Hi,
Some of you may have noticed some strange behavior over the last few days on the site, you haven’t been drinking too much … we are in the middle of server migration and that tends to inject gremlins into the mix.
… No worries though, we should be tiptop within a day or two and all will be well.
I appreciate your patience.
Stefan Mischook
Hi,
I am happy to announce that we are well on our way to closed captioning all of our web design and web programming related video training courses.
We’ve managed in the last couple of months to provide captioning for hundreds of our video screencasts. So far we’ve covered topics like:
– php basics
– advanced php
– Javascript basics
– JQuery
– Dreamweaver
– Basic web design concepts
… And much more.
You can expect to see dozens of free closed captioned videos over the next several months – just check out our blogs. In the meantime, you can view many of our video tutorials in Killersites University. They will be made available on Killervideostore.com for download or on DVD in the next few weeks.
Thanks,
Stefan Mischook
www.killersites.com
Once again, an article derived from a question put to me:
What do you offer unemployed 75-years old geezers doing a Flash self-learning approach, to maintain my sanity knowing no company, at my age, will ever offer me gainful income employment ???
Respectfully,
Marvin G
Translation: Can old geezers make a living in web design?
Short answer: yes.
… If you train properly.
The best thing about the web design field is that it is very open and not hindered by regulation and formality that we see in many other professions.
In fact, the professional web world is one of the few meritocracies left on this planet – imagine that, skill and talent count!
… It never fails to baffle me why economists and professional stock pickers still have jobs!? Oh yea, they don’t need to produce results!
Anyway …
Flash though, may not be the best route because it is a marginalized aspect of web design and I think with the added pressure from Apple and HTML5 (that supplants some important aspects of Flash) … it will fade even more so. I am NOT saying Flash will disappear, but I think it will be used that much less.
So what is the solution?
First thing, you may want to consider being self employed web designer, start taking on web design jobs. It much more fun anyway! And 2nd, you need to learn the skills of a modern web designer … skills that are used everyday:
– HTML
– CSS
– PHP
– Javascript
The last two on my list may scare you (programming for web designers?), but in fact, it is the key to you getting more jobs and earning more money than the next guy.
Conclusion:
I believe that the open nature of the web design profession and the growing demand for websites, combined with some strategic web design training … and yes, geezers will not just make some extra cash, they can make a good living and on their schedule. Remember, with web design, you don’t need to go work for a company.
Thanks for reading,
Stefan Mischook
killersites.com
Preface:
In this article I listed some hourly rates you could charge depending on your skills, experience and talents. I wanted to point out that these numbers are not written in stone because of a few other factors:
– Where you live.
– How the economy is doing.
– Where technology is going.
So for example, someone living in Bangkok Thailand will probably get paid a lot less than someone living in New York city because everything is much cheaper in Thailand. For instance, an apartment that would cost you $500 in Bangkok will cost you $3000 in New York. So keep this in mind when reading.
–
Hi,
I get a lot of web design and web programming related questions thrown at me and from time to time I use them as the basis of a blog post:
Tell me if you will. How much can a person expect to earn as a website developer?
Thanks again. I am hoping to make this a new career for me.
My answer:
How much can a person expect to earn as a website developer?
Depends on where you live, your skills, talent and experience. So let’s say you’re Mr. average, pretty good at what you do, but not one of those rare ultra-nerds or ultra-designers.
Once you have basic web design skills in place:
– html
– css
– basic design skills
.. You can make the lower end of a middle class living. So of many places, that’s about $15-25 hr – depending on your talents.
Once you add these skills:
– PHP (able to do simple things and modify scripts in simple ways)
– Javascript – same level as PHP
… Then you can at another $5-10hr to that base. Again, depends on your depth of knowledge and talent.
Finally, if you can add to that:
– An understanding of web architecture.
– SEO
– Usablility
– More advanced PHP/ Javascript skills.
– Some experience under your belt.
… Then you can start finding yourself making much more. Experience and talent do play a major role in this.
In my heyday as a Java web programmer, I was billing out at $200 hr.
I hope that helps.
Stefan Mischook
killersites.com
Hi,
This is part 3 of our new series on CSS layouts. In this video we set up the project in Dreamweaver CS5, learn about universal CSS selectors and using the Dreamweaver CS5 CSS tools.
The entire series can be found in Killersites University, our subscription video tutorial service.
Thanks,
Stefan Mischook
killersites.com
According to recent reports, Android based smart phones are out selling iPhone in the US:
Android vs iPhone: Android takes the Lead with 28% on US Market – Apple has now found its match Android Manufacturers have proven that they can go head to head with Apple iPhone, In googles operating system Android have just supremacy over the Apple iPhone in the US market share. In the First few months of 2010 Android jumped to 28%, Apple had their 21% , while BlackBerry stood firm with 36% given their Business style.
Now Apple disputed that study with this statement:
This is a very limited report on 150,000 US consumers responding to an online survey and does not account for the more than 85 million iPhone and iPod touch customers worldwide … IDC figures show that iPhone has 16.1 percent of the smartphone market and growing, far outselling Android on a worldwide basis. We had a record quarter with iPhone sales growing by 131 percent and with our new iPhone OS 4.0 software coming this summer, we see no signs of the competition catching up anytime soon
So what does this have to do with web design and web programming?
Ah … good question young nerdling! Web professionals need to keep up to date regarding technology trends, so they (you) can position yourself (in terms of your skills) in a juicy spot, so you can land the jobs and get paid more.
Android means more freedom
Another cool thing about Android gaining ground on iPhone so quickly, is that Android supports Flash and HTML5 … I’d rather that the most popular phone out there support Flash and HTML5 than otherwise. Don’t get me wrong, I like Apple products, in fact I am blogging on my Macbook Pro now … But nonetheless, I should have the choice what software I want to run on a device I bought.
Another interesting thing about Android, is that it too (along side with iPhone OS on the iPad) will be ported to a tablet. With the growing market share of Android on smartphones and soon (I suspect) on tablets, Flash and HTML5 developers will have a great home for their apps.
… Since there are millions of Flash developers out there (many more than iPhone developers) I am waiting to see what Google will come out with (in terms of a tablet) before I even consider the iPad.
That’s all for now.
Stefan Mischook
killersites.com
A common question that is put to me by aspiring web designers is:
What are the job prospect looking forward, for web designers and web programmers?
Oftentimes, they will mention web templates and other tools/technology that speed up the process of web design, seeing them as potential roadblocks for the profession:
… if these tools keep getting better and making web design easier, who’s going to need web designers?
Let me first start by saying that web designers, programmers, market specialist and all other web professionals are going to become even MORE SOUGHT AFTER, over the next many years.
Why? Simple young nerdlings, everything is jumping onto the Web. Radio stations and newspapers are going bust, magazines and books are going digital … even TV is fragmenting, where video sites like Youtube have huge audiences that rival many traditional TV networks.
But wait, there’s more!
Besides traditional media business having to go online, just about every business (large and small) NEED to have a Web presence. Today, a business without a website is like a home without electricity.
So it’s pretty clear that business needs to be on the Web and so the Web is growing like crazy. But how about them pesky templates and blogs that make putting up a website easy? Well, let me ask you, do you know how to install a blog, set up a database? Do you know how to choose a good domain name, structure a website so that it is search engine friendly? Do you know how to add sound, video, contact forms, forums …. e-commerce systems to a site? Do you know how the design a custom theme for WordPress or Drupal?
… Now, as a web professional you may know how to do some of these things, but what I can tell you with great certainty, is just about all non-web designers no nothing about how to do these things. That’s where a web professional comes in:
– installing that blog.
– customizing the theme.
– adding the forum.
… etc.
Anyway, don’t just take my opinion on this, the LA Times just wrote an article talking about how IT professionals are finding jobs easily.
Now the article doesn’t mention web designers or programmers specifically, but you can be sure they are a serious part of the mix. One thing the article does mention though, is that the more skills you have, the greater chance you will get a job and the more money you will make – something I’ve been pushing for years: web designers need to evolve into 21st century web designers and learn:
.. Just knowing how to design won’t cut it anymore.
Stefan Mischook
www.killersites.com
Hi,
These days Firefox is a key tool for web designers and web developers because of all the great plug-ins that you can install (for free!) that add all kinds of useful functionality.
In the following video I introduce you to three of my favorites:
Check out the video:
David has had a knack for pointing the way, when it comes to the Web. In David’s new book ‘Pull’, he’s now pointing the way when it comes to the Web, business and perhaps even more. In the following interview, I try to get to heart of what Pull is all about.
Thanks for reading,
Stefan Mischook
1. What is ‘pull’ in a nutshell?
It’s the first book of its kind, describing the next 10 years of innovation online, where all industries will transition from a push model to a pull model. In the next few years, your customers will pull information, products, and sevices from you, and you’ll have to set up to be pulled, rather than pushing.
Hi,
In the following video, I get into what web designers need to learn these days and how advances in web technology controls this.
Let me know what think .. is it too long, boring or just right?
😉
Thanks,
Stefan Mischook
www.killersitescom
