How much would a normal coder cost to chop up and code a template (4-5 pages, fairly simple design). Also, how easy is it to learn?
For a simple page design with nothing too fancy, you shouldn't expect to pay more than 75-100 dollars. It's fairly easy to learn as far as coding languages go, theres just a lot of it to learn.
For multiple pages. Thats for a simple HTML/CSS layout with a simple page design, no complicated graphics, and 5-10 pages. That would be about 100 dollars, I'd expect. Expect to pay more for fancier layouts, graphics, features such as forms, etc It isn't too hard to learn - just time consuming to get your feet up under you.
Could you direct me somewhere where I could possibly begin to learn? W3 Schools doesn't seem to have much. I've heard it's mainly chopping it up and then using it with tables on HTML pretty much.
Slicing is a VERY bad idea. You need to take each image element (layer) that you want to use in your Web page, export it to a new file, clean it up and optimize it for the Web (I hear Paint Shop Pro is the best at optimizing graphics for the Web), and then save it as a separate file. When you make your Web page, try to avoid using images as much as possible. Any effects you have (like image rollovers) should use a single image with all the states on them (to cut down on server requests) that can be repositioned using CSS. If you have a large single color, use a background color in your stylesheet, rather than an image. It'll take some getting used to, but it's a much better way to do things.
I agree with Dan. Slicing is a HORRIBLE practice. What Photoshop does, for example, is it makes a ton of images and names them things like RC1L2.gif. Not only is this a non-descriptive name for a graphic, which makes it very hard to find and change later, but it also increases load time. It also makes images for things like text on a site. Honestly you should pay someone to code a template and then learn how to manipulate the file. I could help if you want. PM me if you would like help.
Um... Why is slicing so bad? If you know how to work with the slices it's no problem. That can be done within the original PS file by adjusting the size, position and settings of each slice. No reason to over-complicate things. Again, you can avoid all these issues by renaming slices and manually drawing each slice where you need it. You can also optimize each slice for web. No extras, no crazy names, no problems.