Forum Moderators: phranque
I say this because design of a site can cost a fortune, the guy my firm used knew enough PHP to write a site and cock up our network.
Gas fitters and accountants amongst many others have their own bodies so why shouldnt web designers?
I dont think so. It is still a very young industry. It is already mined with templates and "design your own in 30 minutes".
A lot of "associations" exists already to better respond to some market shares.
I believe more than 90 % of "webdesign professionals" are not professional for a bit. I see most "high end" jobs given to Flash Divas working for their own portfolios in total desmise of their client's needs.
I doubt of any way to define quality standards across such a new industry. We are still in a middle of the Klondike, where most winners sold shovels to dreamers.
But when it comes to coding a secure backend, usability and knowledge of the laws that particularly affect web designers, I think that we need something. There are exams which cover webmastering, but there isn't one that it seems essential to get because it's recongnised above all others. If that situation changed it might be easier to spot the people who don't know what they're doing.
The web is essentially a free medium, so you can't prevent someone from practicing web design without impinging on their freedom of speech.
I mean maybe the 'registration' needs to be reviewed and recertificated every 5 years or so.
the main point is that people need to prove that they have a through grounding in their subject matter.
the main point is that people need to prove that they have a through grounding in their subject matter....
I don't think so. It's the job of the individual who's buying the service to come to some conclusion about the competency or lack thereof of the person selling the service, just like in any other industry.
You use a plumber etc. as comparison (okay, "gas fitter", which here is a "plumber/pipefitter"). I worked for a plumber certified by the relevant authorities. There were and are other plumbers in this area with the same certifications. Some of them did BETTER work than my boss; some did worse. But they all had the same pieces of paper.
The common denominator is that the person paying for a service is the ONLY and FINAL authority. A certifying agency is no guarantee of quality ANYTHING.
In the UK I can set myself up as a plumber, builder, web designer, programmer, systems analyst, financial consulatant, detective, bodyguard, whatever, and I don't need any specific qualifications. Customers would be wise to check that I belong to an appropriate trade organisation that would give them a means of redress should I screw up, but I would not have to belong to one. As long as I pay my taxes the government is happy. Caveat empor
The only exceptions are a few trades in the medical industry, such as doctors and surgeons.
This idea of registration and accreditation seems to be very much a US thing. I guess it's we Brits who live in the 'Land of the Free'. :)
the reason I asked was that a UK computer monthly asked exactly the same question and came to opposing views to you guys.
Interesting.
This idea of registration and accreditation seems to be very much a US thing. I guess it's we Brits who live in the 'Land of the Free'.
Not at all. European countries also have varying restrictions on setting up businesses in certain trades, where they can set them up and what qualifications and experience they must have.
For example, for many trades where I live it is obligatory to pass a business exam, where law, accounting and finance, and government regulations are only part of the (sizeable) syllabus - as well as passing any trade-specific exams.
My bad. Stike 'US thing', add 'US/European thing', and keep 'Land of the Free'.
Another UK exception is the London taxidriver who to get licensed has to spend 4 years to pass 'The Knowledge' (detailed knowledge of London and quickest routes).
Totally unnecessary of course with today's route-finding technology, but most of these exceptions do not derive originally from government regulations, but from old guild traditions where those inside the guild made life difficult for prospective members in order to keep numbers down and fees high.
Certainly in my view any enforced regulation is a political issue. 'Maintenance of standards' is often seen as a cover for monopolizing an area of trade.
Just what I need... another organization to pay yearly dues to so that the organization's top brass can earn 6 figure salaries and regulate what I can and cannot do while webmastering.
Look what you have here people an industry with no regulation, no unions, no licenses, no drama, no corruption, no government interference... It's awesome.
I'll admit a small organization looks good at first, but it is pandoras box.
First is just registration and yearly dues... 5 years later is take a bit more control over the industry... 5 years later a bit more... 5 years lateer a bit more... maybe microsoft gets some influence over the system through a 3 billion dollar donated HQ for the organization... etc.. etc...
20 years from now we are all using frontpage on windows server because "the guild" doesn't allow non-windows coding.
I thought you were smarter than this...
I suggest you do a google search for "teachers union scam" to see what happens when you go down this road.
In my view however, in lieu of a national standards, the only way to distinguish yourself from lesser peers is the old fashioned way- by churning out a distinguished body of work, networking offline with potential customers, perhaps uploading a vast amount of tutorials demonstrating your prowess at this or that.
Those designers who created so many of those useful and FREE Dreamweaver Extensions have the right idea.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder - when I hired an interior decorator to do my office, I looked at photographs of her past work and had discussions with her letting her know what I wanted out of the process. It wouldn't have mattered to me if she had a degree, registration, was part of a guild, whatever. I liked what I saw and went with her, and ultimately I got a great looking office out of it.
It's the BUYER's responsibility to look at the samples they're given by their designer and decide whether they want to use that person or not.
Let's keep the Internet free, people ... and I don't mean the PRICE free, I mean freedom from rules. There is too much legislation as it is, and now you want to add more by making web designers "register"? Who would be in charge of this? I mean really, who has the right to tell someone that their portfolio isn't "good enough" to make the cut?
I'll tell you who has that right - the person who chooses whether they want to HIRE THEM to do their site or not. No one else.
Zulufox said it best.
Having the knowlege alone does not confer competence. Just as there are bad attorneys who have passed the bar, there would be bad webdesigners that attained certification.
Leave the Internet as it is, generally unregulated.
WBF
Imagine a scenerio where you'd have to take a test to get a better "ranking" in the webmaster guild.
Guess what... we live in capitalism... this test wouldn't be free. I would be $2,000 with another $2,000 for the required pre test classes.
Next thing you know, the guild license is $4,000 on top so that now it costs you $8k to get started in this business...
Jesus people, are you so tired of freedom that you'd give it up so quickly?
I was looking for a php programmer, read the reviews of about 50 programmers.. found a AWESOME guy with all 5 stars, hired him the same day.
Guess what? He was AMAZING!
As the buyer I had objective (relatively) information I needed to make a purchase.
As a seller he had an advantage over the others because of his previously good work.
Win-Win situation for everyone...
By the way, on credentials, historians refer the "credentialization" in the US as a fairly recent but spreading phenomenon. I've lived in Europe and the US, though, and in the US it's nothing like it is in Europe.
I understand the arguments for acreditations, certifications, etc... But when it comes right down to it, these are not critical services (doctor, police, dentist, etc...) where mistakes can cost people lives. The web is a essentially a business where the losses are financial. It's the greatest free market that exists at the moment. All that's there to be lost is money and opportunity.
The stakes are simply not high enough to require this type of structure, assuming you could even put together such a worldwide governing body.
