Virtual Enterprise Web Design Resources

Tools and Software

Here are some common tools that I recommend for anybody getting started in website design.

Photo Editing Software

• Adobe Photoshop Very Expensive, but is the goto software for anybody dealing with bitmap graphics. If you have it already use it, if not see other options below for photo editing.
• Gimp - Imange Manipulation ProgramThis software is free and available on all platforms, this is Photoshop's biggest competitor.
• Pixlr.comFree online image editor for basic image manipulation

WYSIWYG/Code Editors

• Adobe Dreamweaver Like all Adobe products, this is used by professionals in the industry, so it is priced accordingly. Again if you have access to it you should use it.
• Microsoft Expression Web 4Microsoft has a free version of this software that works and looks very similar to Adobe Dreamweaver. You should take a look at this if you are looking for alternatives.
• Sublime Text 2Free Unlimited Trial, but once you can afford it please support the author. Great fast text editor, thats available on all platforms. I highly recommend this if you want to get into writing code by hand. This is my personal choice and number one tool I use on a daily basis.

FTP Software

• FileZilla You will need to get some sort of FTP software to upload/download filesfrom your server. This is my one and only recommendation, and it is available on all platforms.

There are lots of tools out their for creating great websites. If you have anymore that you think we should share, let us know on our contact page

Website Design

Check out this list of resources and articles to help you with designing your first site. I am either still currently using these sites or have used these sites in the past

• New to Webdesigntuts+? Start Here. Great starting point for everybody getting into website design concepts
• Color Theory for Designers, Part 1Great article on the meaning of colors, this will help with the general theme of your site
• Webdeign template marketplaceIf you are looking for some design inspiration check out this site to see what other designers are currently producing.

If you have any more resources you would like to share please feel free to contact me at george@underratedbrilliance.com

HTML & CSS

Want to learn HTML and CSS check out these resources.

• Codecademy.com Web Fundamentals Just starting out and need something with a little bit more hand holding then check out this great site with step by step html and css basics, sign up for an account and keep track of your progress
• HTML TutorialAnother classic for learning about HTML and CSS, this site has been around for a long time. I still occasionaly use this site as a reference

If you have any more resources you would like to share please feel free to head over to our contact page and let us know about it.