 

How imaginative do you need to be to become a successful designer/developer ? I mean I have followed a few tutorials, and have found them easy and understood everything, but when I sat down and thought would I be able to create a website from scratch all by myself the answer was no.

 

How do you guys get ideas for your websites ?

 

Also, thanks a lot for the link Cabbage, will get cracking on that tutorial right now

 

Luckily I'm gifted with a quite vivid imagination (man I sound big headed ) although when that fails I find Web Creme helps me inspiration wise.

My advice would be to take your time and not try to cram too much in at once, which is only going to overload you and cause more confusion. For example, it wouldn't make much sense to start learning PHP/JS without at least a basic understanding of (X)HTML.

 

Just try to learn at your own pace. If you're a fast learner that's good, but it doesn't mean you must try to learn every coding language/graphic design software all at once. A good place to start for a huge variety of tutorials, a lot related to web design/development can be found over at pixel2life. Hope that helps in some way.

 

EDIT: To answer your question about where to get idea's/inspiration before creating a site. Basically most designers will have their own favourite sources of inspiration, be it a Book, Magazine, Website and so on. They'll usually try to look around to see what current trends are being used and try to apply it to their own designs if necessary.

 

A great way to easily find inspiration for designing a site would be to check out a CSS Website Gallery. There are many of these around but DarkNotes of this forum has made his own which you can find here. You could also check out csscreme, cssdrive, cssbeauty or cssvault. There are many resources out there for designers (Just remember, Google is your friend). I'd also recommend checking out noupe and smashingmagazine for great web design articles/resources.

Another site i suggest is www.csselite.com for inspiration