My name is Craig and I’ve been making websites since 1999. Or even before then if you count a truly cringe-worthy GeoCities site I made in 1997. But I’ve been doing it for a living since 1999. I got my start in graphic design but entered the job market just as the dot-com boom was booming and everybody wanted a website. So I said, sure, I can do that. And I’ve been making websites ever since.
Though I always considered myself a designer first and foremost, I found that I really liked the hands-on aspects of writing code. Yeah, I admit, I’m one of those “web designers should know how to code” people and I’ll stand by it. I should also add that I think front-end coders should know some design fundamentals, too. While I gradually moved into a pure developer role, I always kept in touch with my design roots. It has helped me collaborate well with visual and UX designers.
In the early days, like everyone at that time, I built sites with tables
and spacer gifs and font tags. It was just the way things were.
Then in 2003, I read
a review of ”Designing with Web Standards” on Slashdot,
and subsequently ordered and devoured that book. It completely changed my
approach to building for the web, and ignited a new passion for open standards
and accessibility.