Mason Barge wrote:
I'm learning how to build a website. So far I've gotten pretty good
with HTML, CSS, and Paint Shop Pro, and I'm currenly learning the
basics of Javascript.
Sounds like a decent start
I'm hoping, eventually, to build and run an online publication that
will change content daily and have extensive archived articles,
cross-referenced by subject area(s).
Cool
What other languages would it make sense for me to learn? CGI, Perl,
PHP, Ajax, SQL are all Greek to me. I do have the teensiest grasp of
what XML is supposed to accomplish.
Actually, you would be surprised at how easy PHP and SQL can be - at
least to get the basics down. It's a bit OT here, but let me recommend
PHP 5 / MySQL Programming for the Absolute Beginner, by Andy Harris, to
get you started there.
Also, I've hand-coded all my work so far. Do people who have a lot of
work use WYSIWYG editors (especially Dreamweaver) or is hand-coding
viable?
I am the sole web developer for a multi-million dollar company that
builds web applications. I do all my coding by hand. So, yes, I'd say
it's certainly viable. Truth is, if I didn't do it by hand & chose to
rely on editors like FP or DW, I wouldn't have this job.
You may want to ask around in alt.
www.webmaster as well - the focus of
that NG is a bit more broad - but I guarantee you that regarding the
last question, they will all agree that hand-coding is best.
Back on-topic - as you learn to use JavaScript & work with the DOM,
you'll find that hand-coding makes it easier to do what you want to do
with the page.