A few months back, I was helping a good friend of mine with his resume, who has been working as a chef for the last 15 years. Needless to say, the resume took about ten times longer to finish than it should have, due to numerous conversational diversions into the world of cooking and food. Throughout the course of the conversation, the recurring theme was the importance of using the proper tools and techniques to get the job done right.

Could you cater a 50-person affair with what you find in your kitchen? Odds are probably not in your favor that you would not be able to handle it. Would you hire a culinary-school student to do it after class? Your odds are not much better.

Drawing the same analogy to web design. Could you develop a commercial-quality web site with what you find on the average PC? Are you willing to make the investment in the hardware, software, training and time necessary to produce a site that you can be proud of?

In the meantime, the links below offer some solid information and tips for cooking and web design techniques from some seasoned professionals.