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Q: Web Design for Kids??? C'mon! Can kids really create websites? Yes!! If a child has a basic fundamental understanding of HTML, they can create a functional web page,that's hand-coded, all by themselves!Q: Is the DVD a software package? The DVD is not a software package, but a simple DVD that can be played on any home entertainment system or portable DVD player. (Note: It is possible in some cases to play the DVD directly on a computer with a DVD player, but I've gotten reports about this not working the same on every computer. However, if you have a home entertainment system with DVD capability, you should be able to see it.)Q: Do I need to buy extra software to make this work? The beautiful part about kids learning HTML is the fact that no extra software needs to be purchased due to the fact that all the software necessary to create a web page is already on 100% of computers around the world that has Windows® as the operating system! (This probably includes yours!). Basically, it's just two programs:
Q: Make a web page with just Notepad and Internet Explorer?? I don't believe it! Can you give me some proof? OK, but I will need your help!If you have internet access on your computer, use Internet Explorer to go to any web page that you want. (It can even be your favorite website.) At the top of Internet Explorer, you should see File, Edit, View, and other menu items. Click on View, then Source. Did Notepad pop up with a bunch of gobedy-gook typed all over it? That is the HTML coding for that particular web page! If you're worried that a kid (or curious grownup) will have to write a ton of code, don't fret! At the bare minimum (covered by chapter 1 in the DVD) a person has to only type 10 lines of code to create their first web page! Q: HTML? That's so 1990! Isn't using Dreamweaver® or Frontpage® easier? What about Flash®? Dreamweaver® and Frontpage® are popular WYSIWYG (what-you-see-is-what-you-get) programs in which you can create web pages without having to deal with any coding. However, if there is a situation that occurs in which a person has to deal with the coding (and those situations will occur), that person will be lost at sea if they don't have a fundamental knowledge of HTML. In my humble opinion, learning the above mentioned programs before learning HTML, is like learning multiplication before you learn addition.Notice what I wrote in the first sentence in answering this question.Many people go to these programs so they don't have to deal with the code, simply because they think HTML is too hard. I'll go out on a limb here. I guarantee, if you learn HTML first, then migrate to Dreamweaver®, Frontpage®, or Flash®, the learning curve will be so much more shallow. To finally drive my point home even further, while hopefully increasing the validity of the DVD, I took the liberty to hand-code this whole entire website with just Notepad, HTML, and a couple of free javascripts ( The javascripts only account for approximately 5% of the code. The other 95% was done by hand! It took a lot of typing, but it works and is functional. ) Q: Can I see a small clip of the DVD? Here is a one minute clip of the DVD, courtesy of YouTube!Q: OK, I'm curious! How long is the DVD? What topics does the DVD cover? The DVD is approximately 1 hour and 22 minutes long and consists of seven chapters. Two preteen kids are on the DVD to keep you company and learn along with you! They actually ask a bunch of questions that (after 7+ years of teaching kids web design) I know will pop up in your child's mind! Some of the subjects covered in the DVD are:
Q: What is the recommended age bracket? When I first started creating this DVD, I thought that ages 10 through adult would be a good starting point. After going to conventions and sharing the DVD to kids who came with their parents by my booth, I'm persuaded to lower that age to 8(!). I really believe the combination of using two kids learning along with the viewer combined with kindergarten language to explain technical concepts allows virtually any child (or curious grown-up) to do something that many people believe to be difficult.Q: Can coding be done on a Mac instead of a Windows based PC? Yes! The programs that parallel Notepad and Internet Explorer are TextEdit and Safari respectively. A small change that's needed is to go to the menu on TextEdit, choose "Format", and choose "Make Plain Text".Even though you can make web pages with a Mac, I highly recommend doing it from a Windows based PC. It's easier for kids to fix stuff in Notepad and Internet Explorer when things go wrong in their code. Q: Dude! When is the next DVD coming out? LOL! I've been asked this more than once! I'm shooting for the 4th quarter of 2009. (I know I've been moving the date up for the last year, but I just want to make sure that the DVD has the same high quality instruction as the first.) |
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