Web design is the process of creating, maintaining, and updating websites to make them appealing and user-friendly. Working within the Web design industry requires a number of skills, including proficiency with programming languages, graphic design, interface design, search engine optimization, user experience design, and software. Some Web designers specialize in particular areas of Web design, while others offer generalized services that include all aspects of the process. To succeed in this career, a Web designer must understand Web engineering and Web development as it relates to both the front end and the back end of a website.
Web design has changed significantly since the Internet was first popularized during the 1990s. Initially, websites were text-based, and browsers were extremely basic and limited in what they could display. Cascading Style Sheets and JavaScript were the newest technologies of this period, and designers also used tables to create Web pages. In the 21st century, technology in Web design has advanced by leaps and bounds. Today, Web designers use many different tools to produce and maintain websites. Graphics editors enable designers to create images. Web designers also use extensive testing tools to ensure that the end result of their products is user-friendly and accessible on a variety of platforms.
Websites are created for many different purposes. Some websites are designed for entertainment, while others are educational or commercial in nature. Web design involves careful thought about the target market of websites. Designers must have a thorough understanding of market and audience trends, then combine this understanding with their technical expertise to design and create websites that will resonate with a specific target market. Web designers make decisions about page layout, typefaces, the use of motion graphics, and interactivity. Some interactive functions need plugins that must be installed in a Web browser to make all functions of the website operate correctly.
HTML stands for HyperText Markup Language, which is a computer language used for creating websites. HTML is simple enough for most people to learn the basics in just a couple of hours, yet it is powerful enough to enable the creation of intricate and involved Web pages. HTML is made up of code that is written as text and saved as an HTML file. When an Internet browser views the HTML file, it translates the code into a visible page as the Web designer envisioned. The code can be simple, such as formatting text to make it bold or italic, or complex, such as embedding tables and images into a Web page. Web designers usually use a text editor to create Web pages.
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