Everything is basically an API

I apologize for not writing, I am kicking butt trying to learn new stuff and loving it!!! I am getting one on one instruction 3 times a week for a minimum of an hour each session with our chief computer scientist so I am pretty stoked!

The only drawback if you can call it that is he has a WEALTH of computer science knowledge not to mention a PhD in computer science. The man is intelligent and knows so much that I think his hardest part is trying to dumb stuff down enough for me to understand it =-)

Basically I feel giddy with excitement. I mean think about it, I'm getting paid well to learn one on one about node.js and computer science in general from a PhD computer scientist with 40 years of experience. Can you feel the excitement, and the reason why I haven't had time to post lately?

I had to write today to let everyone know that it doesn't matter what your background is whether you are a: truck driver, painter, college student, construction worker, etc you can make the switch.  Which by the way I have received emails from people in all of the previously mentioned professions that are all trying to learn to code and one day live the dream.

The hardest part with learning to code is that it's easiest to quit when just getting started because everything is SO overwhelming, so much to learn & so many new concepts to decipher. Not to mention the verbage I mean COME ON! Why can't everyone just call a method a method or everyone agree to call it a function. NO! instead it can be called: 'method', 'procedure', 'function', 'calling', 'running', a 'subroutine' I mean my goodness not to mention all of the other computer science terms that make your brain hurt when you've never been exposed to them before.

One that confused me for the longest time was client, server and API relationships, how it all fit together. I'm not there yet but let me just say it's all making a LOT more sense, although I think it's too much to write in this post. Basically everything in computer science is all just layers and layers of abstraction all with an Application Programming Interface. It's almost like: 'OHHH...this isn't as hard as I thought kind of moment, it starts to all make more sense :-)

Well that's where I'm at right now, keep coding peeps!

Udacity CS 101 versus Stanford's CS 101

I am currently learning Javascript, It's funny how many different ways there are to learn: tutorials, classes or just simply making something which is what I am doing currently.

I am still taking Udacity's CS 101 converting the Python into Ruby, which is going well. I did half of Stanford's CS 101 course but ended up stopping because although a nice introductory course, it doesn't teach you how to write code which is in actuality the hard part and takes skill which can't be faked.

I am realizing more and more that a lot of online places (that charge you $25-$30 a month just to use their courses) actually aren't super concerned, if in the end of taking their courses for a year, if you are really able to write any code on your own or not.

When I originally started learning how to code I naively thought that the more expensive a class was the better it would be and the faster I would learn. I think most places are more concerned about getting you to come back each month and pay them some more money.

Not that they are all bad but I do have some bad stories that I may or may not share in the future about some of my own experiences.

It has taken me a long time to also figure out how to spend my learning time ONLY on things that will help me become better at coding. I can sit at a computer and spend 3 hours learning cool things about I.T. but am now learning that I can do that for the rest of my life and still not be able to solve coding challenges.

The emphasis I realize is for myself and wanting to become a really good web developer. I need to spend 90% of my learning time actually writing or playing with code. Sounds stupid I know but that is why I dropped Stanford CS 101.

Stanford CS 101 is a great course, great teacher and it's FREE! But, you really won't learn much about how to code, which is the toughest part of coding. I would say maybe 20% of the class is actually coding exercises. It's a good basic CS overview if you want one. Just don't expect to improve your coding skills from it. 

Udacity CS 101 on the other hand is just the opposite. It starts off deceptively easy and then ramps up the coding challenges and becomes tough quite quickly. I don't think I could recommend it for an absolute beginner because it assumes you already can code and have STRONG logic and problem solving skills. Which probably isn't the case if you are just starting out.

The good news is Udacity's CS 101 really DOES teach you how to code. There is tons of coding challenges for every Unit and then LOTS of additional optional homework for each unit. Just so you know when I say lots I'm talking 15 or more additional optional homework assignments per unit, which can be challenging.

That's one of the many reasons why I am just on Unit 3 of 11 in Udacity's course and the fact that I am doing all of the optional homework by converting Python to a Ruby. Which is teaching me how to look through the Ruby docs better. 

What is funny is that while both classes are called CS 101 and are college level classes, Stanford's CS 101 can be done in 1 week if you work hard. While Udacity's CS 101 will take all of 7 weeks and probably even more while working hard on the coding assignments. Unless of course you just Google and paste in someone else's code. I am assuming that you really want to learn how to code, meaning that you personally have some coding skills and can solve some coding challenges on your own.

That my friends is the hardest part. You can find really cool frameworks like Rails and in a handful of commands have something up and running but the actual ability to know how to code (meaning solve coding challenges not just run a command) is a much slower and harder process yet still enjoyable process.

I'm making a class for this fall that I'm thinking I will do on Skillshare. It will be a beginner's class and focus on making a website from start to finish for a client in real life and in the end you should walk away with a profit. It would be cool to show students how to actually make some money while learning to code versus always paying $30 and having to eat those costs.

My idea will be something close to spend $20 for the class and then I will walk you through step by step, in a real life project, while you make your own as well. At the end of the course you sell yours for $100 (or more) netting you at the very least $80 or so depending on the exact dollar amounts.

There are SO many cool, dirty secrets that no one tells you about but EVERYONE who makes projects in real life does except for the noobs who have no clue.

Anyway that's this fall. I want to help new developers learn how to code quicker. I want to show others how to cut through all the clutter and make the learning to code journey fun and dare I say profitable.

Keep coding peeps!

Coding headaches are actually good.

At one time I actually had this idea that I would eventually outrun, this constant learning which can leave you slightly frustrated because you don't quite understand something, or a 'coding headache'.

Well here's the thing, after being hired for 8 months that feeling of always struggling to LEARN, LEARN, LEARN, MORE, MORE, MORE!!! has yet to leave and I now doubt it ever will, which is probably a good thing and not a bad thing after all. I am being to feel just a little more comfortable with being presented with something and not knowing it and then starting to try and figure it out.

This whole learning to code and hopefully one day be a top notched developer is a constant battle for more knowledge and understanding. I can't reveal the details, but all I CAN say is that I absolutely MUST start learning Javascript in the next 3 months no excuses because of some things going on. Another day another dollar, time moves on and in learning to code it's time to buckle down and study during lunches and at night when my 2 & 4 year old are in bed it's time to study some again. Then it's off to work to code and then the cycle repeats itself almost like an infinite loop, until either my head explodes or I am really good one day :-)

My one piece of advice to those who are trying to do like I did and teach themselves to code and then get hired, start getting used to not knowing something and try not to let it scare you. Instead do what I do now when walking through the office doors at work, be grateful and happy that no matter how stressful and swamped you feel, whether or not you get everything perfect, you will leave with more knowledge and information than when you walked through those doors that morning. Embrace it don't fear it, even when you screw up and get chewed out at work (and rightly so) for your mistake. Embrace it don't fear it, just one step closer to the goal of becoming a better developer.


My goal remains the same 4 years and 4 months from now, I want to be working as a senior developer somewhere. Laughable? Crazy? Maybe, I don't care I say make no small plans. Embrace it, don't fear it!

Keep coding peeps!!!

How to know if you are cut out to be a developer

On days like this when there is lots of snow on the ground I used to fire up my forge, heat the horseshoes red hot, warm my hands and make special handmade forged clips on the horseshoes.

After 5+ years of shoeing horses full time for a living, I began to wonder if this was all there was for me, could I be anything different. I wasn't like the other redneck tobacco chewing, drinking farriers, I'd never worn a cowboy hat, or ridden a bull, but I longed to know more, be more and do more.

After making the switch to development almost 7 months ago, I have been emailed hundreds of times by people asking my advice on how to become a junior developer and also how to know if they are cut out to be a developer.

Here are 7 traits that I have observed the best developers I work with and know personally all have in common:


1)  Attention to detail, especially the smallest of details.

The old saying that 'almost' and 'close' only count in horseshoes and hand grenades is true, in development getting something 95% correct is still not going to work, a method that 'almost' works or a Css rule that has an image centered 'close' will not work. It's that extra 5% of effort to get things right that really counts and makes the difference.


«««  If you hate details, then you might not want to be a developer.


2)  Learning ALL the time.

At first this sounds sexy, your like AWESOME! I love learning new things! Especially if you come from a boring job or something that never changes like horseshoeing =-)  After a while though, it becomes a steady stream of knowledge, and if you don't like water, it will feel like you are stuck in a never ending, never knowing enough waterfall of learning that just won't stop. I literally learn 10 - 20 little new things every single day and I love it! My brother wants things that don't change and are consistent, he has told me he wouldn't ever want to learn how to code.

«««  If you don't like constantly having to learn new things just to keep up in an ever changing field, then you might not want to be a developer.


3)  Handle pressure, stress, and deadlines.

Yes everyone loves USING apps, but how about meeting business time lines, deadlines, and goals? When will this be done? How long is this going to take? Can we do more of these in this amount of time? Now remember the attention to detail? What are you going to do, hurry? Rush through your work and hope it's close enough? In a perfect world coding is so much fun, let's write some code that does something cool, eat pizza and have a coke. In real life there can be stress, not all the time, but it is VERY different then simply doing an online 30 minute tutorial. I love being pushed to my limits and I want to grow and become a better developer so I don't mind.

««« How are you at time lines and working under pressure? If you tend to shutdown under stress, then you might not want to be a developer.


4)  Organized

Now I know a lot of messy developers, who could SEEM unorganized, but what I am talking about is the ability to have an organized work flow. Meaning can you find how to do something on your computer easily and quickly? The good developers I know are usually able to quickly locate what file they need or have a built in alias or script to do tedious tasks, it's all about efficiently.

««« If you learn something new, do you write it down, or figure out a way to be able to repeat the same procedure? Can you organize a lot of different tasks? If not, then you might not want to be a developer.


5) Extremely inquisitive

When I was a teenager, a lady at the church I attended would tell me probably once a month, that I needed to STOP asking SO many questions and that it could be annoying. Although offended at first, I've come to realize that the best developers are always asking 'why'? Whether it's how a new app works or the way a building is being built across the street. Conversations around developers can always be heard starting with: " I wonder why they did it that way...?" I used to feel like I was weird when I would ask lots of questions, but I see now, that at least in development, it is a good trait to have.

«««  Do things that you don't understand making you curious? Do new things excite you to figure them out? If you don't have at least some level of natural curiosity, then you might not want to be a developer.


6)  Self taught

Yes I know many developers come from colleges and great schools, but that's not what I mean. Great developers are always looking up code samples or documentation to learn how something works, they don't knock on the bosses office and say: "We need a corporate training class for this new software". Good developers are constantly learning and figuring out things on their own, whether they have no degree or 5 degrees.

«««  if you need someone to train you or are waiting to take the 'perfect' class to learn something, then you might not want to be a developer.


7) People skills

This is not a common trait among developers, the truly great ones do have good people skills, but the vast majority don't. If you can get along with people, your boss and the business side of the company will love you for your ability to communicate and not look down on the rest of the world because they can't code.

««« If you hate people and have a hard time getting along with others, then you might not want to be a developer.

Learning to code: Day 468

It's been a while since we last spoke, but I assure you that I have not been sitting on my butt. On the contrary I have been busy every day trying to conquer the enormous gap of coding ignorance that separates me from where I want to be which is the Tiger Woods of coding (minus the whole getting hit with a 9 iron by his wife part) =-)

My friend owns this site and as you can see it needs some love www.jabsreporting.com. I have been building her new site, and a friend of a friend wanted me to do some Wordpress stuff for her and said she'd toss me $300 for the trouble, so that was fun and also hard to refuse :-)

I'm still working on the Udacity course and loving it, just going at a snail's pace at the moment do to other factors. I can't say really much about work just that I have more responsibility which I love but it is also a challenge and keeping me extremely busy with my head down all day at work.

I have a course in mind that I know I want to teach on Skillshare or Udemy later this year, probably in the fall. I need to make sure that my idea can actually be done successful so I am starting to work on testing it out... can't really say much more on it then that for now, but I am really excited with the idea!

My friends new site www.jabsreporting.com isn't done, but I thought I'd put up a pic of the home page, I don't have it up on Heroku yet or else I would give you a link. The main image is just a 'place holder' for now. Sorry it's so small, I'll put up a link soon. keep coding peeps!