What is the difference between web development & web design in Jordan?
As a developer, I can say that there are many overlaps and integration needed between web design and web development. When you rush into a mix of content creation and usability testing, you are confronted with a real mess. In general, the difference between web design and web development is that:
- Web design in Jordan usually involves creating content and appearance.
- Web development in Jordan involves creating functionality and testing its usability.
Web designers should have experience with graphic web design tools, such as Photoshop or InDesign. Most also need to know HTML for a better understanding of the work and the ability to implement their own websites and projects. However, the use of animation on the site and the layout of the content are also part of the responsibility of the web designer.
Web development involves the creation of the website functionality and its integration into the HTML pages. Web developers also do usability testing on the site, at least for the functionality they create. Therefore, the developer must also have knowledge of HTML.
Here is a Wikipedia post with the answers to the most popular questions about web developers and web designers. It will help set things straight.
Guidelines for Web Development & Web Design
• Appearance
First of all graphics, color scheme, navigation elements, etc.
Appearance is how your website looks like. A graphic designer decides which colors and fonts to use and how each page will be placed. The graphic designer should also have a sense of aesthetics, understand how colors are combined, and how the images will be projected by the image that the site owner wants to show the visitors. This aspect refers to web design.
• Content
Information, products that are available on the website.
Content is all text, photos, media files that can be found on the website. Content includes everything from privacy policy to very convincing statements about the benefits of products on this site. The text is the basis of the content. You will need a copywriter and editor to create good content.
• Functionality
The functionality includes interactive features that the website provides visitors and the necessary infrastructure to ensure them.
The functionality includes all interactive aspects of the website, as well as animation. A common denominator is that programmers using different web programming languages work either on a web server or in a web browser, creating all these functions.
Flash is used to create animations. Perl, PHP, and Java are programming languages used on the web server to create complex dynamic web pages. These pages can work independently, but most often with a database to create all the functions that we used to expect from a website.
JavaScript is used in the browser to create many interesting effects, such as replacing an image when you hover your mouse over an image, a tape ticker, links to change colors, and so on. JavaScript runs in the user’s web browser, not on the web server.
There are other backend applications that are invisible to visitors, such as form processing, content management, and other programs that allow non-programmers to maintain certain aspects of website data.
All these programs must be integrated into the HTML code that will be used on the web page and here comes web development.
• Usability
A site from the visitor’s point of view, which includes such things as an interaction of elements, ease of navigation and usefulness of the resource.
Usability is how a website looks and functions from the user’s point of view. It mainly involves testing things, for example:
• Does the look convey the proper image of the website?
• Is navigation easy and intuitive to use?
• Does navigation lead a visitor to where they need to be?
• Is the website loading fast?
• Do applications work properly?
These issues require a complex approach and joint efforts of designers and developers.