Course

On the team:

Designers: The designer is in charge of the website’s overall appearance and layout. They will work
with the client to pick a colour scheme, fonts, and the look and feel of the site overall. They want to
make sure that the website looks fantastic and is also easy for users to navigate.

Developers: The developers will take the designer’s ideas and turn them into a website. This might
be by coding it, or by using one of the many web development platforms which allow you to create
websites without writing a lot of code. The developers who handle making the site look right are
called ‘front-end’ developers, while there will also be some ‘back-end’ developers who handle the
functionality of the website, for example setting up the user logon system. (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, or
they might be using a platform such as WordPress to create the layout.)

Content Creators: A website without any content would be very boring, and so content creators will
provide videos, images, text (sometimes called ‘copy’) and any other media which is needed for the
website.

Testers: There’s nothing worse than a website which doesn’t work, so throughout the whole process
of development there will be testers making sure that the website works correctly, and also making
sure that all the user data is secure. (Quality assurance or QA: while the developers are creating the
site, it will be tested by the QA team, who will make sure that the website works properly and is
consistent with the design given by the designer. They will hunt down bugs, glitches and
inconsistencies and make sure that the final product is in perfect working order.)

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) Specialists: There are a lot of websites on the internet, so how do
you make sure that yours is at the top of the search results? SEO specialists know all the tricks to
making sure that a website appears as high up the search engine results as possible, which helps to
bring more users to the website.

The DevOps engineer might also be called a systems administrator or sysadmin, do a lot of the work
behind the scenes. They set up and maintain the servers which host the websites, and they also
manage databases, Git repositories and use different automation tools to keep websites up and
running 24/7.

Types of developers :

Front-end developers are tasked with bringing the designer's vision to life. They take care of
everything which you see and interact with on a website, from the navigation bar to the forms you
type into. They also make sure that the website looks good on different devices, so that whether
you're on a laptop or a phone, you get the same experience.

Back-end developers are in charge of adding all of the functionality of the website. They work on all
of the parts of the website which you can't see like the server, databases and logic which make the
website usable. They add things like user authentication (logon systems), ecommerce systems
(shopping), and all the other useful things which websites can do! They also need to make sure that
everything runs smoothly without any bugs, and that all the data is kept safe and secure in the
databases.

Full-stack developers :These developers are able to do both the front and back-end development, so
they can work on both parts of the website. Most developers are able to do both, but might have a
preference or be more skilled at either front-end or back-end development.

Types of coding languages used :

HTML (hypertext markup language)

HTML is a code that defines the structure of a web page. It uses tags to mark different parts of a
page, such as headings, paragraphs, images, and links. These tags tell web browsers how to display
the content. HTML only tells the browser what content something is and not how it should look.

CSS (cascading style sheets)

CSS is used to control the appearance and layout of web pages. It defines how elements on a page
should look, including colours, fonts, spacing, and positioning. CSS ensures that websites have a
consistent and visually appealing design. CSS libraries such as Bootstrap, which you can use without
needing to write your own CSS.

JavaScript

JavaScript is a programming (scripting) language that adds functionality to web pages. It allows
developers to create interactive features like forms, buttons, and animations. JavaScript also enables
real-time updates on web pages without needing to refresh the entire page. JavaScript is what we
call a client side language, meaning that it runs in your browser and doesn’t affect any information
stored on the server, which is where all of the website’s code is stored, ready to be served to anyone
who wants to go into the website. This means that although it can change how the website looks to
you, it doesn’t change or permanently store any information on the server.

Node.js

Node.js is a close relative of JavaScript, but it runs on the server side, which allows more
functionality to be created Because things can be permanently stored, data is normally stored in a
database, Node.js is an environment that enables the execution of JavaScript on the server-side. It's
especially useful for building web applications and APIs that require high performance and scalability,
as it allows developers to use a single language (JavaScript) both on the client and server sides.

Python

Python is a popular programming language used in web development. It’s known for its simplicity
and readability. Developers use Python to build web applications, create web tools, and automate
various tasks on the internet. E.g . Django and Flask.

SQL (structured query language)

SQL is a language used for managing databases. It allows developers to create, retrieve, update, and
delete data in a structured manner. SQL ensures that web applications can efficiently store and
retrieve information from databases. The common ones which you might meet are MySQL and
PostgreSQL (Postgres) .

Ruby

Ruby is a user-friendly programming language commonly used in web development. It's appreciated
for its clear and straightforward code. Ruby is most commonly used as 'Ruby on Rails', and is a
popular way of creating web apps.

React, Angular, and Vue.js

These are JavaScript libraries/frameworks used to build complex and interactive user interfaces. They
provide pre-built components and tools that simplify the development of features like chat systems,
real-time updates, and single-page applications (SPAs). These can help save time when developing,
and make adding more complicated behaviour easy.

dynamic content and static content

Static content is when anyone who goes on the website will see the same content as everyone else.
Usually, they just use HTML CSS

Dynamic content is content on a website that changes for different people. Ways of creating
dynamic content include:

Real-time updates

Real-time content includes features like live chat, social media feeds, and stock market tickers that
update automatically as new information becomes available. Achieving real-time updates typically
involves technologies like WebSocket or long polling, which allow constant communication between
the server and the client so that new information can be shown to the user.

Interactive forms

Interactive forms allow users to input data and receive immediate feedback, such as error messages
or suggestions. They can also be used to provide services such as online calculators or translators, or
even games! JavaScript is often used to validate user inputs and provide dynamic responses without
the need to reload the entire page.

User-generated content

Websites that allow users to post comments, reviews, or content are very popular online, and many
users like to be able to leave reviews or to post comments. Databases such as PostgreSQL store this
data, and server-side scripting languages are used to retrieve and display it on web pages for other
users to see.

Personalised recommendations

Websites often provide personalised recommendations for users based on their browsing history,
preferences, or behaviour. Algorithms and server-side scripting languages process this data to
generate tailored content recommendations. This is used by sites such as Google and Amazon to try
and give you search results which are more relevant to you.

Content management systems, or CMS, are tools that help people create websites without needing
advanced technical skills. They're like a set of building blocks that you can easily put together to
make a website.

With a CMS, you don't have to write complex code because it provides a user-friendly way to add
text, images, and videos to your site. It's great for anyone who wants a website but doesn't know
how to code. A CMS allows you to focus on what you want to share on your website — your stories,
products, or ideas — while it handles the technical stuff behind the scenes. It's a helpful tool for
making a great website without the technical hassle!

There are many different CMSs available such as Joomla or Drupal

which are both free, open-source CMS. But there is one name which stands out, as over 40% of all
websites use it.

WordPress is an incredibly popular CMS which is very widely used in web development. Because it
has such a large number of users, it has many different plug-ins and templates which have been
developed by those users, making it one of the most versatile CMS.

Local or online hosting?

You can download WordPress to your own computer, and make a local website which you can use to
practice, but which nobody else will be able to see. This is great when you're just learning as it's
completely safe and secure.

Once you're ready to make your first site which is online, you will need to get hosting and a domain
name. Hosting provides you with some space on a web server, which stores your website and lets
people go onto it. A domain name is the URL (uniform resource locator) which users type in to get to
your website. Many services will provide you with both, but always look at a variety of services as
prices can vary a lot. You should also make sure that your hosting provider supports WordPress -
most do, but always check!

What can WordPress do?

You can make some really complex websites with WordPress - it's particularly popular for shopping
websites, and for things like recipe sites and blogs. It provides the basic template for the site, so all
the pages will have the same layout and theme, and makes it very quick to add new pages. It's very
easy to set up shops with WordPress, making it quick to do things like set up payments and shopping
baskets, which are quite hard to do when programming.

It can also provide searching, sorting and filtering, split search results into pages, and even do things
like marketing using customer email addresses, and search engine optimisation by making it easy to
test which keywords boost the website.

Web Apps
. one web app will work on any device which can open a modern web browser.

. don't need to download anything; they just enter the URL and they're on the web app. This also
makes it very easy to update, as developers can just make changes to the code and it automatically
updates the web app

. Web apps are halfway between software development and web development; they are usually
written in languages such as Python or Ruby on Rails for the back-end, but use the web languages
(HTML, CSS, JavaScript) to provide the front-end. They usually have a database so knowing a bit of
SQL is useful, although there are libraries which can do this for you in Python which can be useful.

Web Cookie is a small message from a web server passed to the user’s browser when you visit a
website. In other words, Cookies are small text files of information created/updated when visiting a
website Cookies are tiny text files containing data about your interactions with a website. They are
created when you visit a website and remember information about your visit, making your
experience more efficient and personalized. The number of cookies on your computer depends on
several factors, such as how frequently you browse the web, the types of websites you visit, and your
browser settings.

Developers ask about your cookie preferences primarily to comply with privacy laws and regulations,
as well as to ensure that they respect your choices about how your data is used.

Data Protection Act (DPA)

 Lawfulness, fairness and transparency: You need to use people's data in a way which is legal,
which doesn't discriminate against anyone, and you need to tell them what you're doing with
the data.

 Purpose limitation: You can only use data for the purposes which you have told your users
about.

 Data minimisation: You should collect only necessary data; for example, you shouldn't
collect dates of birth unless you need them for a specific purpose.

 Accuracy: All data should be kept up to date.

 Storage limitation: Don't keep data longer than you need to.

 Integrity and confidentiality: Data has to be kept securely.

 Accountability: You have to take responsibility for data and ensure that the other principles
are followed.

Ways of Including disabled people into website // accessibility

. Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, or WCAG, as they’re sometimes called, as these are the legal
minimum requirement in the UK

. Screen readers - who are blind or partially sighted but a whole range of people use screen readers
to help them. Making a website screen reader friendly is quite simple. It’s important to use
informative headings to provide descriptive alt text for images, and to mark any images which are
just decorative, such as logos, so that the screen reader can skip over them. It’s also important to
layout the website in a clear and hierarchical way, so that the screen reader moves through the
content easily and in the right order.

. Keyboard navigation - from foot pedals to special pressure sensors for your mouth can be used to
map keyboard keys. ARIA roles which are designed to improve web accessibility to make sure
everything is labelled correctly.

. making sure you’re using colours, font styles, and font sizes which are easy for everyone to read.
When you have text on a website, it should have a high contrast with its background. Avoid having a
light text on a light background or dark text on a dark background, and avoid using different shades
of the same colour, different brightnesses of a different colour in the same place. keep colour
blindness in mind,

. Intellectual Property or IP is a way of talking about your ideas and other intangible (non-physical)
things that you create.

- (IP also has another meaning in web development, as you may have heard of IP addresses.
- you are generally going to be giving whoever is paying you the rights over the intellectual
property you create.

There are a few main sorts of intellectual property in web development:

1. Copyright: This is a way of saying, "This is my code, and you can't use it without asking."
Whenever you create something, you hold the copyright automatically and you can then ask
anyone who shares or copies your work to remove it.

2. Patents: Think of patents as special licenses for unique and new ideas or inventions. They
give you exclusive rights to use and share your cool new ideas for a certain period. To patent
something, you need to apply for a patent which can be a difficult and expensive process.
One challenge of patents if that after a certain amount of time, the patent will become
public so companies often avoid this.

3. Trademarks: These are like logos or brand names for your software or apps. They help
people recognise your work and prevent others from pretending to be you or using your
name. You need to register your trademarks, which costs money.

4. Open source: Many developers will share things under an open source agreement, which
means that other people can use them freely. These usually state whether you need to give
credit or not, whether you can change the thing you are using, and whether you can use it
for commercial (money-making) purposes. There are lots of different open source
agreements, some popular ones are the MIT license and the GNU license

. Need to consider when using other peoples intellectual property e.g. music that has been
copyrighted

Positives of web development

 Creativity: You will get to use creativity and problem solving in your work, and this can be
very satisfying! Lots of people find programming and creating websites fun, which can make
this a great role.
  Remote working: If you want a job where you can work from home, or you want to be able
to travel while you work, web design can be a great choice! Many companies will only need
you to come to the office once or twice a week at most, and if you do freelance web
development you may be able to do this from anywhere.

 Diverse roles: There are lots of different roles available, and as you develop more skills and
experience you can also look at changing between these roles. If you find that you really
enjoy the design aspect of web development, you can specialise as a designer, or if you
prefer programming then you can find back-end roles!

 Continuous learning: The digital landscape is always changing, and you will change along
with it, learning more technologies and developing your skills every day. Some people really
enjoy being able to continually learn, and may even want to go on to study for a degree or
postgraduate qualification through their work.

Drawbacks of web development

 Long hours: This is almost universal in development, but there will be times when you are
under significant pressure and may need to work long days or late into the night. This is often
called 'crunch time' and often comes just before big deadlines as last-minute problems occur
and fixes need to be made.

 Learning curve: While some people appreciate the challenge of keeping up with new
technologies, some people do not! It can be frustrating to need to pick up new languages or
keep on top of changing technologies, and can add to workload.

 Security concerns: Web developers have to keep an eye out for security concerns, and be
able to secure databases or handle attacks when they come. Developers also need to know
about new risks and how to handle them, which is more learning!

 Repetitive tasks: While you will sometimes be working on and developing new sites, the day
to day job of a web developer will also involve a lot of repetition and similar tasks such as
updating sites, changing small details, and maintaining sites. Like all jobs, there are fun bits
and there are boring bits!

 Competition: Web development is quite competitive, especially if you want to become a

freelance web developer! There are lots of web developers, and competition over clients can
be fierce - especially as you will potentially be competing with people from all over the
world. You'll need to be resilient and be able to deal with rejection, as well as good at getting
your company name or CV out there!

Steps in Recruitment as a Web Developer :

1. Application form - either write a covering letter or some sort of personal statement,
or to answer a series of questions about your experience. if you need to write a
letter or a statement to go through the advert and highlight anything which is an
essential criteria. short notes about things that you’ve done which meet those
criteria. Avoid going into lots of little details
- Portfolios - as simple as just screenshots of websites which you’ve worked on
2. Interview – Similar to regular interviews but they have a technical task or technical
question. you should use the job advert or person specification to help you prepare.
 r, always back it up with the impact that your action had. Don’t be afraid to use
examples from a wide range of different activity.

Some good things to do to boost your employability are:

. Know your local area – know what local companies are looking for. a local
community of web developers. Check whether there is a WordPress community
which has a local meeting or convention, and look on Meetup.com for groups. These
will help you to both grow your understanding of the local web development scene,
and help you to network and potentially meet future employers

. Learn the tools - you should look at learning how to use a version control tool. The
most popular and universal one is Git, and you will find many courses online which
can guide you through this. Being able to use GitHub is an absolutely core skill for
developers, so it is useful to have some experience of using it before you start
working and this is a good way to show that you understand what tools
programmers use. It also gives you access to the huge open source community on
GitHub which can be a good way of learning more development.

. Make some sites- Whether it's a basic static website with your CV on it, or a fancy
dynamic web app with a game on it, practice making some sites. You can find free or
very cheap hosting online through services such as PythonAnywhere and GitHub
Pages, so have a go at making something and putting it online. This shows that you
can not only make the site, but understand how to get it online and running too.

. TOOLS TO TRY :
- Rasberry Pi
- Coursera offers a free course where you can learn image generation with DALL-E in depth. It
includes lessons on prompt engineering, image manipulation, and advanced editing
techniques
- Freecodecamp

 Get involved in the community: There is a huge community of developers both online and
in-person. This is a great way to meet other developers, learn more about technologies and
tools, and meet potential employers.

 Learn multiple technologies: While you might start out as a WordPress developer, or an
HTML & CSS developer, you should try and learn multiple ways of making a website. This will
help broaden your horizons and the number of projects you can be involved in.

 Make some websites: The best way to learn and develop, as well as to show your skills, is to
make some websites! You don't need to publish any of them online if you don't want to, but
having a GitHub Page to showcase your skills to prospective employers is a great ide