Computers and the internet are like fashion products. Fit and trends are two of its essential elements. Web development has been in vogue for two decades now. So many so-called web development companies and individual builders have sprouted all over the planet producing a dizzying number of websites for the most personal purposes to purposive business and marketing objectives or ideological, political and other progressive advocacies.
Whatever the reason for a website, ease of use and “searchability” are ideal characteristics that seem elusive to many, if not most, website owners. Broken links or annoyingly “domineering” web pages piss off surfers and look for other user-friendly sites. Any of the following drawbacks is a probable culprit:
- Low-level of or no maintenance at all.
- Weak or inappropriate engine or development platform.
- Inexperienced web developer.
- Run of the mill web development companies more interested in cashing in for websites that are haphazardly done.
- Absence or lack of knowledge or understanding between the web development contractor and the website owner as to functionality and purpose of the website
Lack of appreciation of both the web developer and the website owner of Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) diminishes the chances for the site to rank high up in web searches at such engines as Google and Bing.
Not all web developers have that much computer savvy, some would like to think they are electricians or technical geniuses but the reality most aren’t. Some are just beginners or ordinary users who have stumbled upon guides and tools for web development in the internet. WordPress is one such example of a do-it-yourself web development tool. But without help from somebody with internet marketing experience using time-tested tools that “understand” search algorithms, the finished product can only be good looking but not functionally effective as it should be.
What good is a website if it is not found or seen by its intended market or users? That is where SEO guides and tools are useful. Usability of the website is next. It is very important for website owners to have their websites developed by experts who understand web development and its reason for being, through and through.
Use of the appropriate language and platform is imperative. PHP as a web development tool, for instance, can be of much help in attaining website purpose and use objectives. Some of its advantages are listed below:
- Simple, easy to learn and easy to use.
- Fast as it does not use so much system resources, secure and stable.
- Open source and therefore free to acquire, install and share. Looking for a particular script is easy in the shared resource community as it is easy for the developer to upload and share his own codes for others.
- Cross-platform compatibility and simple connectivity are built in due to its modular system of extension to interface with a variety of libraries such as graphics, XML, encryption, etc.
- Customisability allows programmers to extend PHP by writing their own executable extensions and load them using PHP’s dynamic loading mechanism.
Whew! This could pass for a web development introductory course.