What can I build with...?
Before you decide whether you want to learn programming, a website builder tool or a content management systems (CMS), you should be aware of the tradeoffs and limitations of each option.
If you want to build a website with the primary goal to display content, you can use a website builder tool, a content management system or write code in HTML and CSS. Sometimes such sites are also called static websites because the content is mostly static. Of course you can still embed things like google maps or a YouTube video. So, in that sense there might be a few interactive elements, but other than that the website is mostly static.
But if you want to create more sophisticated interactive experiences you need to program in JavaScript. For example, a web game needs to react to each keyboard input or mouse movement. So, it is necessary to program logic that updates the screen all the time according to the inputs. Games are just one example, of interactive applications that can be build for browsers. Jason Miller categorized the most common application types and called this application holotypes (the article is directed towards advanced developers, but you can peek into it to compare the different characteristics and constraints as well as examples of each type):
- Social Networking Destinations
- Social Media Applications
- Storefronts
- Content Websites
- PIM Applications
- Productivity Applications
- Media Players
- Graphical Editors
- Media Editors
- Engineering Tools
- Immersive / AAA Games
- Casual Games