12 replies to this topic

[DCaban]

Hey Everyone,

I am brand new to this forum and would really love for some suggestions from any of you.

Here it goes...

I have been really getting into programming lately and have decided to further my knowledge. I decided that I want to make really nice/ professional looking websites/ applications. So far I am learning JAVA, HTML, and SQL. But I know that they will not be enough. I have heard of languages such as c#, javascript and would like to know the differences of the two.

I know that there are tutorials out there, but the good ones are expensive, and the free ones don't really give you an in-depth study of the material. I am a beginner and would one day love to be an expert.

I want to be a web developer and also have strong programming skills. I'm starting to get confused and overwhelmed about all the stuff that is out there. I would really like for someone to point me in the right direction. Any advice, websites or book suggestions would be GREATLY appreciated.

Thanks!

[WingedPanther]

Java can be used as a server-side scripting language (Java Servlets). Javascript and CSS are needed to round out the client side.

[DCaban]

Thanks a lot!

Anyone else know about c#? What good books are out there for it, and also what is becoming the industry standard?

I really want to start learning these languages, but I want to know what the industry standard is, and how I can go from there..

[SoN9ne]

I would say this is a matter of opinion more than anything else.

When I was starting out, I learned PHP, HTML, and MySQL.

PHP is an easy laguage to teach yourself, security isn't difficult as long as you pay attention to detail. The majority of security issue I see are due to beginning programmers not up-to-date with proper security methods.

Java is a great language, I am currently teaching myself Java. I do not use it for anything other than local tests on my dev server, although I do have some ideas. PHP can handle my needs just fine but there are some instances, depending on your projects scope, where using C or Java is more efficient.

Since you are starting out, find a language you are comfortable with and go from there. Since it is web: HTML, CSS, Javascript, and AJAX are essential in my opinion. It all boils down to what you want to create and how much time you have to create it. AJAX seemed to stump a few beginners but it is a very useful tool to utilize.

HTML and CSS go together like cookies and milk, you can have the cookie without the milk but its just better together. When learning these, make sure you are up-to-date with standard practices. This goes for any language. Learn why you should only use tables for tabular data and how DOM elements affect page load times. Learn when to properly depend on third-party sites (in my opinion, never. Although some will argue about using Google js API for faster loading of js libraries.... which is just stupid).

I am a self-taught web developer and I can tell you that learning this is not that difficult. It's keeping up with the standards that seems troublesome. Learn the sites that are up-to-date with proper standards and follow them. Be active in the community you develop in. Remember to never trust your users input.


Remember, no matter how good you are, there is still plenty you don't know. I get tried of the developer/programmer who acts like they know everything about the language, they don't... period. A programmer not learning new techniques is washed up in my opinion.

I am not a fan of .NET, although many insist on using it for some reason... PHP is my favorite language but I am trying to wrap my head around Java, objective C, and C++.

These are my thoughts, hope you find them useful.

[DCaban]

Your post was very insightful. I really appreciate the time you took to respond to my message. I will take most of your advice into consideration. Definitely agree with your HTML and CSS reference, they go together perfectly.

Since I want to develop for the web, I know that I need to use good design tools to implement them on my page..I know flash and photoshop are the way to go....is there anything else I am missing?

Anyone else with magazine or book suggestions?

I really do appreciate the responses I've received so far..:thumbup1:

[SoN9ne]

A few sites I use are the following.

W3Schools Online Web Tutorials is good for learning a few different languages
PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor - My holy grail

This site is useful, I have only been a member for a few days but I like it so far. Haven't had the time to help much but that will change soon.

As for the books, this can be tricky. A book 5 years ago isn't as useful as a book released this year, since many standards have changed. This can vary language to language but I feel it remains the same for all languages. Basically, any book that can teach you good design patterns, this can be used in multiple languages, not just one. This way you can get the most out of your code, start simple and then try more advanced patterns as you feel comfortable with them. Don't be scared to take on a large project, we are have to do it as some point. My first project was fairly large. I wrote the MPSMOD for phpBB forums, still working on a new version but it always seems to get puhed back for some reason.... A book on security for the language you are using; you will want to be up-to-date on the latest security vulnerabilities. The point is, choose a book that is fairly new, has a good reputable author, and is relevant to what your needs are. I'm not saying older books are useless, there are some very useful books that have some age to them, but for beginning, read the newer books since they will have many of the new and updated standards. You wouldn't want to waste your time learning obsolete standards. Standards are there for a reason ;)

I would also like to suggest that you take your time and learn Linux, or IIS; whichever you will be using. My biggest challenge was learning Centos, I was intimidated by shell at first but have learned, after years of putting it off, that it is very simple. If you know the limits of the server you can design better applications, that's my opinion.

[WingedPanther]

DCaban said:

Your post was very insightful. I really appreciate the time you took to respond to my message. I will take most of your advice into consideration. Definitely agree with your HTML and CSS reference, they go together perfectly.

Since I want to develop for the web, I know that I need to use good design tools to implement them on my page..I know flash and photoshop are the way to go....is there anything else I am missing?

Anyone else with magazine or book suggestions?

I really do appreciate the responses I've received so far..:thumbup1:

Umm... flash is a good way to irritate users if you aren't making a flash game. Photoshop is, in my opinion, a very minor part of the process, since content and layout is much more important than images.

[SoN9ne]

Flash is acceptable if used properly. The problem is, "properly" tends to sway pending the person. I, personally, do not like Flash and find it useless, unless its a player of some sort. Full flash sites can be nice, if implemented properly but the majority of these sites are horrible to say the least. Some sites that I feel give a good example of a flash site done right are 2Advanced v5 - Attractor and 2advanced.net - Precision Hosting Platform. The two sites utilize flash nicely, but they have been top-notch for years. Try using jQuery, or a library like that, to create the same effect; chances are, you'll bee able to create just as much using it.

I agree with WingedPanther, Photoshop is minor part; not sure how I missed that one. I am not sure the process of how to export from Photoshop to HTML, I think I only used slices a few times. I have always been the programmer, not the designer.

The most important tool when starting out is getting the proper IDE for your language. For PHP I use Zend Studio v.5.5.1, (the later versions are junk since they switched to Eclipse...), Netbeans, or Aptana are just as good for some. I would recommend you use a debugger. I can't count how many times I had to fix other programmers crap code because they never check the error log... I've had to clean a 1GB system of code because some idiots didn't realize they were causing thousands and thousands of errors on each page load due to simple mistakes... like calling a variable and using it in a script when it wasn't initiated... no redundancy checks... You could only image the security holes in the system... sorry bad memories. :closedeyes: By using a debugger, you can find and fix all your errors much easier. There are other methods but a debugger is very useful.

[DCaban]

You both have very good points about flash and photoshop. I can see how flash can work on certain websites, and have seen really bad looking flash sites also..

Thanks for the website suggestion...it has a lot of tutorials..Pretty exciting stuff going on there. And as for the books..I know how technology is changing so rapidly...more now than ever, so I kind of knew to avoid any books that date back 6 or 7 years. I figured a book that is a year or two old couldn't hurt. A lot of programmers are self-taught...and I guess in doing so, lack that kind of structured thinking or learn the sloppy way of how to do things.

I know that this is such a beginner's question,..but what is the difference between Linux and IIS?...And what are their key roles?

I think I'm all ready gearing towards the right direction. Thanks guys!

[DCaban]

Anyone have the answer to my last question?? somebody, anybody...

[WingedPanther]

IIS runs on Windows. Linux is a different operating system that cannot run IIS.

[SoN9ne]

It is a very broad question... I would suggest using Google. There are too many different opinions and people tend to be bias towards one another. To get your own opinion, use Google. I am anti-Windows so I would just give bad and misleading information about IIS. Linux has many different flavors and as such each has its own pros and cons. There is a lot of differences between them, Google is your friend ;)