Didn't I miss the boat?

Now that the dot-com boom has turned into the "dot-bomb" bust (i.e. many Internet startup companies have gone out of business), you might wonder if there are any opportunities left in web development. Happily the answer is a resounding "yes!"

Consider these examples of what my friends and family have done on the Internet over the past twelve months:

1. Ordered a replacement part for a barbecue grill from a major appliance manufacturer
   
   
2. Processed a request for reimbursement of replacement parts under an automobile warranty program
   
   
3. Researched digital cameras prior to purchasing at a retail store
   
   
4. Ensured local libraries had books on hand prior to visiting the library

What do all these activities have in common? Aside from being accomplished by using the Internet, they all involved dealing with traditional brick and mortar businesses. The grill company and the automobile company are certainly not virtual businesses. They manufacture tangible products that are mainly sold through traditional business channels, not over the Internet. However, through their web sites, people were able to handle tasks that normally would have required them to go to a retail store. One of my friends was able to obtain information on various digital cameras from six different manufacturers over the Internet. Although he could have subsequently purchased the camera online, he chose to visit a retail store to examine the products once he had narrowed his choice. And by using databases that cover local library holdings, I minimize wasted trips to obtain reference materials by checking on the availability of books ahead of time.

The demise of many dot-com businesses does not diminish the needs of brick and mortar businesses for web development. Having a web presence is expected in the 21^st century. I'm noticing more and more "mom and pop" businesses in my community advertising their web sites. You wouldn't think the local deli down the street would need a web site…but there is one in my neighborhood that has one! A recent survey of headhunters was conducted by Informationweek to determine the hot skills that were being sought among IT professionals. This study revealed that over 70% of respondents were interested in Internet (or intranet) skills experience and web infrastructure experience.ⁱ As more and more people are connected to the Internet, demand for web sites and services should continue to grow. Therefore, the job opportunities for web development and administration should continue to grow also.

When prospective students approach me inquiring about Internet careers I ask them what specific Internet career they are interesting in pursuing. About 90% of the time the reply is "I want to be a webmaster." "Deer caught in headlight" looks follow when I ask them "What does a webmaster do?" Let's explore modern web development and find out.

Many Internet-related job titles use the term webmaster, which is an outdated term in the 21^st century. At the dawn of the world wide web (way back in 1993), there was probably only one person in the company that knew anything about the Internet and the world wide web. Therefore, these folks acted as jack-of-all-trades, often simultaneously programming, managing web servers, developing content or communicating with content providers and performing graphic design work. Sites were relatively small, static and changed infrequently. Therefore, allowing one person to control the entire web development process was feasible.

Except at very small businesses, web sites today require frequent updates, a high level of interactivity, new content, and thousands of pages to accomplish their objectives. It would be impossible to make one person (or even a single team) responsible for a large, commercial web site (such as eBay.com or Amazon.com). Therefore, a team development approach is required. Four functional areas usually fall under the title of webmaster today: systems administration, content management, publishing and e-mail response (customer interaction).ⁱⁱ Each of these areas can offer a rewarding career, depending upon what your interests and skill sets are. Before we examine these career paths, let us go over a few basic concepts regarding how the world wide web works.