Hi, I am a student having basic experience and knowledge with dreamweaver, php, mysql, adobe photoshop, html, etc.

I am learning web designing from someone and i am paying that person quite a lot of money but i doubt if he is teaching me properly. This person wants me to use a lot of photoshop and images, and loads and loads of tables to design my website, basically, this is the website he designed: http://myportf.sitesled.com/index.htm

and he is teaching me to do the same, i wish to design very professional looking websites: www.neckties.com

this person also suggested that the way to create navigational menus and links are to copy paste them to each and every page of your website and keep updating, so my understanding is that if you design a 50th page, you have to update 49 pages... so someone please tell me what is the most common and efficient method used by front-end webdesigners to make navigation menus so that they come from the same source in every page, so you don't have to update 50 pages... is it SSI? or do you just use some php coding?

and i really wish to know what is the proper way of designing a website, if someone could point out and give an overview... e.g. designing a stylesheet, attaching, how would the css work? or am i supposed to make loads of tables?

i just wish to know how it all works... and how powerful is css?

I am trying to learn front-end webdesigning

The PROFESSIONAL way to build a web site is WITHOUT TABLES ! Tables were and are meant for tabular data - NOT layout. I'd suggest you get your money back and find someone who knows how to build websites using CSS for layout. You can learn to do this yourself, you don't need to pay someone. CSS is VERY powerful - have a look at www.csszengarden.com to get an idea of just how powerful it is. Every single one of the designs at csszengarden are done using the exact same HTML file, but the designers can manipulate the layout using JUST the css.

As for the navigation problem - you need PHP or server side includes. You then only need to update the include file that contains your navigation, not 50 pages.

If you're paying someone to teach you web, why not just pay a school? If you want to do this professionally, you'll have to have a minimum of a BA anyway or you'll have a lot of trouble finding a job (I've learned the hard way, evidently 4 years after I received my Associates it's not good enough anymore).

Teaching is like CRACK to me, I swear it. Okay, I like you kid, so here's my approach to design, in step-by-step form.

1) Get a logo. Logos are for branding. Please note that logos and headers are COMPLETELY different. A logo is essentially, what can you put on a T-shirt? Headers are more for style and expression. These websites have logos (the first two are mine):

http://www.rippededge.net
http://www.deadlyclever.com
http://www.problogger.net
http://www.designflavr.com/
http://wpcandy.com/articles

These sites have headers (along with logos):

http://www.webdesignerwall.com/
http://www.webdesigners-directory.com/
http://www.ndesign-studio.com/

BONUS! These sites have mascots.

http://www.diligentdesign.net
http://www.chrisguthrie.net/
http://www.twitter.com
http://www.plurk.com

2) Pick a color scheme that compliments or nicely contrasts with your logo. This makes your site look more complete. There are 3 elements to every color scheme:

Background color. This is usually the darkest (or lightest!) color in the color scheme. It's your blue paper in your blueprint.

Title/Area colors. These define your color functions. They're used to structure your layout. (A color function is a purpose given to a color. On Diligent Design, navy blue is assigned to identify the RSS area, and the white background is assigned to posts. The gradient is assigned to navigation areas. Get it? Please note that you shouldn't assign your colors until you've created your structure)

Typography. This includes underlines, link colors, <h1,2,3...> tag colors, and list styles. It also includes the font weight, font family, and font styles.

3) Create your structure! What does your site need to show off? Do you need an image gallery page? Create a simple structure for your design (you can do this using CSS. I just put a border around each section and you get a blank CSS layout at the end.) Make sure your layout aligns correctly in both IE and Firefox when you're done.

4) Apply your color scheme to the layout. (note: not your images, those come later. You should have a default background color for where each image will go.) Make sure the colors function as you want them to. The background shouldn't be distracting, and the typography should make sense and look nice and readable. Don't forget to put your logo in the header! You can include THAT image.

Note: unless you do something visual with the empty space, your layout should be CENTERED.

5) Now, decide on your image choices. Do you want a pattern in the background? Should your bullets be an icon? Remember to decide the difference between passive and active images. Passive images are embedded in your CSS as backgrounds. Active images are made into clickable links, such as navigation icons and your logo. (YOUR LOGO SHOULD ALWAYS BE CLICKABLE AND SHOULD LEAD TO THE BACK PAGE!) Remember to save your images as .psd's to be edited if you need to.

6) Review your final layout, and then decide on any changes or adjustments. Add your content and see how it looks.

8) Run your code through validators to make sure everything is alright.

http://validator.w3.org/

9) Look it over one more time. Add the validation image if it's good to go, or create your own.

10) You're done. Good job!

I have wayyy more information to give you. Your structure should be grid based, typography tips, ideas for images. Let me know if you need more help!

Ouch you need to find another instructor - CSS is the way to go!

Definitely start using CSS for layout. Sometimes it is ok to use a table every once in a while for like a form or data table or something but other than that CSS is way more customizable and it gets applied to every page so you can make changes on the CSS that get spread throught your whole website.

As far as your menu question goes, if you are using PHP then you have the "include" file like Ladynred explained. You can make this include file be just for your menu so you can adjust the menu include file to change your menu on ever page. If you are not using PHP and it is just an html website then you can create a DWT (Dreamweaver Template) file. With this method, all of your pages will be calling the layout from a template file that you created. This way if you want to change the menu later, you can just edit the template file and all of your pages will adjust accordingly. If you just want to change the look of your menu you can use CSS and this will adjust accros all your pages but this is only for the look, you cannot add menu items or change menu items accross all pages using CSS.

And lastly i would have to agree with most people in this post, you should probably stop paying that person to teach you web design; he may know how to create websites but they are extremely basic websites. So especially if you are paying alot you can be using that money better to get a better education in this field. Make sure you are learning CSS over table-based layout and there are unlimited resources online to teach you CSS. Good luck

Wow Corey! Thanks a million for all that awesome info! This was not my thread, but I sure learned a lot!

Sounds like your tutor needs blacklisting!

Thanks a lot for all this info, it has really helped me out and now i am on the right track, and thank god that person agreed to give me my money back...

I have also noticed that in order to make great web sites, you need to know graphics designing aswell, can someone tell me which applications are suitable for graphics designing, for web designing it is obviously dreamweaver cs 3 i suppose, but what about graphics designing for the websites, e.g. buttons logos, borders, curves, backgrounds and gradients, is it just photoshop cs 3 or perhaps corel draw or something?

please suggest me the applications, and if someone can recommend me some good books for anything related to website designing, e.g. css

Programs are here
(Premium version - Photoshop, Illustrator, Flash, Dreamweaver are the really important ones in it)

Here you can learn CSS.

If you have a desire to do this professionally, you will need a minimum of a Bachelors Degree, so keep that in mind.

Fireworks has a very nice flow to it for web design. I normally create my image graphics in photoshop and then open them in fireworks just make sure to merge your Photoshop effects into the layers.

Fireworks does a good job at compression, it uses swapping frames and also uses layers like photoshop. It has a robust html language for mouse overs and such, a preview for a wysiwyg view of how the page will look and it slices up the graphics very nicely.

One might be tempted to use fireworks for the entire site design but don't get caught in that trap as you have heard CSS and HTML are a good backbone for the site and despite the fact Fireworks could render you a complete site, you will be focusing mostly on a graphics site without all of the other essential parts. But fireworks in the right hands looks so incredible.

This site is not really an active site ... in fact I think it is pretty much dead and the graphics haven't been compressed very well but it will show you an idea of how Fireworks plays with graphics as far as using mouse over multi depth frame swaps.

Remember don't knock the site too much for it's lack of CSS and all the other goodies, I am just pointing out the slicing and mouse over capabilities of Fireworks.

http://ifuelisave.com

FireFox creates messy Javascript rollovers. All that can be done with CSS and a little patience.

If you have a desire to do this professionally, you will need a minimum of a Bachelors Degree, so keep that in mind

I do this professionally, and I ain't got no degree.

When it comes down to it, you either know what you're doing, or you don't.

I do this professionally too.. but my (very old) Associates degree is in 'data processing'.

When it comes down to it, you either know what you're doing, or you don't.

Amen to that

professional sites must be designed using css and divs without a single table.our company stopped using tables long before.

Site should be also seo friendly.

wow i guess i have alot of learning to do thanks guys.

Originally Posted by wayfarer07

I do this professionally, and I ain't got no degree.

When it comes down to it, you either know what you're doing, or you don't.

It matters if you're doing this professionally looking to just get started for a company. Every job I look at in Pennsylvania and Maryland requires a minimum of a Bachelor's Degree and I have been turned down because my education does not qualify (I only have an Associates and evidently my 4 years of real world experience doesn't count). It goes for both Web & Graphic Design fields.

best code editor simply: Notepad.

Every job I look at in Pennsylvania and Maryland requires a minimum of a Bachelor's Degree

Yeah, well a division of Yahoo has made some effort to recruit me, and they are fine with me not having a degree. You have heard of Yahoo, right? Of course, I'm more of a coder and front-end engineer than a designer, which I guess is a different field altogether.