Web Coding: Learning HTML and CSS

“Network effects are powerful drivers of rapid growth. They’re a positive feedback loop, a flywheel that gets faster and faster.”

Doctorow, Cory, “Social Quitting,” Locus Magazine, 2 January 2023.

Cory Doctorow was talking about social platforms, and this idea applies well to the world of coding. these languages helped create the very technologies and online communities that grow through those network effects. Coding has opened the door to countless advancements — from interactive websites to massive social networks — and even my small first steps made me appreciate how much of the digital world is built on simple, foundational tools.

I came into the HTML Dog tutorials with zero experience. The tutorials broke everything down into pieces I could actually understand. I learned how headings give structure, how paragraphs carry meaning, and how lists organize information. Adding links felt like connecting my page to the rest of the internet. CSS made the experience even more interesting: suddenly I could change colors, adjust spacing, and make the page look intentional. It felt like I was shaping something real.

Even though I enjoyed the process, working through these tutorials also made me realize something important: not everyone needs to learn the fundamentals of web languages. HTML and CSS are powerful, but they’re also behind‑the‑scenes tools. Most people use the web, not build it, and that’s perfectly fine. These languages exist so developers can create platforms that everyone else can use without ever touching code. Unless someone plans to become a programmer or work directly with web design, learning these fundamentals isn’t necessary.

Still, I’m glad I tried. Even a small glimpse behind the curtain made the web feel less mysterious — and a lot more impressive.

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
    <title>My first web page</title>
</head>
<body>
    <h1>My first web page</h1>

    <h2>What this is</h2>
    <p>A simple page put together using HTML</p>

    <h2>Why this is</h2>
    <ol>
        <li>To learn HTML</li>
        <li>To show off</li>
        <li>Because I've fallen in love with my computer and 
          want to give her some HTML loving.</li>
    </ol>

   <p>How exciting</p>
  <p>Yes, that really <em>is</em> exciting. 
  <strong>Warning:</strong> level of excitement may cause head to explode.</p>
  
   <h2>Where to find the tutorial</h2>
    <p><a href="http://www.htmldog.com">HTML Dog</a></p>
<img src="http://www.htmldog.com/badge1.gif" width="120" height="90" alt="HTML Dog">
  
<table>
    <tr>
        <td>Row 1, cell 1</td>
        <td>Row 1, cell 2</td>
        <td>Row 1, cell 3</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
        <td>Row 2, cell 1</td>
        <td>Row 2, cell 2</td>
        <td>Row 2, cell 3</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
        <td>Row 3, cell 1</td>
        <td>Row 3, cell 2</td>
        <td>Row 3, cell 3</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
        <td>Row 4, cell 1</td>
        <td>Row 4, cell 2</td>
        <td>Row 4, cell 3</td>
    </tr>
</table>
</body>
</html>