Becoming a web designer is not an easy feat, particularly when there is so much to learn with new techniques and technologies coming and going at a lightning pace. If you’ve just decided to get into the industry, then you’re going to need to know what to learn first and what to learn next. So let’s take a look at how we can accomplish that by making sure we get you started out on the right path.
1. HTML5
This goes without saying, as it’s imperative that we start with the language that all websites are built with. And because HTML5 is the most current version, it would only make sense to start with that.
Read: Decoding HTML5
In Decoding HTML5, Jeffrey Way dives straight in and delivers something that the every day designer or developer can immediately pick up and understand!
View: HTML5 Fundamentals
In step by step fashion, we’re going to dig into this new technology, including the various new HTML tags, feature detection, and working with a couple of the new JavaScript APIs.
2. CSS3
Without Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), we would read some boring, messy and no doubt confusing websites. So once we have mastered the structure of our web pages (using HTML), it’s time to move on to the presentation. As you may already know, CSS3 is the most current version and offers some very cool features.
Read: Mastering CSS3
This eBook “Mastering CSS3” features recent CSS3 techniques, a detailed overview of advanced CSS3 pseudo-classes, CSS3 Flexbox, CSS animations and 3D transforms and modern techniques for constructing page layouts, among others.
View: CSS3 Essentials
In this course, we’ll cover the essentials of what you absolutely must know about CSS3.
3. Photoshop
Like it or not, Adobe Photoshop is the industry standard as it offers a lot of great tools for creating stylish and very effective graphic elements for websites. As a result, it is a skill that most employers are looking for, so to ignore Photoshop would be like putting yourself at the bottom of the pile.
Read: Mastering Photoshop for Web Designers vol-2
Mastering Photoshop for Web Design Vol. 2 contains 11 articles that cover useful and partly unknown Photoshop techniques and tricks from experts in the field.
View: Photoshop Techniques for Web Designers
Geared especially for new web designers, Ben Gribbin teaches important techniques and workflow tips that are vital to any web professional working in Photoshop.
4. jQuery
Once you have a good handle on the first three (HTML, CSS, Photoshop), then it’s time to move on to what is known as the “behavior” of web pages. jQuery is a cross-browser JavaScript library and gives you so much control of the behavior of your web pages. It’s fun, fairly easy to learn and is the last prerequisite of any entry-level web designer.
Read: Mastering jQuery
This eBook contains just the orientation you need to optimize your forthcoming jQuery projects!
View: 30 Days to Learn jQuery
In this course, Jeffrey Way will bring you up to speed with jQuery. You will learn the fundamentals and then on to more advanced techniques, such as effects, plugin development and AJAX.
5. Responsive Web Design
Almost every new client these days wants a mobile version of their website. Responsive Web design(RWD) is the approach that suggests that design and development should respond to the user’s behavior and environment based on screen size, platform and orientation. The practice consists of a mix of flexible grids and layouts, images and an intelligent use of CSS media queries. So in this section of our guide, we will take a look at some of the best courses on Tuts+ Premium that will bring you up to speed with RWD.
View: Responsive Web Design for Beginners
Want to get into this relatively new field and learn the basics? Then watch and learn as Ian Yates teaches you the fundamentals of responsive web design.
View: Responsive Web Design with Foundation
In this course, Craig Campbell walks you through Foundation and how you can use it for your RWD workflow. Is this framework for you? Let’s find out.
Read: Responsive Design
This eBook, “Responsive Design” (eBook #23), provides an overview on responsive Web design, showing many situations and techniques in which this approach can be applied to mobile devices.