I have this noise in my head that what I’m doing isn’t considered web development. I have been building websites from scratch using wordpress for 2 years and right now I feel that I’m not real a web developer and felt like an impostor. What do I need to learn to become a real web developer.
“Web Development” is a pretty broad term. Yes, I’d say this is web development. Everything from making the frontend of Google search talk to their massive AI backend, to throwing some HTML on a static file and running it in the browser, is considered web development, imho.
If you want to learn more, just understand what you’re doing with HTML/CSS. Learn JavaScript thoroughly. Learn how it all works together with the backend and databases. Learn what happens when an http request is sent. Learn basic website security and how it works with tokens, and sessions. Learn what SSL is and why it’s important.
There’s a lot to put together and it’s ok if you don’t know all of it, but the more the better.
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Well, look at this forums categories.
The SitePoint forum is a web development forum.
Could every member here claim to be adequate let alone proficient in every area there is a category for?
Of course not. Technology changes so much so fast so often, one is hard pressed keeping up with one area let alone all of them.
If you know the ins and outs of WordPress, eg. can work with templates, plugins, customize CSS, and know the ACP you could certainly claim to be a WordPress developer if you don’t feel comfortable calling yourself a web developer (as in applying for a job)
But my bet would be that if you have thorough knowledge of WordPress you would be able to get up to speed in non-WordPress projects quickly. The terminology and details will vary, but the basics would likely be similar enough.
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That isn’t considered building websites from scratch.
I don’t think someone who just knows how to build a website using WordPress is a web developer either.
I see to many stupid questions regarding WordPress to make me think that most people who use that platform are capable of building a useful website without it.
Why do you want to become a “real” web developer? What is your own definition of a “real” web developer? Do you believe your path to greater success is becoming a “real” web developer?
True, if someone is only installing the WordPress Core, tossing in a theme and a plugin or three, and tweaking a few settings, it would be a stretch.
To be fair, have you ever done much work with WordPress?
IMHO it is such a bloated mess it isn’t the easiest code to work with by a long shot.
If one is happy with how it is out of the box, or is lucky enough to find a template and plugins that do exactly what they want, all good.
But woe to those with only minimal tech chops that want to modify it to meet narrowly exact specifications.
I doubt there is any universally agreed upon definition of “web developer”.
But from what I can tell there are some that I would consider “WordPress Theme Developer” that do well enough not knowing much else.
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If you want to dive deeper the next logical step would be to learn PHP and get accustomed to the WP API so that you could write plug-ins and themes yourself.
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I half agree, but I think there are differing reasons why people/companys choose to use Wordpress, or any CMS or framework for that matter. It may be unfair to say everyone using them is not a “real” dev.
With all the “stupid questions” we see about CMS and frameforks, I initially assumed that the only reason people used them was because they don’t know how to code, and for a good many this may well be true. You get your CMS, choose a theme, insert content here, and job’s a good 'un. Or if you are not confident in your css abilities enough to tackle RWD, you get Bootstrap and use that. But then they want to tinker and customise, so armed with their half-arsed understanding of whatever code, they go ahead and quickly get out of their depth. That’s when you get “stupid questions”.
On the other hand, some “real” devs may use cms/frameworks for other reasons.
It may be that the client, who is not a dev, wants to tinker with content, cms it will be then.
In a collaborative environment, a company may use frameworks for a standard, so everyone’s singing from the same hymn-sheet, to avoid the complication of mingling differing coding styles.
Another reason may be just because they find it faster and easier than coding from scratch. If they can churn out more sites in less time, that’s more money, or more free time.
But then the competent coders using it go unseen, they are not having to ask stupid questions.
Personally I don’t use any cms or frameworks. When I decided to learn to code, I wanted to learn how to build a site from scratch by hand, and from there have stuck with that habit, finding the code output by cms and frameworks confusing, messy and bloated. I’m glad cms or frameworks did not rob me of the experience of learning. I would encourage anyone who wants to be a dev to at very least learn the basic fundamentals of html/css if not also some scripting. It may not be practical to master everything, but the more you know the better and that foundation of knowledge will be a real benefit which ever route you take to create websites.
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When I said I was building a website from scratch using wordpress. I meant creating a custom theme to the clients needs or liking. Creating custom templates and not just hacking an existing theme.
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If you’re developing custom templates then I would call that web development.
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