HTML & CSS
Web pages are written using a code or programming language called HTML, which stands for Hyper Text Markup Language. In fact you can view the code for most websites by simply right-clicking on the pages and then choosing "View Source" from the menu that appears (see example below right).
HTML is a relatively easy language to learn, and if you're completely new to it, now is a good time to begin. HTML is continuously being improved but the biggest shake up has already happened. This was the introduction of CSS (Cascading Style Sheets). Put simply, CSS is how HTML pages are styled (colours, backgrounds, text fonts, page layout etc...). Instead of adding countless codeing for styling to each HTML web page, as was once the norm, CSS is used instead, which saves a lot of time and effort and results in lighter pages that load quicker and are easier to maintain or even redesign. This created headaches for a lot of experienced web designers initially, as did the move away from using tables to control page layout in favour of this more versatile CSS and for similar reasons, but more on that later. Suffice to say, you have missed that headache.
So in reality there's never been a better time to start learning how to build web pages and web sites than today. And there is no other medium like the Internet that allows you to learn for free and with the potential of reaching millions with your work. Go for it!
This condensed tutorial gives all the basic building blocks required in order to get started. Please feel free to copy and paste any of the code snippets you find and to use the free web templates. If you become confused at any point by jargon, please use the glossary in the useful tools section. Why not work through this tutorial and start building your own projects? Who knows where it may lead you.