#learn to code

Many people dream of being able to create their own web templates. What they don’t know is that getting there isn’t as hard as it seems.

This article lists some tips on how to learn to code for any platform, and how to start your own Tumblr theme blog. Here’s a quick summary:

• Learning to code
• Getting started with your own templates
• Styling your website
• Running your website
• Sharing your content

Learning to code

The very first step on your journey is to invest a bit of your time on learning how to code. Make sure to read the basics of coding and start practising - practice makes perfect!

Not sure where to start? Here’s some help:

• Codecademy. By far the best place to start. Codecademy has great introductory courses to begin building your foundations on coding and they also offer a wide range of coding languages. For web design, you’ll need HTML and CSS, as well as JavaScript. Other languages may be necessary depending on which platforms you use, but these are absolute basics.
• W3Schools. One of the most popular code-learning websites out there. Perfect for beginners, it offers starting tips on pretty much everything you need to start creating your own templates.
• CSS Tricks.If there’s any complete CSS masterlist, this is it. You can learn pretty much everything about CSS on this website with accessible explanations and clear examples.
• HTML Dog.Despite focusing on HTML, this website also offers CSS tutorials in order to complement both languages.
• JavaScript for Cats.A funny and cute way of getting started with JS!

Working on Tumblr? If you’re coding for Tumblr, make sure to read the Tumblr Docs. This explains everything about Tumblr blocks and will help you structure your template correctly.

Starting your own templates

Once you’re comfortable with coding, it’s time to start creating your own templates. Here are a few tips based on my own experience:

• Start for yourself. You may be confident in your skills, but it’s a good idea to start creating templates for yourself before sharing them with the public. This way you’ll be able to test your work on your own website and debug things that would have slipped past you.
• Find your style. Many designers don’t know what their style is and that’s perfectly fine. Finding your style means that you should find a way of coding and designing that you’re comfortable with. Your templates will have your identity all about them even if you design entirely different things.
• Resist temptations. It’s easy to slip into someone else’s source code and see how they’ve done something - stop right there! Even if you have no intention on doing so, you might end up copying someone else’s work and this could bring you some unnecessary headaches.
• Ask for help. Don’t be afraid of not knowing everything. Asking for help is advised but make sure to do your research before reaching out - doing so will allow you to learn a lot more than if you were to contact someone immediately. 

Styling your website

Your website will be your main connection between you and your work, and the people interested in it. Here are some tips on how to make it appealing:

• Keep it clean. Avoid unnecessary elements. Exaggerated zoom effects, distracting elements such as overly thick borders, shouldn’t be used. You want your audience to feel comfortable on your website, so make it as inviting as possible. The ideal design will use a maximum of three font families and colours.
• Ditch small fonts. A 10px font isn’t readable in most screen resolutions, which makes your website very hard to use. A minimum size of 14px is ideal.
• Watch out for the colours. Keep your website clean is also about being smart with colour usage. Make use of black and white or dark greys for backgrounds, pairing them with an accent colour. If used properly, gradient background look amazing as well.

Running your website

You’ve learned your coding, you’ve found your style, and you’ve got your website. What comes next? Running it.

• Stay organised. Running a website isn’t only about having it. You’ve got to have a plan as well. Think about what you’d like to address or share on your website and create a plan (e.g. article schedules and topics, template releases per month or week, etc).
• Be polite. You will come across harsh feedback at some point, so don’t expect it to be a smooth ride at all times. People won’t always appreciate your work or agree with your opinions and that’s fine. Regardless of how you’re spoken to on your website, don’t fall into the temptation of responding on the same tone. Stay polite!
• Interact with others. You won’t be successful if you’re isolated. It might be intimidating at first, but interacting with other designers and even your readers places you one step ahead on the game.
• Don’t just disappear. Life takes unexpected turns but do your best not to vanish without a trace. Leaving a quick note on your website about your absence takes but ten minutes and your readers appreciate it.

Sharing your content

If you’re at this stage, then you’re ready to start sharing your content.

• Use social media. Social media makes wonders these days, but you ought to stay active. Regularity is key for a successful use of social media (along with appealing posts and interesting content, of course), so make sure that you use these tools for your own advantage.
• Boost your SEO. Your website won’t get far unless your SEO is good enough. It might sound complicated but it’s easier than you think. This great article by Moz guides on how to get started with SEO.
• Schedule your content. If you suspect that you can’t stay active on your website or if you’re going through an inspiration surge, you might want to take advantage of scheduling features for a more consistent updating of your website.
• Submit your work. You might also be interested in sharing your content with other designers or bloggers of your industry. These people will often share your content and grant you the visibility that you need to start off.

Ready to take the web design community by storm? Good luck!

I’m REALLY glad to be editing my own code these days. I cannot believe the headaches it was just to edit simple things. And, how hard it has been to find any coding partners. I guess that’s how it goes.

But, at least Daniel @philososaur is nice! Thank you! We’re too cool..

Worldie.com - My product idea while I was just starting the business major! Was that tough too!!

#Worldie #SocialMedia #deletefacebook #business #entrepreneurship