Jim Whalen Online – the bridge between ideas and success. Jim Whalen Online is a creative and innovative web development firm that combines a distinct understanding of marketing strategies, with an expertise in project delivery and communication. Jim Whalen Online specializes in custom website design, website development, e-commerce, web-based applications, social networks, online marketing, and SEO.

Website Development – A Closer Look

Web developers, sometimes called programmers, take the design created and build a fully functioning website. To put it (very) simply, think of the design as a non-interactive “picture” of a website. Developers take that design and break it up into it’s components. They then either use just HTML or a more dynamic approach incorporating programming languages such as PHP to develop the various website pages. More advanced web developers may choose to utilize a Content Management System (CMS) like WordPress or Joomla in order to streamline development and allow clients an easy way to maintain and update their website.

Web developers may convert a static layout into a dynamic website by using image and content sliders, active states for links and buttons, and other interactive elements. An ever-growing set of tools and technologies have helped developers build more dynamic and interactive websites. Further, web developers now help to deliver applications as web services which were traditionally only available as applications on a desk-based computer. This has allowed for many opportunities to decentralize information and media distribution. Examples can be seen with the rise of Cloud Services such as Adobe Creative Cloud, Dropbox and Google Docs. These web services allow users to interact with applications from many locations, instead of being tied to a specific workstation for their application environment.

Examples of dramatic transformation in communication and commerce led by web development include e-commerce. Online auction sites such as eBay have changed the way consumers find and purchase goods and services. Online retailers such as Amazon.com (among many others) have transformed the shopping and bargain-hunting experience for many consumers. Another example of transformative communication led by web development is the blog. Web applications such as WordPress and Movable Type have created blog-environments for individual websites. The increased usage of open-source content management systems and enterprise content management systems has extended web development’s impact at online interaction and communication.

Web development has also impacted personal networking and marketing. Websites are no longer simply tools for work or for commerce, but serve more broadly for communication and social networking. Web sites such as Facebook and Twitter provide users with a platform to communicate and organizations with a more personal and interactive way to engage the public.

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