There are a lot of solutions out there for a novice to get into the online scene. This blog, for example, runs off of WordPress, a great instant blog platform. All I had to do to set this site up was press “Install WordPress” in my Fantastico control panel and then choose a cool theme. Personally, I’ve never built a web site totally from scratch (excluding my 4th and 8th grade “projects”….all in pure html….yuck), so this week I’ve decided it’s about time to learn things from the ground up. It’ll be a site I’m donating to an organization I used to (still do sort of) volunteer for. In order to do this I believe there are two things I’ll need to get a good grasp on: php and css. I already have a fair grasp of HTML and XHTML, so that’s not a problem.
So far today I’ve gotten my design all sketched out in Photoshop and a nifty, but very simple, flash banner in ImageReady. Other than that I’ve been reading and experimenting a lot over the last few days. In my quest to learn CSS, here are some links that have been most helpful:
- CSS No Crap Primer
- Holy CSS Zeldman! – Links to just about anything you could possibly want to know about CSS
- CSS Zen Garden – Just for fun, but it gives you an idea of the power of CSS
- Zen Garden Resources – A few more links and articles
- CSS Layout Techniques – Quick and dirty layout styles for CSS, along with a few resources
- CSS Crib Sheet -Helpful tips and advice when debugging CSS
Another helpful resource has been this awesome little CSS Cheat Sheet:
Well, I’m back to work. Happy learning all!
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Good Luck! I’m doing the opposite from you: I’ve built web sites from scratch, which was a challenge I really enjoyed, but I’m starting to use CMS for sites.
Why? Because there is so much work involved in doing it all manually – I learnt a lot, but now I want to get productive sites up and running quickly. If I do it all manually, the site will take a LOT longer before it is ready to go.
For my next site, I will base it on Drupal and customise it for what I need. There will still be opportunities for me to get my hands dirty and the site will be ready months earlier.
Still it is very worthwhile to do it manually – you learn a lot. Enjoy!
Actually my plan is to integrate this site with a CMS before release, most likely CuteNews or something like that.
dont use cutenews. its so outdated, use wp. Its the best free cms out there.
Or make your own. Just simple admin area that saves the shit to a txt or db, then have your pages call what you need..
…The only reason I said CuteNews is because it’s the only one I’ve seen you use Jon.
hey if you need any help, let me know. ive been meaning to put together a basic xhtml/css/php template. i can also show you the guts of the cms (skate) site im workin on.
There are many things taken care of before builing a website. A proper navigation structure and a well laid out planning can only make a website succes and bring you potential clients