Isn't it time for people to know how to design websites?

Colima420 · #1 08-08-2007, 08:49 PM

Recently I have started thinking about starting a small business. Within the business plan, I had the idea of having a website of the business.

That's when I noticed that I had no idea at all about how to build a website.

Upon analyzing this, I realized that no one that I know (including a lot of people with bachelor and master degrees, both in the US and in Mexico) could design a website either.

Quite likely people with an education in computer programming can do this. But I think that your average college graduate (regardless of major) should have a general idea/ability to build a simple webpage.

Why is this not taking place? Why aren't colleges teaching this across majors?

Living in 2007, and being computer literate, it makes me mad that I cannot design a webpage.

All I know is that I have to do some programming in HTML (have no idea how this works), upload it somewhere, buy a domain name?, ...

Do you guys think that in this day and age, educated people should be able to build simple websites? If so, why aren't colleges teaching this?

Or do you think that it really isn't necessary for people to have this skill?

Colima420

jjshabado · #2 08-08-2007, 08:57 PM

Modern webpages are a lot more complicated then just throwing something together in HTML. Its not worth it to teach people how to do this, because most people will never need to do it, and if they do they can pay other people to do it for them for less than the cost of learning and doing it themselves.

cbloom · #3 08-08-2007, 10:26 PM

Umm, pretty much all colleges *DO* have courses on building web sites. Unfortunately, they are generally worthless because the technology is still changing too fast for dumb curriculum to keep up. If you are smart enough to design a decent web site you are smart enough to google how to do it and figure it out yourself.

These days, computer illiterate people just use Myspace or Blogger or something that does everything for them. Middle of the road people will use one of the many programs that builds websites for you; learning to use these programs is just like learning any other program, it's no mystery. Serious people who are designing real websites using AJAX or whatever are basically programmers.

Freakin · #4 08-08-2007, 10:42 PM

All colleges will teach the average student is how to build a strictly html page, built in front page, hosted on their university webspace.

the average person doesn't need to know anything more than this (and really doesn't even need to be instructed on this level...)

I mean, have you ever had a school teach you how to balance a checkbook? None of mine ever did and that would be far more useful than the week they spent trying to teach everyone how to build a webpage.

There are web designers out there to build web pages, just like there are mechanics to fix cars.

Just because everyone can download the tools to build one doesn't mean they are capable of doing so, even with all the training in the world.

erbbysam · #5 08-08-2007, 10:55 PM

The problem with the more complex websites, from what I have seen is that they require programing knowledge or at least the time to sit down and learn CSS and such, if not PHP. I was a TA for a class at my high school last year for a "intro to web design" course and people were amazed that they could create a website that looked like it came from 1996 after a 4 month, avg. 30 min a day course... I have to agree with Freakin:
"There are web designers out there to build web pages, just like there are mechanics to fix cars.

Just because everyone can download the tools to build one doesn't mean they are capable of doing so, even with all the training in the world. "

cbloom · #6 08-08-2007, 11:13 PM

[ QUOTE ]

I mean, have you ever had a school teach you how to balance a checkbook? None of mine ever did and that would be far more useful than the week they spent trying to teach everyone how to build a webpage.

[/ QUOTE ]

They taught you how to do addition, right !? [img]/images/graemlins/confused.gif[/img]

nuclear500 · #7 08-08-2007, 11:29 PM

Depends on the kind of site you want to do. Dreamweaver and the like are all WYSIWYG based and have the ability to understand CSS and XML embedding.

If you're looking to just put up an informational site, you don't need to know how to be a "web" programmer. But if you're getting into talking about wanting a shopping cart type feature and what not, then you'll need some java or php or whatever background.

kerowo · #8 08-08-2007, 11:57 PM

Go watch some of the demos of the new iWeb in iLife '08. Easy Peasy. If you want to see a pretty basic site made with iWeb from iLife '06 go look at my pictures at www.kerotography.com. When I can find a store with iLife '08 I'll upgrade to that.

There are several other site building packages out there that will let you create a turn key business site by just adding some content to their templates. There really isn't much reason to learn raw HTML anymore unless you are going to be an IT guy working with it, and even then you'll probably never want to use it again.

Freakin · #9 08-09-2007, 12:30 AM

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]

I mean, have you ever had a school teach you how to balance a checkbook? None of mine ever did and that would be far more useful than the week they spent trying to teach everyone how to build a webpage.

[/ QUOTE ]

They taught you how to do addition, right !? [img]/images/graemlins/confused.gif[/img]

[/ QUOTE ]

Yeah, and I can turn a wrench, but I'm not gonna go taking my car apart... you see where I'm going with this?

It's not the tools, it's how to use them.

For the record, I'm not saying I can't balance a checkbook, I'm saying the majority of high school graduates can't balance a checkbook, despite 'being taught addition'...

psionic storm · #10 08-09-2007, 04:46 AM

[ QUOTE ]
Quite likely people with an education in computer programming can do this. But I think that your average college graduate (regardless of major) should have a general idea/ability to build a simple webpage.

Why is this not taking place? Why aren't colleges teaching this across majors?

[/ QUOTE ]

you mean if some dude wanted to study to become a doctor in college, they should make him take a course on html along with his biology courses?

html is useless to most people. a class on safe computing is far more useful to all majors yet i still think dipping away from their major is very inefficient learning.