One can only speculate whether the British computer scientist, Sir Tim Berners-Lee, realised the long-term impact of his innovative thinking when he created the foundations of the World Wide Web. He developed the three technologies that form the basis of a universal open network, namely, hypertext markup language (HTML), the uniform resource locator (URL) and the hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP). Today, websites and web-based applications abound, and many are the work of learners attending web development courses.
Around 4,66 billion people, or almost 59 per cent of the world’s current population, now use the internet, accessing its numerous functions, from smartphones, tablets, personal computers and similar digital devices. Many machines now rely on internet access to receive instructions or update their abilities. Individuals use the web extensively for everything from video calls to overseas friends and relatives and playing games to banking, insuring their vehicles, booking holidays and purchasing consumer goods. Developing these online facilities and ensuring they continue to work requires programming knowledge from appropriate web development courses.
For those who decide to pursue such studies, there are several choices. Unlike the early web pages, which were colourful and illustrated but essentially static web-based documents, modern versions more often consist of a visual component or front-end and a separate functional element or back-end. For anyone with artistic ability and a little imagination, the role of front-end developer can be both satisfying and lucrative. However, the more analytical types might derive the same benefits as a back-end specialist. Either way, there are web development courses to help you pursue these goals. Later, it could be to your advantage to embrace both options as a so-called full-stack developer.
Let’s examine the front-end option in more detail. Around three months should be sufficient to gain the working knowledge of HTML5, CSS3 and Javascript necessary to create an attractive and functional user interface for most purposes. The hypertext markup language forms the basis of the page layout. CSS or cascading style sheets offer a means to simplify defining, allocating and maintaining the appearance and behaviour of text, including simple animations. Typically, Javascript (JS) is included in web development courses and offers a means to programme some elementary functions such as pop-ups and page transitions. The inclusion of Angular+ and Typescript provides the means to extend aspects of JS functionality.
For those who have the time to study a little longer, the opportunities open to a Java full-stack developer are almost unlimited. A twelve-month course could lead to an NQF5-level internationally recognised qualification and procure long-term job security. The knowledge gained during that year will enable you to leverage both front-end and back-end technologies to create responsive, interactive, cross-platform applications. The year-long programme combines all of the web development courses necessary to launch an exciting new career.
However, an educational programme is only as good as its content and those responsible for dispensing it. The content should comply with established industry needs and be presented by current specialists in the appropriate fields through an accredited training academy. geeks4learning meets all these crucial criteria and employs a unique blended learning system of online and classroom studies to present its growing range of web development and other IT courses.
