How to learn front-end development
or.....how I'm doing it :)
Do you want to learn how to build websites but don’t know where to start? Let me take you on a trip. You don’t mind riding shotgun, do you?
This is how I’m learning to make my impression on the web, help my community, and ultimately, help me and my family.
Miles past
I do have some prior development experience with iOS (iphone/ipad operating system). Having built 2 photo apps for the Apple AppStore, I’m familiar with coding.
Web development or Front-end development was no interest to me. I love Apple hardware and building something for the platform just made sense.
In 2016, I began learning Swift (Apple programming language introduced in WWDC 2015 or 2016 🤷🏻♂️). I ended up building my first of two apps called “Flache” and later “Pix.l.”
Figuring I could secure some job prospects with 2 apps in the AppStore, I was hit with an insurmountable realization. I lived in the wrong part of the country, away from tech hubs, to secure a job/career as an iOS developer. 😢
So I turned to web development/front-end development. Since the development tools weren’t bulky and easy to use, I gave it a shot.
First Stop
The first course I ever took was Colt Steele’s Web Developer boot camp on Udemy. I highly recommend you find and take this course if you are interested in front-end web development. Colt takes you into the “MERN” stack (MongoDB, Express, React, Node.js) without the “R.” He replaces the “R” with bootstrap.js, which is a javaScript UI library for buttons, sliders, carousels, etc.
This course will teach you a lot! I was proud and felt like I achieved something when I finished this course.
Don’t expect to take this course and think you are ready for a job. You have to build stuff for your portfolio. In today’s market, the “DO” matters. What you can offer or “do” for a company, carries you to the next level.
This is only the first stop and a very important one. This is where we “break the seal” on on this trip.
Next Stop
Where we find ourselves now, is a place where the “God of Thunder” does web development, The Odin Project.
As I was fumbling through YouTube, I saw a series of videos talking about The Odin Project. I decided it was time to take a right turn there.
The Odin Project is a free open source course developed by the community to help anyone interested in web development.
Besides being one of the best, free sources to learn web development (the other being Free Code Camp), I was very surprised to see that it only supported MacOS and Linux. That means, if you’re a Mac fanboy or fangirl, this is where you want to learn. Sorry, Windows PC loyalists, there’s no support for Windows.
The course breaks down into 2 parts: Foundations and Path
Foundations
The first part of two is Foundations. It’s the introduction to the course. Takes you through what the web is, what’s the internet, intro to Git and Github, and helps the student set up the development environment.
The course immediately throws you in the deep end of the pool when setting up your development environment.
Then, the basics come in: HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.
At the time of this writing, I’ve only completed the first three sections.
Second Gear
The second part of The Odin Project is which path you want to take. You can take either the Ruby on Rails path, or the JavaScript path.
My novice opinion, I’m going to choose JavaScript becuase that is what websites run on. Animations, delays, etc., are all done with JavaScript. It’s a no brainer.
If you’re having a case of FOMO (fear of missing out), you can always go back and finish the other side.
My pro guess is that once I’m done with the course, in a few months, I probably won’t finish the Ruby on Rails path.
Long Trip Ahead
This is going to be a great adventure. It’s one of those trips that can go on forever, and it will.
If you are willing to learn and continue learning, web development will be a great choice. It will take overcoming obstacles and potholes, but with a little grit and determination, we will get to our destination.
Just imagine what your life would look like if you DIDN’T try to learn a new, in-demand skill.
Slam on the gas and get to it!
I’ll keep you posted on my progress if you want to ride with me.