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domuk
07-05-2003, 01:49 PM
Hi all,

I was wondering if there was a website or document anywhare that gave fresh starters to web programing (with previous C and pascal experience) a run down on the different types of code available and what they were good at.

I have looked at HTML and javascript and have a little idea of when to use them but css, php, etc i have no idea.


Would anyone please point me in the correct direction.

EG i am trying to do a website counter and have no idea where to start. I think css would be good, but tend to learn things by example. If someone could give me some example code, i think that i could work it out.


Thanks in advance,

Dom...
;)
Jona
07-05-2003, 02:55 PM
HTML: Hypertext Markup Language. HTML is used to create standard documents. This sort of document is a simple ASCII-text document, translated by the browser to display all sorts of formatted elements. See: http://www.w3.org/TR/html4 for more information.

CSS: Cascading Style Sheets. CSS is used in combination with HTML to layout and edit a page. For example, you use the <P> element of HTML to create a new paragraph, however, you use <P style="text-align:center;"> to align the text inside of the paragraph to center. See: http://www.w3.org/TR/CSS2/ for version 2 of CSS.

JavaScript: A client-side programming language used to dynamically edit, update, or change a page's HTML or CSS code after the page has loaded. It is event-based and used for thing such as: alerts, menus, prompts, and anything else that involves events (onClick, onMouseOver, onMouseOut, onDrag, etc.).

PHP: A server-side programming language, used to process data on the server and send the HTML, CSS and/or JavaScript code back to the client. The client never sees this code. It has access to files and databases on the server, and can be used to create things such as: forums (like this one), counters, and other things like that. See: http://www.php.net/

[J]ona
Greelmo
07-05-2003, 05:40 PM
there is also asp.net, which is a server side language similar to php in many aspects. Asp.net is for carrying variables from one page to another as well as accessing databases and many other things. Asp.net is good.
Jona
07-05-2003, 05:42 PM
Originally posted by Greelmo
there is also asp.net, which is a server side language similar to php in many aspects.

No, PHP is much different from ASP (or ASP.NET). The things that ASP.NET can do is very similar to PHP in many aspects, but the syntax differences between the two are almost opposite.

[J]ona
Jona
07-05-2003, 05:52 PM
And while we're at it, let's throw in the following two:

DHTML: Dynamic Hypertext Markup Language. A combination of JavaScript and HTML, where JavaScript is used to edit the format, text, etc., of the HTML. Example:


<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01//EN"
"http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/strict.dtd">
<html lang="en">
<head><title>DHTML Example</title>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1">
<meta name="Content-Script-Type" content="text/javascript">
<meta name="Content-Style-Type" content="text/css">
</head>
<body>
<p style="text-align:center;">You may <a href="page_left_aligned.html" onClick="this.parent.style.textAlign='left'; return false;" accesskey="L">[Left Align]</a> this text, if you like.</p>
</body></html>


In the above example, if you have JavaScript enabled, left-clicking on the [Left Align] text block will cause the text-block inside of the <P> tag to align left. If the user does not have JavaScript enabled, clicking [Left Align] will take them to another page that should have the same block of text with the text left-aligned, rather than centered.

CGI: CGI is the Common-Gateway Interface. It is a server-side language, which can manipulate files, read and write to databases, create dynamic images, make counters, ping servers, and do many other things that ASP and PHP can do--and even more than PHP can do. (I don't know ASP, so I'm uncertain as to whether or not it has the power that CGI does.) The most common interpreter for CGI is Perl. Although languages such as C can be used as well, Perl is the most common.

[J]ona
Greelmo
07-05-2003, 07:27 PM
yeah, that's true jona. And sorry.. i meant they do the same things... guess i'm just being ambiguous. today.
Jona
07-05-2003, 11:09 PM
Originally posted by Greelmo
yeah, that's true jona. And sorry.. i meant they do the same things... guess i'm just being ambiguous. today.

I was just clarifying what you said. Domuk could have "read it differently."

[J]ona
PeOfEo
07-05-2003, 11:25 PM
Originally posted by Jona
No, PHP is much different from ASP (or ASP.NET). The things that ASP.NET can do is very similar to PHP in many aspects, but the syntax differences between the two are almost opposite.

[J]ona ASP.NET and asp look like visual basic (well yea vbscript and vb) But php looks like java script on speed to me. He was saying that they are bother semi object based and both can do the same types of things.
Jona
07-05-2003, 11:26 PM
Originally posted by PeOfEo
ASP.NET and asp look like visual basic (well yea vbscript and vb) But php looks like java script on speed to me. He was talking that they are bother semi object based and both can do the same types of things.

Huh? :confused: Since when did you post here? :rolleyes: lol.
BTW, could you check my "Criticism" post, please? ;)

[J]ona
PeOfEo
07-05-2003, 11:30 PM
what about it?
Jona
07-05-2003, 11:56 PM
Originally posted by PeOfEo
what about it?

Just wonderin' if ya had any suggestion for the site (other than the background and "logo" which will change ASAP).

[J]ona
domuk
07-06-2003, 04:28 AM
Thanks all,

I shall digest the information posted and will some day understand it all...:eek:

What i am trying to do is learn the most common code, and as far as i can see html, javascript and css can do just about everything.

There are many ways to do the same thing in different languages and i just wanted to learn the best all-rounder to start with..

any comments?

Thanks again,

Dom..
Jona
07-06-2003, 02:33 PM
Originally posted by domuk
What i am trying to do is learn the most common code, and as far as i can see html, javascript and css can do just about everything.

Well, you could use HTML or XHTML, whichever you like, for your average "page." Use CSS to layout the page, edit colors, link colors, margins, alignings, etc., so that the user may override the settings (as said in Section 508) with their own stylesheet. Also, use JavaScript/DHTML where needed, but make sure the site works without it, as well. Make sure not to use TABLEs to layout your page--use CSS. PHP, CGI, ASP/ASP.NET, etc., are server-side languages which you should learn later on--after you've learned HTML and CSS completely, and at least some Javascript is good for a base--if you learn JavaScript fairly well, you'll find that PHP will come extremely simple to you.

[J]ona