Have you ever wondered why there are so many products and services on the internet? Or why there are so many roles in the tech industry? For that matter, what is the difference between a frontend and a backend developer?
Frontend is what the user sees and interacts with. Everything displayed on the screen is frontend: buttons, menus, pages, links, graphics, and more. "Frontend" is another way of saying "client-side".
The backend involves information requests, servers, and databases. "Backend" is another way of saying "server-side".
Web pages are constructed using three main technologies:
HTML (HyperText Markup Language): HTML is not a programming language but a markup language that controls the structure of a web page. It is enhanced with CSS and JavaScript.
CSS (Cascading Style Sheets): CSS controls the presentation, format, and layout of the web page.
JavaScript (JS): JavaScript is a programming language that controls the behaviour of a web page and makes it interactive.
Frontend designers are experts in user experience. They balance style and function, ensuring websites are attractive, engaging, and useful. They design and build elements like buttons, menus, pages, links, graphics, and more. Learning HTML, CSS, and JavaScript is an excellent starting point if you want to become a frontend engineer.
Backend developers are experts in the parts of the internet you don’t see. They work with data and write code that retrieves and delivers data to the frontend. They focus on processing information requests and delivering it to the frontend, largely working with servers and databases. Learning programming languages like Python and Java, along with database languages like SQL, is a good starting point to become a backend developer.
Full-stack developers are often seen as "mythological creatures" who can work with both frontend and backend technologies. They are powerful team players with the breadth of knowledge to see the bigger picture. This makes them the perfect people to suggest ways to optimise processes and remove roadblocks in the system.
Network engineers are the people who keep networks running, expand existing ones, and create new ones within a business. Network engineers work with both public and private networks, whether it’s an airport’s Wi-Fi, a school system, or a top-secret research institution. They configure devices and optimise performance. Network engineers can code in different languages - a good starting point would be Python or Java.
The internet would be a much more dangerous place without cybersecurity engineers. Attackers can use the internet to access, change, or destroy sensitive information, extort money from users, or interrupt normal business processes. Cybersecurity experts protect devices, networks, and software from digital attacks. Java, Python, and SQL are excellent starting points if you want to delve deeper into cybersecurity.
Digital marketers use the internet to promote products and services. Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) experts know how to drive more traffic from search engines like Google. They optimise websites to achieve higher search engine rankings. If you want to become a digital marketer and SEO expert, it is essential to have a good understanding of HTML.
New web and internet professions are born every day as the field constantly evolves. Learning the fundamentals first and then studying new and hot technologies as they arise is your best bet if you want to stay at the top of the game.
Cheers, Irina 😊