Web Design for the Creative Individual
Web design is a constantly changing field that always seems to be growing. As technology advances, the means by which people access the Internet are constantly evolving. These new technologies need web pages built that are able to accommodate their own particular technology and existing web sites are constantly being redesigned, relaunched and reimagined. For those who love IT but find the networking and security world a bit too procedural and technical, web design is a great option.
Web design is generally done using a variety of WYSIWYG-What You See is What You Get-design programs. The vast majority of today's web designers, at least on the graphics end of the profession, do very little coding. While manually keying HTML code may once have constituted the majority of web design, today's sites are too complex and the task of coding too time-consuming to allow designers to rely on text editors to create their pages. If you decide to explore this career, you'll be working with some of the most advanced software on the market.
Training for this field generally involves taking classes in one of the most popular design suites. Adobe and Macromedia currently manufacture the two most widely-used suites, Go Live and Dreamweaver, respectively. These suites allow designers to create sites much as a traditional graphic designer creates print publications; by moving images and text around a page with their mouse and keyboard. Software such as these suites vastly streamlines the process of web design.
Web designers will also need to develop a basic knowledge of CSS, the most commonly used means of altering a sites basic color and font themes used in modern web design. This coding is usually done with the aid of a WYSIWYG, as well, though most designers find the code easier to manipulate manually. The language used is simple enough for a non-programmer to easily pick up.
Web design combines the best of two fields: programming and graphic design. Many individuals find web design a good way to learn the basics of coding pages and an excellent route toward moving into more advanced web technologies.
Web designers also work hand in hand with web security specialists, making sure the pages they design conform to current standards for security and safe inter-browser operability.
Because gifted web designers are so much in demand, there are an incredible number of classes available for anyone who wishes to learn. Even small companies generally have a use for a good designer. It can save the company thousands per year on redesigns and maintenance of their pages and allow those pages to be kept current by an individual who is intimately involved with the day to day operations of the company. If you've been looking for a way to make yourself more valuable to your employer and, possibly, to garner better wages in the process, web design is a good choice. The creative aspects of web design allow artistic-minded individuals to find a place in IT.
