Adam Moore
December, 1999
English 111-14
Riding the Wave of the Future: Webmastering as a Career
Webmasters are essentially the "architects" of the Internet, both creating and maintaining the ever-growing Information Super Highway. The Internet is what I’m talking about. Everyday it grows and changes. If a potential client wants a Web page created or design laid out or wants someone to maintain a site then they come to a Webmaster. Art and computers two of my most favored hobbies can be used hand and hand to obtain this job title. I’ve always had a strong urge to create and I got my first computer when I was eight so you could say I have grown up around them. This had made it even easier to see that computers are the future, the Internet is the future and my career is the future.
To become a Webmaster college is a very important resource to use. First, you must be very familiar with a computer especially the Internet. Second, you must have some art and design skills, understand what a good web site would look like, and must be fitted to the clients needs. Basic English skills are needed as well. Additional skills such as computer languages like HTML, JavaScript, and web authoring software experience are definitely recommended. Worrying about job availability and security is not a problem at all seeing how the Internet is growing everyday, Internet specialist are in extreme demand. Webmasters are needed from Hampton to Hong Kong. Income of Webmasters varies depending on the responsibility that they are given but range between $39,00 all the way up to $115,000 annually. That’s definitely something to cheer you up. Despite the fact that there are a number of positions that can be held (i.e. Internet strategist, net administrator, or web designer) one cannot really be considered higher than the other can’t. The Line of seniority cannot be established by top to bottom or by highest rank to lowest rank but rather a horizontal line where each position is equal. Pay is what ultimately separates one position from another.
Not all information about a particular career field can be found in printed publications. To truly find out about Graphic Art, I decided to interview someone related directly to that field. Through the wonders of IRC, a web based chat program, I was able to interview a woman from Texas named Anne. Anne is a graphic artist that does banners or brochures for a variety of clients. She sees the field of graphic art growing stronger in the next few years and isn’t worried at all about job security. The most important thing I feel I learned from her was that she told me she had taken several art and computer related class in school but the learning never really started until she was on the job.
Becoming an established webmaster whether you are working for a company or freelancing is much like a new artist. At first, no one may know your work or even heard of you before. Only through time and experience can a webmaster progress and become more popular. Know how to use the latest web authoring software and giving the clients exactly what they want is the key to success.
With job security, income and availability a distant, worry free thought becoming a Webmaster is really starting to sound good. This career gives me the chance to combine my best skills. When keeping all these characteristics in mind it begins to sound less like a career and more like a hobby! However, the most important thing I have learned through is that if want to really know what graphic art is all about I have get out in the field and do it instead of spending too much time taking classes on what I think I might need to know.
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