2010
i found this article via my twitter feed the other day, and i couldn’t help feeling that it was pretty much spot on with how frustrated i am with myself lately…. Can You Teach Yourself Web Design?
from the comments – left by Gurmesh
10 or 15 years ago, it would have been easier to teach yourself web-design than it is now, simply because there was less to learn.
in 1996, on work experience at a large advertising firm in the city, i had my first taste of the internet. by 1997, i was creating my own websites and learning about HTML via Geocities and anything i could get my hands on. when i graduated high school in 1998, i knew that i wanted to be a web developer but there was no school for it, nowhere to get a certificate. i studied for my Diploma in Graphic Design & Business the following year – the 2 week ‘web design’ course was a joke and i actually ended up teaching part of it… in 1999, i was employed as a web developer straight out of college.
the comment above? it’s harsh, but it’s true. 13 years ago, there was not much to learn and it was easy for me to pick up the basics. today, a whole different story, different standards, different innovations.
but if i think of it, me, 13 years ago, is the same as me, now – there’s a whole world of design and code and technology out there to learn.. i still feel like i’m on the verge of something great if only i keep on going.
(oh, to answer the question – yes i do think you can teach yourself web design – but i think it takes natural talent in design and the ability to withstand countless hours of learning and re-learning code and processes on your own accord, before you should reach the point where you do it professionally).
