Thanks for the comment. Good question. Absolutely I’d give the same advice. For the most part I’ve kept the essay updated as time has gone on, although there are a few little things I want to add (like new links and books). You can only fully understand HTML5 and CSS3 if you have a solid background in HTML and CSS, and probably Javascript. HTML5 and CSS3 are natural extensions to what you already know and what you’re already doing, as opposed to “new” languages. They’re also a long ways from being supported across the board on different browsers. Check out http://caniuse.com/

You *may* be able to get away without learning a server-side language if you utilize HTML5 local storage and some of the new javascript functionality that’s out there, but those will only work in very limited situations, both in terms of the site and the user’s browser. If you’re building sites for say just the iPad or iPhone or Android devices, you might be able to use strictly HTML5 for storage, but you’d be limited. I think for the majority of scenarios you’ll still want to learn a server-side language like PHP.

The biggest change is that an argument can be made for learning objective C or C++ or Java to program mobile apps instead of focusing on the web…but I suppose that’s another topic for another day

Good luck with your learning and let me know if you have any questions. If I don’t know the answer I can at least point you in the right direction most of the time

Adam

Is this the same advice you would give now? Especially in light of HTML5 rolling out? Or would it be wiser to put all my energy into learning HTML5? I’m trying to figure out if the time necessary would justify learning to program my sites on my own.

Thanks!

Btw – ColorZilla is AWESOME, can’t believe I never knew about that! Totally adding that to the article.

Interesting read. I enjoyed it. I bookmarked several links and installed Measureit. Very useful. (I would also add colorzilla to the list. Amazing how you always get some useful bits from articles like this.

It’s a tricky subject you dig in to, but well worth it. I guess that each person would approach this very differently.

For example, CS people go mad at the thought the html-css-javascript-php-mysql is so many people’s first (and in most cases only) “language.” They would probably try to get newcomers to spend 6 months on some non web language. That way you are learning ‘to program’ not to ‘make sites.’ It is also probably a much more direct route to the abstract theories of computer science.

I like that your approach is ‘get a site up & make money with it. Learn along the way.’

I think there is another path to take. This one includes absolutely no prior knowledge, not even above average web-savy. Still requires drive & desire to learn: Hosted Platforms. Hosted Platforms means software that is managed by some company the isn’t you. This includes things like webmail (gmail, hotmail etc.). It also includes software for making sites. A lot of it is intended for non-professionals. You can use hosted software to make most common types of sites.

One way is to start an online shop. Nevblog has an case study post about starting a real online business. You can do this without even knowing how to spell html:
http://www.nevblog.com/2007/12/house-of-rave-com-story-part-1.html

If you want to get a site up today, after work, during ad breaks, Weebly is definitely worth looking at. You can launch a site free (you’ll probably want to buy a domain name though) very easily. You are constrained with what you can do with it, but that might be good for a first site. You also have a lot of options. You can for example, add a basic paypal shop.

What I like about this option is that it lets people jump right in as easily as possible and will encourage them to learn. If you play around with weebly, you will probably become a sophisticate we user very fast. YOu will learn about embedding or domain names pretty fast. Then, when you are ready to try out tweaking css & html, you can do so very easily. It will also present you with good reasons to want to tweak the code. You might want to change your site design a little, for example.
http://www.weebly.com/

Hosted platforms are just another way to get to the same place. To really be able to implement any idea you have for a site, you will probably need to know html-css-javascript-php-mysql-ajax eventually. It is just a question of where you start. Most important is to start somewhere.