Remember the days when your html and javascript skills were looked on as merely second rate skills compared to the hardcore back-end developers? Well, things are definitely changing. With a strong emphasis on usability, clean xhtml code, proper CSS usage and accessibility, it seems like us front-end guys are getting a little more respect.

I graduated with a computer science degree but always had an interest in design, usability and what the user sees on a website. My first choice was to go to a art school and study graphic design. I changed my mind after I found out how much the average graphic designer makes compared to a programmer.

I'm glad I didn't completely give up on the front-end world, because I believe it has given me an edge in web development. I can talk about data types and big-O notations with the programmer geeks on one day. Walk over and talk about hue, saturation and color compliments with the designer freaks on another; making me a geek and freak!

On my previous job I was hired as a front-end designer and producer. My job was to take photoshop mockups, cut them up into html and let them back-end guys insert their JSP code. This was WAY too easy, so half the time I would insert the JSP code myself. I eventually started creating my own custom tags to clean up the JSP/HTML pages (cause having scriptlets all over the place is just nasty.)

But the real reason for this post is because I am noticing more and more front-end positions available on job sites. A lot of them require that you code by hand, that you produce clean xhtml, use proper CSS and know the DOM inside out. The salaries have also gone up for the front-end positions. This really makes me wonder about my current job and how much I'm making.

So if you're a front-end developer and you feel like you should be making more for what you do, take a look at some of the jobs out there; you'll be surprised. A good example is to go to Dice.com, do a keyword search for CSS or XHTML and you'll see a lot of junior and senior level position available.