What is the difference between web designing and web development?
People sometimes use the same term interchangeably. These two words refer to different meanings. Web designers use programs like Adobe Photoshop to come up with visual layouts of a website page. A web designer needs to be very good at visual design. A web developer, on the other hand, requires the use of different coding languages and programs like HTML, CSS, PHP, and JavaScript.
They use the design to create a functional web page. You can see that the two tasks require two different set of skills to develop a good web page. A web designer deals with visual elements in a page layout while the web developer is responsible for the programming section. These two people might work hand in hand, but the roles will be different.
Web designing
One of the most critical factor to consider during web design is the client’s objectives. Before designing that page, you need to understand what the client will use it for. After that, you can now embark on the design process. It may involve the use of programs such as Adobe Photoshop to create visual layouts and elements such as color and contrast. There are design principles that must be considered when designing a web page.
Balance – a good web designer needs to balance the different colors available in the layout, and it should not be too dark or too light.
Contrast – this is crucial when you intend to draw attention from the different parts of the page layout. It is done by using different shapes and textures
Emphasis – web designers can choose to highlight a section of the web page. If they want the same color, then they will be emphasizing nothing.
Unity – this is how the general composition relates to the page layout sections. This is how you group different page elements.
This is why we said earlier that a web designer needs visual skills to come up with a good web design that will impress the client. A web designer will always have the client’s preference before embarking on the design process.
Web development
To be a web developer, you require to be very good at using coding languages and programming. This is how you will create a functional website. The coding languages include HTML, CSS, PHP, and JavaScript. After the design process, the site is passed to the web developer who breaks it into different components for programming to take place.
There are other ways of programming like the use of content management systems like WordPress and Joomla. These systems assist web developers in updating and customizing the web page. WordPress is quite popular as it comes with a wide variety of themes and plugins that will enable a developer to develop a fully functional page for ease of navigation. This video on YouTube will help you understand better the differences between web development and web designing.
Conclusion There is no thin line between web designing and web development. Their roles are distinct. A good web designer should be very skilled in visual design, while a good web developer should be skilled at coding and programming. After the design process, the website is passed on to the web developer to create a functional website entirely.
