Websites Designed, Programmed And/Or Published

Programming And/Or Design Features I Have Used To Create A Website

I have been with Computers since 1982, on and off, learning various programming languages along the way. In the 1980s I began with the Colour Genie and ZX Spectrum computers before moving onto the Amiga A600 and A1200 in the 1990s. It wasn't until 2001 that I switched over to the PC, owning various PC models, whereby today (May 2010) I now own a Fujitsu Siemen PC Laptop.

The  Programmer

On the Colour Genie and the ZX Spectrum computers I played games mostly, but also dabbled with BASIC programming (the easiest programming language). When I bought my first Amiga, the Amiga A600, I started to learn the C (medium) and Assembly (difficult) programming languages which I continued with, on and off, until 2004 where I then began learning HTML (Website) and VBA (Macro) programming on the PC. Since then I have learnt enough about HTML, CSS, JavaScript and PHP programming to create business websites.

The  Designer

Being a programmer does not make you a website designer, and being a website designer does not make you a programmer. The two are completely different, which many people do not realise when searching for someone to create a website for them. I do not class myself as a website designer for example but I do class myself as a programmer.

A programmer generally finds it easier to learn about and implement website design whereas a website designer generally struggles with, website, programming simply because programming is a lot more complex with so many aspects of it to learn. So ideally you need a programmer and designer, or team of mixed-skills people, on board if you want your creative ideas turned into a website creation.....if you are not programming and designing it yourself of course.

First  Websites

One of my first website creations, started in Late 2006, was Cemon Music. With this website I was given "Artistic License" and so decided to make it stand out with its musical notes background. Many website designers these days tend to be scared of "Artistic License" with regards to image backgrounds, but back then I wanted to show that a website could look good with a complimentary background. Cemon Music was the first website where I used PayPal BUY NOW buttons to create a shopping cart.

Fig 1.0  Cemon Music - One of my first websites using an image background and PayPal BUY NOW shopping cart

After creating Cemon Music I started developing Beverage Heaven 24/7, in Early 2007, which is a night time door-to-door delivery service. With this website I had certain freedoms but followed the specifications of the owner. He basically wanted his paper drawing turning into a website, which I did. It seems a tedious thing now but at the time I was struggling to get to grips with the red border! as I wasn't too familiar with CSS programming and margins (gaps).

Fig 1.1  Beverage Heaven 24/7 - A paper drawing that turned into a website

The BH247 website was done using a Table layout, in order to get the descriptions and prices aligned, due to my lack of CSS knowledge at the time. If I were to make that website again I would definitely give it the benefit of a CSS layout. As it is now, programming aside, I like this website for its simplicity.

The next website I created was Connaissance-Biblique (Bible Knowledge), a French/English website that sells Religious Books. I had full "Artistic Licence" with this website and so decided to go for something that used PNG (Transparent) images and curves.

Fig 1.2  Connaissance-Biblique - A website that uses PNG (Transparent) images and a curved button area

With this website I wanted something that looked complex, programming-wise and design-wise, but at the same time represented a modern religious theme. Something that would make people think "That's Unusual" and at the same time programming-wise think "How Did You Do That?". The truth about this website though is that I copied the curved button area from a website builder template (Serif No.7 if I remember) before modifying it. And the background, which is the same as this website creation help background, was from the ULead PhotoImpact photo/paint package. The logo was designed by the owner.

By using png images I was able to get the text content much closer to the images, on some of the other web pages (not shown here). I also made the buttons change colour when you hovered over one of them with the mouse. This website was more about the technicals of using CSS layout.

The slightly bevelled (embossed) dirty white image was my modern interpretation of Moses and The Ten Commandments Tablet/Stone. One of the difficult aspects of this website was getting the French translations to fit in with the website template. It's difficult enough with English, never mind French!

The  Present  Day

At the end of 2007 I made the decision to study many more aspects of Website Creation, instead of just concentrating on programming and making websites. These studies included Articles, Seminars, Webinars, Design, Promotion, GURUs and much more. Some of the experiences I have written about, and will write about, in this website. I have done my research, listened to the waffle of the "so-called" GURUs, downloaded and viewed the PDFs, DVDs and have been around people who have invested in the different aspects of Website Creation. I am still creating websites, on and off, with my next work-in-progress creation here:

Fig 1.3  Clapham-Balham Massage - A website that uses blending and other effects of ULead PhotoImpact

The above is the front cover for a Massage website I am creating. It will have an Application Form with Recaptcha and a Members Area. It will also incorporate JQuery in some ways (i.e. with images and slideshow) and have a blog. The front cover was designed by me, using ULead PhotoImpact X3, and was my experiment at blending effects.

Hopefully the above has shown you my website philosophy that not all websites have to be boring, standard column, creations. Just because the "Standard Columns" template works very well, mainly because it is what people are used to, does not mean you cannot be different and successful too. A lot of success is down to the way you promote your website and what content you put into it, and not just purely down to its design.

Please Note: Since making the above websites they may have closed down, changed domain name, changed appearance, changed personal/business details and so on for whatever reason(s). In other words, I only created them. I have not had any involvement with them in any way, shape or form ever since.