What's a good web resource for people who work with web-designers/developers & want a basic understanding?

I work with website designers (dreamweaver, html, flash, etc.) and developers (java, C#, etc.), and want to be able to communicate better with them. Short of learning how to do what they do (not going to happen quickly) I don't know where to go to learn what the components of design and development are.





My goal is to have a basic understanding of the programs/applications/processes they work with, what those can do, and what "buzzwords" will help me talk more on their level.





An example might be, understanding key components, like operating systems, and how designers work with making sites that function across systems. So the resource(s) would cover this and so much more. ;-)





THANKS SO MUCH FOR THE HELP!

What's a good web resource for people who work with web-designers/developers %26amp; want a basic understanding?
Hi,


What a great question!





How often I wish that the people I deal with had at least a small desire to learn (at the very least) the vocabulary, so that everyone could be on the same page so to speak.





I feel I have to give a computer 101 class to almost every client that I have.





There are so many resources out there that is boggles the mind. The first thing I would suggest to you is to make Google and other search engines your best friend.





You can use natural sounding questions like





how does an operating system work





list of computer buzz words.





web design basics





just be creative in your search parameters and you will get a long list of pages. Just start scanning for stuff that seems relevant.





I could do this for you, and within about 30 minutes have about 30 sites or more for you to look at, but the fun is finding them yourself. Not only do you get more proficient at using search engines but you get savvy about what sites have the real deal with respect to the information you are looking for.





I hope this helps


if you need some more help go to www.wiz-bang.com and send me a comment
Reply:For one thing, you could easily learn Web Building yourself in very easy to follow tutorials that are available, free-of-cost, to you at w3schools.





This is an initiative taken by the w3 Corporation that owns the www [World Wide Web] that you see in all web addresses.





They even have online exams and Certification Courses which cost you as little as below 60$[USD]!





Now, I am saying that when you can easily become an Expert yourself, within a couple of months of dedicating a couple of hours to this, why do you want to be satisfied with being an also ran or semi-literate?





Trust me on this, Web building is no biggie. All you need is tons of common sense and a lot of dedication to learn the concepts and practices.





Now, Operating Systems are what run your Computer. They are, basically, Windows [owned by Microsoft Corporation], OSX [owned by Apple MAC] and Linux which is an open source technology! These are usually also know as DOS[Disc Operating Systems] that operate your discs for you. Written on to these discs are algorithms [algebraic arithmetic formulae] that perform a "Switch on" =1 and "Switch off" =0 sequence using Binary Mathematics.





Now, what's Binary Mathematics? It's really simple! It's the way we learnt to add and subtract on our fingers as lil kids! When we had to add a number we opened a finger ["switch on"=1] and when we had to subtract a number, we closed the finger["switch off"=0], remember? What was left behind was the answer! Well, mutliplication is just simplifying multiple additions and division is simplifying multiple subtractions, isn't it? And the rest of all the scary Maths is really just an extension of these very siomple functions!





You see how easy it is when youget rid of the hoop la and the fear you always had?





Now, a "Web Site" is a space alloted to you in the virtual world of the Internet and you keep your "Web Pages" there for people to access. Like with your real time communications, you can speak with someone in plain, simple english or use french or german. Similarly, you can communicate with your computer using different Computer languages. Like with actual languages like French or German, you just need to learn them to be able to use them!





Aint this easy? And fun!? And, boy, aintcha thinkin' , now, what the heck were you gettin' all worked up about this lil thing for?





OK, my friend, you are now ready to start off on the adventure of learning and becoming an Expert Web Builder yourself! So, click on the link I've given you below and start learnin'!!! You're a WINNER and don't you forget that!





With the freebies and resources and tutorials you have at w3schools, there's no way that you can be anything else but a WINNER!





All the very best!





Cheers
Reply:Here's some helpful stuff ;-)


(Buzzwords and buzzphrases)





Outsourcing.





Indian programmers work cheaper.





We've installed keyloggers.





I've been talking to an outside consultant.





Salary surveys are showing a downward trend.





I'm considering code reviews by outside consultants.








Judicious use of these should be quite effective in communicating who is in charge and inspiring the requisite amount of fear to ensure solid compliance.
Reply:First, you're off to a good start... it's nice to see someone who isn't a developer wanting to be able to talk to us :)





Some of the answers above me have good advice, but I'd like to add to it a bit:





Watch out for buzzwords. They're great if you want to go online and find out what the new hot topics are, but they can get in the way of an explanation if they're thrown into a design conversation without a good understanding of what they mean. Try looking on Wikipedia for general definitions and commentary on buzzwords... as a wiki it isn't guaranteed to be accurate, but it is a good place to start.





When in doubt, ask a question. Most developers like talking about technical challenges, and how to solve them. It goes with the job. You don't need to toss out the buzzwords, you don't need to have a deep understanding of the code... you'll be surprised how much information you can get out of a block diagram, so try to have something to write on around.





Finally, give it a shot. Try downloading Java (it's free) and trying some things out... there are books and websites out there that will work you from the very beginning levels up through GUIs and applets. Or give HTML a try, there are thousands of books that can help you with it. I'm not saying you should become an expert, but you'll learn a great deal by putting up a basic web site, or writing a four function calculator. Just get a bit of experience under your belt, so that you know what people mean when they talk about variables, sockets, streams, method calls and libraries.





Operating systems, and sites or systems that function across platforms are more difficult topics... you'll want to get your head around the basics first. When you're ready, try looking at your local bookstore for books on operating systems... Modern Operating Systems by Tanenbaum or Operating System Concepts (aka, the dinosaur book) would be good places to start.





Good luck.

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