DesignersTalk - View Single Post

Hunch · 15-04-2008, 02:09

Spend a couple of hours reading up on the following subjects:

PHP:

Imperative programming
Object Orientation
Scripting languages
Algorithms

Databases:

Relational databases
Structured Query Language
Database normalization

Wikipedia will probably be a good friend to you on everything above.

Understand the technology you're using, and why it works the way it does before you start trying to use it. A lot of programming, and especially database design these days is rubbish, produced by people who never studied database theory, or had any basic understanding of the computer sciences. A lot of the code that I see on this very forum is amateurish and poorly designed.

Presumably you studied design at some point in the past, and looked at areas such as color theory, typography etc. If you could just download a torrent of Photoshop and start creating perfect creative work, every kid in his bedroom would be a top designer. The same goes for the technical side of computing. Your grounding in the disciplines of design is what sets you apart from those kids, because you understand the subject better and can apply that knowledge. Once you understand how, and why things work, then start looking at tutorials.

At the end of the day it's down to you. You can spend a few hours finding out how to do things properly, or you can take the shortcut route. But since you asked for people's advice, the above would be my starting point.

15-04-2008, 02:09	#9 (permalink)
Hunch Grumpy old man Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: North Japan Posts: 1,457	Spend a couple of hours reading up on the following subjects: PHP: Imperative programming Object Orientation Scripting languages Algorithms Databases: Relational databases Structured Query Language Database normalization Wikipedia will probably be a good friend to you on everything above. Understand the technology you're using, and why it works the way it does before you start trying to use it. A lot of programming, and especially database design these days is rubbish, produced by people who never studied database theory, or had any basic understanding of the computer sciences. A lot of the code that I see on this very forum is amateurish and poorly designed. Presumably you studied design at some point in the past, and looked at areas such as color theory, typography etc. If you could just download a torrent of Photoshop and start creating perfect creative work, every kid in his bedroom would be a top designer. The same goes for the technical side of computing. Your grounding in the disciplines of design is what sets you apart from those kids, because you understand the subject better and can apply that knowledge. Once you understand how, and why things work, then start looking at tutorials. At the end of the day it's down to you. You can spend a few hours finding out how to do things properly, or you can take the shortcut route. But since you asked for people's advice, the above would be my starting point.