How To Become A Web Developer, How to Become a Web Developer – a Beginner's Guide

How To Become A Web Developer

How To Become A Web Developer

How To Become A Web Developer, How to Become a Web Developer – a Beginner's Guide

Are you considering a career in web development? If so, you’re making a great choice. Web development is one of the most in-demand skills on the market in 2024. With over 5.038 billion internet users, web development has a promising future.

In this article, I’ll show you what you need to get started in web development. We’ll explore the core technology stack, beginner-friendly project ideas, helpful resources, and some additional tips.

Two years ago, I wrote an article on this topic. Since web development is still in high demand, I’m excited to revisit it with more detailed guidance. So, stick around until the end.

Table of Contents

What is a Website?

Frontend vs. Backend

Frontend Development

HTML

CSS

JavaScript

Frontend Frameworks and Libraries

Responsive Design

Backend Development

Why Should You Learn a Programming Language?

Python

Golang

Java

JavaScript

How to choose a programming language?

Backend frameworks

Databases

APIs

Git and GitHub

Build a portfolio of projects

Installation and hosting services

Additional tips

What is a website

A web page is a document that is displayed in a web browser (such as Chrome, Firefox, etc.). It consists of text, images, and other interactive elements. And a website is a collection of web pages that are connected to each other through links.

A website runs on a remote computer called a web server and is accessed over the internet. Some examples of well-known websites are Wikipedia, Amazon, and YouTube.

Note: When I refer to web applications or web applications in this article, I mean the same thing as websites.

A web app consists of two components, the frontend and the backend. Let's understand the difference between them.

Frontend vs Backend of a Website

The frontend is the user interface (UI) of a website, which is basically what the user sees on their screen.

The backend refers to the server where the core logic of the website is located. It also includes the database, where all the data of the application is stored.

The frontend and the backend communicate by exchanging information. Let’s take the example of a social media app like Instagram.

When you upload a post, the UI sends the post data to the backend, which processes the data and adds it to the database. Then the next time, when you load the site/app, it fetches all your posts from the backend and displays them on the screen.

In the next two sections, I will show how you can get started with frontend and backend development.

Frontend Development

As I mentioned above, frontend development is mainly concerned with the UI – that is, the appearance of the website. To get started with frontend development, you need to learn the following three essential tools:

HTML

HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) is used to write web pages that are displayed by browsers. It defines the structure and content of a web page, it forms the backbone of every website.

The content of a web page includes elements such as headings, paragraphs, links, images, lists, etc. HTML creates and structures all of these elements through the use of tags. The browser, in turn, interprets this HTML code and renders it on your screen.

FreecodeCamp's Responsive Web Design Certification Their free course starts by teaching you the basics of HTML. You'll even build your own photo app. So it's a good place to start and dig deeper into HTML.

If you want some extra practice, w3schools.com is also a helpful resource for beginners. It offers clear, step-by-step tutorials for every concept. They provide an interactive editor to practice using HTML tags and let you see the output web page (like FreecodeCamp does).

Focus on the following areas:

Creating a simple web page

Using HTML tags to render content

Creating forms

CSS

While HTML defines the structure of a web page, it's not enough because it only creates a skeleton UI of a web page. It only determines which elements are present on the page and not how they look.

CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) is used to add visual appeal to web pages. It transforms a simple, plain web page into a properly designed user interface.

Here's what a website looks like with plain HTML:

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And here's what it looks like when you add CSS:

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Much better, right? It actually looks more like a proper web page than the previous bare-bones UI. This is referred to as "styling" a web page.

CSS styling includes the following:

Colors, fonts, and element backgrounds

Organizing content in different layouts (grids, flex boxes, etc.)

Spacing, which goes along with margins and padding

Transitions and animations (the advanced stuff)

You'll also learn CSS as you continue through the FreeCodeCamp curriculum - so this is a great way to do it.

You can also refer to w3schools.com for CSS tutorials. Play with each CSS property in their interactive editor.

Note: HTML and CSS are not programming languages.

JavaScript

HTML and CSS are only capable of creating static websites - that is, you cannot interact with any elements of a web page created with just HTML and CSS. The website does not update or respond to any user interaction such as button clicks or dropdown selections.

JavaScript (JS) is a programming language that makes a website dynamic and interactive. It adds the following functionality to a website:

Handling user interactions such as clicks, hovers, keyboard presses, form filling, etc.

Dynamically updating content on a web page

Form validation and submission handling

Interacting with backend servers

JavaScript has many other capabilities that make your website functional and engaging for end users. It's important to build a strong foundation of concepts as you begin your JS learning journey. Initially, focus on the following areas:

Basic JavaScript syntax

JS functions

Interacting with the DOM (Document Object Model)

Event handling

JS objects and arrays

Asynchronous JavaScript

Read the following resources for JavaScript:

FreecodeCamp for a free, in-depth, JS course

w3schools.com for basic JavaScript tutorials

JavaScript Interview Prep Handbook for important JavaScript concepts.

There are many other resources for JavaScript, but I won't overwhelm you with too many. These two should be enough to get you started.

Once you're familiar with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, you'll know how to create a simple web page. Continue practicing by creating different web pages, such as to-do lists and forms, and try implementing CRUD (Create, Read, Update, Delete) features.

Learn Frontend Frameworks and Libraries

As your website grows, JavaScript code becomes more complex and difficult to maintain. This slows down the development process and makes it really challenging for developers.

To solve these problems, you can use frameworks and libraries. Frameworks encourage modular design and reusability, providing a more structured way to build web apps.

Using frameworks, you can focus on building actual features instead of managing the complexities of JavaScript code, which helps you speed up the development process. This is why I recommend choosing a JS framework/library for developing large projects.

React.js - A Good Option

React JS is a JavaScript library that makes it easy to create dynamic and interactive web pages. It breaks down your code into components, making it easier to read and maintain. It reduces code complexity and allows for reusability.

React is my personal recommendation because it has a lighter learning curve compared to other frameworks. It is in high demand among frontend roles, as many web apps are built in React.

To get started learning React, your best resource is the React docs. They are very detailed, and include interactive code editors to play with.

The FreeCodeCamp YouTube channel also has some helpful React courses, like the one by Bob Zirl, and the Frontend Development Library Certification also has a React section.

In addition to React, there are other JavaScript frameworks like Angular, Vue, and the jQuery library. These also tend to be popular, and depending on what tools are in demand in your area, you can focus on the one that will best meet your needs.

Note: Make sure you have learned all the basic JavaScript concepts and fully understand them before jumping into any framework.

Learn Responsive Design

Before we move on, let’s talk about a basic practice in web development.

Responsive design refers to an approach where your design adapts to all screen sizes, from desktop to tablet and mobile. A good responsive design greatly reduces the need to write separate code for different screen sizes.

Here’s an interesting fact: Mobile phones account for two-thirds of the world’s web usage. So, to ensure a good user experience, you need to make your website look good on mobile phones.

Learn more about responsive design in this easy guide and read more about some best practices here.

And here are some other resources that can help you on your frontend journey:

MDN Docs

WebDevSimplified - YouTube Channel

Backend Development

How To Become A Web Developer, Backend development involves building the server-side of a web application. The server-side hosts the business logic of a website, which powers everything behind the scenes. It is also responsible for managing the database and ensuring the smooth flow of data between the server and the UI.

To dive into backend development, you first need to learn a programming language.

Why should you learn a programming language?

Learning a programming language equips you with the foundation to build these server-side applications. Think of a language as a way to tell the server what you want it to do.

A programming language serves as a tool for solving problems and building powerful, functional applications. These languages ​​have a variety of capabilities to handle tasks like storing and managing data, communicating with the front end, and ensuring application security.

Learning a programming language is not just about learning syntax and writing code. It’s about understanding how to build the systems that run a successful website. So, getting familiar with a programming language is a key part of backend development.

There are many programming languages ​​out there, each with their own unique features. Let’s take a look at a few options:

Python

Python is one of the favorites for backend development due to its simplicity. It has a concise and readable syntax that makes it very popular. It offers good features for database connections and setting up web servers. Python also has libraries for data science and machine learning.

Python has a lot of tutorials and good community support, which makes it easy to get started. It is beginner-friendly, fun to learn, and in high demand.

Check out the following resources to learn Python:

Ultimate Python Beginner Course on FreecodeCamp's YouTube Channel

GeeksforGeeks Python Tutorials

Python Tutorials for Beginners (Hindi) on YouTube

Machine Learning with Python - FreecodeCamp Certification.

Golang - How To Become A Web Developer

Golang (Go) is growing in popularity due to its simplicity and efficiency. Go executes code quickly and efficiently, making it a good choice for high-performance applications. This increases development time quickly. Go has excellent concurrency support, which leads to efficient processing.

Go is beginner-friendly and has a clean and concise syntax, making it easy to read and maintain. It has an extensive standard library that provides many built-in functions and tools, so it is easy to set up a project without much hassle.

Go is growing in popularity due to its efficiency, and many companies are adopting Go for their projects. This has led to a growing demand for Golang developers, and it is expected to grow.

Go provides a lot of resources for beginners and a growing community. To get started with Go, read the following resources:

Tour of Go - Interactive learning with basic Golang concepts

The Golang Handbook by Flavio Copes

Go Docs - Very detailed

Java

How To Become A Web Developer, Java is an object-oriented programming (OOP) language, widely used for backend development. Java is known for its security and robustness, making it a preferred choice for applications that require high reliability, such as financial and healthcare systems. Java also offers excellent support for concurrency.

Java is a good option for beginners because of its extensive resources and a large developer community. It has a lot of tutorials and detailed documentation to make life easier for beginners as well as experienced developers.

Java has been around for a while, and many existing systems and enterprise applications currently run on Java. Therefore, there is a huge demand for Java developers among large enterprises.

Ultimately, the concepts you learn while coding in Java stick with you and make you a better developer, even if you switch languages ​​down the road.

The following resources can help you get started with Java:

Java Programming for Beginners at freeCodeCamp.org

Object-Oriented Programming in Java

JavaScript

We already know what JavaScript offers on the frontend, but it can also be used for backend development with NodeJS.

NodeJS is a runtime environment that allows you to run JS code on the server side. This makes it possible to use JavaScript for both the frontend and the backend.

NodeJS follows an event-driven architecture and asynchronous programming, which enables it to handle multiple tasks without stopping to execute a single (non-blocking I/O) task. Node is single-threaded, so instead of creating multiple threads to handle tasks, it executes tasks asynchronously, one after the other, in a queue.

Node also follows a modular architecture, meaning you can break your application into smaller, more manageable components. It also includes NPM (Node Package Manager), which provides access to thousands of open-source libraries to add functionality like routing, authentication, or database management.

Why use Node?

If you’re already familiar with JavaScript, it’s a great option, as you don’t need to learn any other languages.

Node is fast and efficient, making it easy if you want to quickly set up a small server.

Node has a large ecosystem of libraries available through NPM.

However, Node is not ideal for CPU-intensive tasks because they can block the main thread, since it’s single-threaded.

How to choose a programming language?

How To Become A Web Developer, With so many options available, it can be confusing to choose the right one for you. Each language has its own strengths and no one language is objectively better than the other.

Python and Golang are very beginner-friendly with simple syntax. So, if you value a gentle learning curve, these are two good options. Java is known for its reliability and robustness, many enterprise-level applications are built using Java.

For job opportunities, each of the above languages ​​is in high demand, so you can choose any one. The most important thing is to develop your problem-solving skills and understand how reliable software is built.

In the long run, the choice of language does not really matter, as the core fundamentals remain the same. So, my advice is to choose any language, learn its syntax and core capabilities, and start solving problems. You can start with the following:

Learn data structures and algorithms

Start solving problems on LeetCode

Learn language-specific frameworks and develop projects (upcoming section)

Backend Development Frameworks

A programming language alone is not enough to create robust and secure applications. Frameworks built on the power of these languages ​​allow you to build these powerful applications. By providing additional functionality such as routing and database handling, they act as a platform to test your coding skills and speed up the development process.

Depending on your language of choice, you can learn the following frameworks:

Django and Flask - Python-based frameworks

Java Spring Boot

Jin - Golang framework (you can build a simple Golang application without using a framework)

Read more about them if you are interested.

Databases

How To Become A Web Developer, A database is a structured collection of data and is an important part of backend development. It plays a vital role in storing and managing the data of the application.

Databases are broadly classified into two types:

Relational databases use tables to store data and define relationships between those tables. Examples are MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQLite.

Non-relational databases (NoSQL) are designed to handle unstructured or semi-structured data and are often used for hierarchical or document-based data storage. Examples include MongoDB and Cassandra.

MongoDB: A popular NoSQL database for flexible and scalable data storage.

Cassandra: Suitable for handling large amounts of distributed data.

To get started with relational databases, learn SQL (Structured Query Language). SQL is used to write queries that perform various operations on data, such as:

Creating tables and defining their structure.

Reading data using SELECT statements.

Updating existing records.

Deleting unnecessary or outdated data.

Read the following resources to learn SQL:

The Complete Handbook of SQL

w3schools.com

GeeksforGeeks - A great resource for learning about database concepts

Once you are familiar with basic SQL syntax and are able to write queries, explore DBMS (Database Management System) concepts. These help you understand how databases are designed, managed, and optimized.

As a beginner, I recommend starting with relational databases because they provide a solid foundation in DBMS concepts, including tables and relationships. They are more widely used in enterprises, and you can benefit greatly from learning their concepts.

It may take some time to learn these concepts, but don't worry about it. Take your time and continue working on development content in parallel. You will understand these concepts better as you gain more experience working with databases.

APIs

APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) are an essential part of backend development because they expose backend logic to the outside world. APIs are a way for two different applications to communicate with each other. In the context of web development, the frontend communicates with the backend service via APIs.

When you build a web application, the frontend often needs to send and receive data from the backend. Let’s take an example of login functionality. When a user logs in, the frontend sends their credentials to the backend via an API call. The backend validates this information and responds with the results.

To see these API calls, go to any website and open the Network tab in Developer Tools. Interact with the website, or reload the page, and you’ll see API calls being made as you use the website.

Read more discussions about APIs N Ports:

GeeksforGeeks - What is an API?

A Complete Beginner-Friendly Guide to APIs

How Does an API Work?

At this point, you know what you need to start with, friends, and two backends. If you're a writer at this point, congratulations! You've done the hard work. But there's one more thing you need to learn before you can start building your project.

Git and GitHub

Git is a version control system that tracks changes to a software project. It allows a person to work on a project without having to be plugged in.

GitHub is a remote repository for Git. It's like social media, but code for you. GitHub is hosted by developers and keeps track of every student.

GitHub lets you share your projects and see other developers. It facilitates growth and learning. I'm specifically explaining how to learn Git to jumpstart your development progress.

To get started with Git and GitHub, read these:

Learn Git Basics in 10 Minutes

The Complete Book on Git and GitHub + Complete Topics

Getting Started with GitHub

Build a Portfolio of Projects

Now, you’re ready to start working on projects. A project to show your audience. This helps you apply what you’ve learned so far and improve your problem-solving skills.

A Project Proposal:

Todo App

E-Commerce App

Personal Portfolio Website

Weather App - Use a Public API and Build a Simple UI

Energy Tracker

You can research these ideas further and start thinking of some benefits. Build a front-end, back-end, or both for your target audience. Share your project on GitHub to increase their visibility.

Check out GeeksforGeeks for more project testimonials.

Deployment and Hosting Platforms

Once you’ve created a web project, you can publish it to the public. This will make your website available for public use. How exciting!

Let’s discuss the terms. Deployment is the process of uploading your app to a remote system or server so that it is live and available to users. Hosting is your app providing a place to store your website data on a server and display your website on the internet.

Deploying and hosting an application mainly follows these steps:

Application code is written, tested locally, and optimized for production

Required configuration and secrets (passwords, API keys, and more) are written as environment variables

The code is pushed to a version control system like GitHub or GitLab

The code is scanned for any security vulnerabilities and automated tests are run

Hosting platforms pull code from these repositories and make it accessible to the internet.

Hosting services like Netlify, GitHub Pages, and Heroku offer free and paid services and are easy to use for beginners. Netlify supports only frontend applications while Heroku is good for backend and full stack applications with easy integration with a database. GitHub Pages lets you host directly from your repository.

Publishing your website to the public is a great opportunity to showcase your work to recruiters and potential collaborators.

Additional Tips

Don't spend too much time on tutorials, as you can get stuck in "tutorial hell." Tutorials are important for understanding the core concepts, but the real learning happens when you're working hands-on. So start building as soon as possible, even if it's just small projects at first.

JavaScript can seem overwhelming at first, but start small and practice regularly. Don't rush to learn multiple things at once, tackle one concept at a time and practice through code to get a better understanding.

Experiment with different frameworks initially to find one that works for you. Once you've chosen a framework, stick with it until you've mastered it.

Make sure you have a clear understanding of programming language concepts before jumping into any framework.

If you feel that one programming language isn't working for you, you can move on to another, as long as the core fundamentals remain the same.

As a beginner, it is important to have a basic understanding of both frontend and backend. Later, you can choose to specialize in one or you can focus on both by becoming a “full stack” developer.

You will face challenges at first, so don’t get discouraged. Keep practicing, and you will get better with time.

If you are stuck on a problem, use Chat GPT, Google Search, forums and developer communities, and Stack Overflow as much as possible. I am always available if you need any help.

Finally, stay up to date with the latest trends and technologies in web development. Always look for new or improved ways to solve problems. Learning never stops!

Conclusion

Web development is divided into two parts: frontend and backend development. Frontend deals with the appearance of the website while backend focuses on server-side logic and databases.

HTML, CSS, and JavaScript are essential in frontend development and form the backbone of a website. In backend development, it is important to learn a programming language like Python or Java. Both frontend and backend frameworks provide additional capabilities and speed up the development process.

Git is a must-have skill because it allows you to share your work and collaborate with other developers. Creating a portfolio of projects and sharing them on GitHub showcases your work and makes you a better developer. Finally, use deployment platforms because they make your website available to the general public.

That’s it for today! I hope this article helped you get started on your web development journey. Let me know what you think. Your feedback is always appreciated!

Connect with me on Twitter for more updates and discussions. If you have any questions or clarifications, feel free to reach out. Thank you for reading, and I look forward to seeing you next time!