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Confused on if you want to go for web development or some other field in tech? Awesome! Let me tell you about web dev and let’s see if your interest lies here. I’m excited already.
Web Development in simple terms:
Let’s dive right into the web. We can’t talk about web development without talking about what the web is.
What is the web?
The World Wide Web -- also known as the web, WWW or W3 -- refers to all the public websites or pages that users can access on their local computers and other devices through the internet. These pages and documents are interconnected by means of hyperlinks that users click on for information. This information can be in different formats, including text, images, audio and video. Note: The term World Wide Web isn't synonymous with the internet. Rather, the World Wide Web is part of the internet.
Now, let’s jump right in. What is Web Development?
Web development, also known as website development, refers to the tasks associated with creating, building, and maintaining websites and web applications that run online on a browser. It may also include web design, web programming, and database management, however, the term, web development is usually reserved for the actual construction and programming of websites and applications. So with this, I want you to think of web development as building a house.
Who is a web developer?
I’m going to give two definitions which I got from two different sites (might not be so exact):
A Web developer is a kind of programmer who specializes in the development of applications relating to the World Wide Web or distributed network applications, which typically run protocols like HTTP from a Web server to a client browser using associated programming languages like HTML/CSS, C#, Ruby and PHP, to name a few. A Web developer is usually concerned with the back end or the programming aspect of creating a website or Web application, and is not to be confused with a Web designer, who deals with the aesthetics of a website or application, although many professionals have both skill sets. A web developer or programmer is someone who takes a web design - which has been created by either a client or a design team and turns it into a website. They do this by writing codes, using a variety of languages. In simple terms, a web developer is someone who develops applications for the web.
Types of Web Development:
There are three main types of web development: Front-end development, Back-end development, and Full-stack development. Let me explain these in simple terms.
What is Front-end Development?
Front-end development involves the “client-facing” side of web development (what users see). That is to say usually, front-end web development refers to the portion of the site, app, or digital product that users will see and interact with. A Front-end Developer, therefore, is responsible for the way a digital product looks and feels on the web which is why they are often also referred to as Web Designers. Front-end web developers focus on translating website design and visual ideas into code. A front-end Software Developer takes the design ideas created by others on web development teams and programs them into reality, acting as a bridge between design and technology. Front-End Developers will usually need to possess a solid understanding of programming languages, including HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, as well as frameworks like ReactJS, VueJS, AngularJS, Bootstrap, Backbone, and EmberJS. Responsibilities of a Front-End Developer would include creating responsive websites (that look and function well on any device), conducting website testing and fixing any bugs detected along the web development process, and ensuring site structure follows SEO best practices.
What is Back-end development?
“Ever wonder what goes on behind the scenes of a website? How, exactly, does clicking on a button take you to a different page? And where does your personal information go when you sign up for a free trial?” Back-end development is all about working on server-side software, which targets everything you can’t see on a website. Unlike Frontend development, which control everything you can see on a website, back-end development involves data storage, security, and other server-side functions that you cannot see. Backend developers ensure the website performs correctly, focusing on databases, back-end logic, application programming interface (APIs), architecture, and servers. They use code that helps browsers communicate with databases, store, understand, and delete data. On a team, back-end developers collaborate with front-end developers, product managers, principal architects, and website testers to build the structure of a website or mobile app. Back-end developers will usually need to possess a solid understanding of programming languages, as Python, Java, c#, PHP and Ruby as well as frameworks such as Laravel, Django, Ruby on Rails and Node.js. Responsibilities of a Back-End Developer would include Building and maintaining websites, Writing high-quality code, performing quality assurance (QA) testing, Troubleshooting and debugging.
What is Full-stack development?
Full-stack development refers to the development of both front-end (client side) and back end (server side) portions of web application. A full-stack developers is an experts in both the frontend and backend, this means, a full-stack developer = a frontend developer + a backend developer.
Differences between a Front-end developer and web designer.
Did you know that, there was a time I didn’t know the difference between Flutterwave (a Fintech company in Nigeria) and Flutter (software development kit (SDK)), lol, I’m sure some didn’t know this too and honestly, it’s ok to not know or understand certain concepts. I often get asked by newbies and others what the difference between a front-end development and a web design is, and honest, it’s a question worth asking. Below are the differences between a front-end developer and a web designer,
Web Designers:
• Create everything a user sees on a website or software product, including all visual, color, typography, and usability elements.
• Work directly with a client to create designs or work as part of a team to develop client vision.
• May need knowledge of a programming language or some coding skills, or at least some level of familiarity with widely used languages such as HTML, CSS, PHP, and JavaScript. However, this not always necessary.
• Create wireframes and prototypes to test design ideas, offer input on design logos, branding, company style guides.
Front-end Developers:
• Write the code that makes a website function on the client-side.
• Create or implement designs demanded by a client or created by a design team.
• Need expert-level knowledge of a variety of programming languages, including HTML (HyperText Markup Language), CSS and JavaScript but also extending to other frameworks, and libraries.
• Rarely create mockups, select typography, or pick color palettes.
In a nut shell, a web designer works closely with the client to create designs of what the product should look like while a frontend developer codes out these designs.
In conclusion, I want you to think of web development as building a house. I want you to take your mind to construction. Before a house is been built an architect is called to draw the plan (blue print) of the house, once the plan or blue print of the house is done construction starts. The construction is divided into two parts, the laying of foundation and the actual building of the house on the foundation. Now, many other things happen but the above are the only things I want you to picture. Let’s match what we’ve pictured to the web. The architect that designs/draws the plan of the house is our web designer, the foundation of the house is the backend that works behind the scene that we do not see and last but not least, the build with which we see is the front-end. With all these, I want you to think “why web development?”, “why front-end development?”, “why backend development?” or “why full-stack development?”. And there you have it.
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