This is meant to be a quick, short post to help someone new to web page creation get started. I would suggest learning some HTML, CSS, and some JavaScript (different from Java) with jQuery. That will allow you to create really nice web pages and sites very quickly. HTML5 is the next step in the evolution of HTML specification, however most people also group together lots of related technologies like CSS3 when they think of HTML5.

Here’s how things fit together:

• HTML – Used to create the structure and content of a web page
• CSS – Provides style, color, and often some element positioning on web pages
• JavaScript – Used to create web pages that respond to events, like button clicks, mouse movement, etc.
• JQuery – A library built on top of JavaScript that greatly simplifies the use of JavaScript

Check out a few resources to get started:

• http://www.w3schools.com – nice site with lots of reference material on HTML, JavaScript, and CSS
• http://jquery.com – jQuery site with documentation, downloads, and most importantly plugins. The availability of very nice and free jQuery plugins is what makes it so valuable to learn.
• http://www.csszengarden.com – site that shows examples of just how different a web page can look purely by changing the CSS

The really great thing about learning these basic skills is that you can easily apply them to creating web pages in other, more powerful frameworks like ASP.Net, SharePoint, WordPress, Drupal, Joomla, and many others.

Ready to try your hand? Start with an existing template rather from a blank slate to make learning easier. Check out the free templates on DreamTemplate. You can start developing your skills with these. Happy webbing 🙂