I have an important question. First, let me give you my background. In 1996 I learned html and hand coded all my web pages. In 2000 or so, I learned dreamweaver and photoshop. My skills are basic and my knowledge is limited. An example of one site I did is www.cookimages.com and I'm sure if I knew what the heck I was doing, it would have turned out much better.

I want to learn MORE MORE MORE. I'd really prefer to go to school because I'm not disciplined enough to learn on my own (plus I have a nine month old at home so it would be a good reason to get out of the house for a few hours a day! LOL)

So, how do you learn design and all the software out there? I need tips and suggestions please. This is what I want to do professionally.

Thanks!

i started learning html when i was about 12(about 4-5 years ago) and the only thing that gets you better in website design is experience!

You learn more as time goes on and technology improves...

ps: it's always good to start at a young age!

Well, that's the problem. When the internet really took off I was already 24 years old. But, yeah, the other day I was trying to figure something out for hours in Dreamweaver and it was staring me right in the face the whole time. DUH.

I think you're never too old to learn. It doesn't really matter what age you are it's just the desire to learn.

I think the best way to learn is a combination of theory and practice. I read to get the theory (books, magazines, online) and then I practice what I've read. It's just ongoing. Sometimes it's hard to see how much better you are at something from one site to the next, but when you look back over time you can really see the improvement.

You have a good start with Photoshop and DW. You need a good text editor as well and at least a basic understanding of; Javascript, PHP, SQL, and SSL for your E-Commerce clients. A good knowledge of server administration doesn't hurt either.
The above advice about the "ongoing process' of learning couldn't be more correct. I can only add that design is only one tenth of what i do as a designer. I spend the rest of the time, which means MOST of my time, doing everything else my clients require from tech support to washing dishes....well maybe not washing dishes.
i won't go into a lot of detail about it except to say that on any given week, I may deal with a print house for one client, teach another to set up their e-mail properly, install a script for another and teach them how to work it (even though i'd never seen it before), etc, etc.... none of which technically is web or print design. however, clients require it.
In short almost anything you learn, including "the customer is always right" will come in handy, eventually.
Good Luck,

I see that you did the website for All One Spirit. That's where I live...in Pensacola. Small world huh?

I went to school for art and design since I loved to draw and it progessed from there. Self taught on Dreamweaver and Photoshop...took me quite awhile to learn Flash on my own.

It helps to have teachers but if you really want to do something you will learn as much as you can on your own. Books, tutorials etc.

Jump in the water.

Yep, small world.

I learnt through my school, they're the ones that got me started then I sometimes played around with HTML, javascript in my own spare time. And usually I just play around with new software and if it's a popular one then look up tutorials on the internet.

Myself

I am very ambitious so I learnd quickly I began from redesigning templates & looking to web site sources and then began creating my self

Good advice Oto. I think viewing the source code of other websites is one of the best ways to learn how to build them yourself. It can take a little while until all the code begins to make sense, but the more you do it the easier it becomes.

I think many webmasters started that way. I still look at other sites to learn. Anytime I come across something on a site that I like and wonder how they coded it I view the source and spend a little time seeing how they did it. Then I have a new trick I can add to my own sites.

I think there are really two aspects of website "design"

The coding / Navigation / Functionality

&

The visual aspect


I think coding, navigation and functionality is best learned by doing. Plan out your website before hand, write down everything you want it to do and forget about what you currently know how to do.

From there learn all you can on how to accomplish the goals of the site. The internet has such a vast wealth of information on this aspect of design, that you really don't need books unless you are doing very complex things or using bleeding edge technology.

For the visual aspect, start off by looking for inspuration from other websites and other mediums. You can learn from magazine layout, newspapers, flyers, brochures, etc

Then start reading into typography, color theory, etc

HTH!

-Ross