How did you begin?

How did you all first start learning web design? Was it a book? Online tutorials? What did you learn first and what was your progression?

I am proficient with HTML and CSS, and I am currently reading a beginning book on PHP. I really want to increase my graphics skills as well though. Any good recs for tutorials especially on Photoshop for designing for the web? I was thinking about watching the PS videos on lynda.com...

I read a book called Head First XHTML and CSS. After that I to http://net.tutsplus.com/ and tried to catch up on things the book might not have covered.Which is also has some PS tutorials. Also I've read it's a little easier if you start on javascript after HTML and CSS which is what I'm doing now. I think I'm going to start on jQuery or Javascript. Did you read something different, or can tell me the reason that you're going to PHP?

I once tried w3schools, but that website was messy, and has numerous errors. My personal favourite is HTMLdog.com, and I still use it to this day as a reference.

I got into the more advance stuff such as javascript and Ruby on Rails when I found out my college provides me free access to Lynda.com, and I been using it ever since.

I am more interested in working with a server-side language to create applications and work with databases, etc. and perhaps develop custom Wordpress themes eventually. Basically, JS would be used to spruce up applications created using PHP. Also, from what I can tell, PHP is a more sought-after skill in the marketplace. You might find this link helpful. Good luck.

ah! thanks muchacho. I think i'm going to start with PHP then. I'll pm you if I find good information. You do the same.

Sounds good. Actually, check out this site for awesome video tutorials on all programming languages. I've just started the PHP series, and it is very helpful thus far... http://thenewboston.org/tutorials.php

Thanks!! I'll start it tonight.

For I learn from my colleagues at work they are good at design so I ask them if they could teach me how and when I picked it up I go online like watching some tutorials from video sources like youtube

I can recommend Lynda.com. Have been using it for close to a year now and have learned a lot. I started out with Dreamweaver then Wordpress. I'm working on PHP as well right now and I'm using w3school for that but I'll check out the above links that were referenced also! Thanks for that!

I took beginning HTML classes in college while going after an English degree about 15 years ago, and then took all the Internet type classes I could squeeze in, plus working in Computer labs and learning the different software for 4 years. I took a quarter of programming but decided that wasn't my area of expertise due to the fact I'm right brained (an artist who flunks algebra). After college instead of following a writing career I started building websites for friends or volunteering my services on non-profit sites and got more clients by word-o- mouth. Books are pretty useless in this industry because by the time they are published they are out of date so I learned HTML from online tutorials on the web. This was before CSS or CMS was popular so I learned to write code by hand. Now my speciality is fixing crippled websites that were designed in CMS programs (full of code bloat or other problems).

This is true. Javascript developers are in demand as well, but if you can do one, the other is not far off.
@ Karrma - HTML - CSS and then Javascript (or PHP) is that standard approach and it will save you a great deal of time. I went from using WYSIWYG programs, straight to Flash. Metaphorically, I jumped out of the fire into the frying pan. I wasted a lot of time and money on a technology (Flash) that isn't going anywhere at this point. Even Adobe seemed to lose interest.

Funny story: Sometimes I think I am trapped in the middle somewhere; I like math, but I also do art. I like to write markup and CSS, but get bored with php. Coding Javascript can also put me to sleep, but I use to really enjoy coding Actionscript 3.

I second this. Flash is really starting to become a dying platform, and it seems like many web developers are pushing that agenda. With HTML5, javascript and the WebM codec, you do not need a flash player to watch videos. Technology that doesn't require a third party plugins is far better. Youtube is also pushing for HTML5 video.

I think this is a push for the better, especially since the mobile market is taking over. Very few of these devices has Flash built in, including the iPhone.

I learned from a book called "HTML for the World Wide Web" in the beginning. Since then, I've hardly used a book. Almost all of my understanding for CSS, JavaScript, PHP, Actionscript, SQL, you name it... comes from the web. If you're interested in PHP, php.net is actually quite helpful. w3schools is also really helpful for coding. Most of the time I simply embark on my own journeys from scratch, head first, until I get an error... then I usually figure it out by a simple Google search or stackoverflow. Here's more info on how I got started with web design, if you're so inclined.

I read this article titled 5 things I hate about html5 a few days ago. The truth of the matter is that you have to write extra code and add Flash video fallback when using HTML5. Lets not forget about the extra videos you have to format for WebM, MP4, and OGV. Why go through all that when you can just use Flash. A year ago I was one of the biggest advocates of HTML5, I love all of the new features. However, these browser companies do not play well with each other and us developers and designers suffer.

A properly designed flash site will have "fallback" code so in case the user doesn't or can't have flash installed, the site will display something in it place ...

The code for that is a whole lot more than the html5 version with all the different formats available.

As for browsers not playing nice, that's just a fact of life in this industry.

I learned that a while ago (the fallback code for devices that can't display Flash), I found it easier to just not deal with Flash anymore unless it's fallback video.

This was the same argument used against CSS.

I started at my company. I actually got the job through craigslist, lol. Most of what I do is personnel management and some marketing items, but I still get involved with our design software to help clients better understand how they can make changed to their own websites. So our software is what taught me. Granted, I am still very much a novice, but the software makes it SOOO simple to make edits, create dynamic content, etc.

Which version of CSS?