Here are 10 things you should know before you start programming. Knowing these points will give you a head start of what to expect, and how to approach programming.
Recommended Reading: Top 10 Sites to Ask All Your Programming Questions
1. Get the basics right
When you start learning, the first thing you need to be sure of are the“basics”. It is the first step of becoming a coding ninja.
To get the basics right, you need to learn the core of computer science, just like any other trade you will come across. There are currently hundreds of online courses aimed at beginners. Clearly, the internet cares about beginners, and provide tons of information — a beginner’s heaven!
All you need to do is search through them, and start with one that the best fits your requirements. You can get started with any of the online places mentioned in this article of ours (below).
Read Also: Best Sites to Learn How to Code for Web Developers
A proper understanding can give you an advantage early in the path of learning to code.
There are also courses available online that can help get you started like
The number one prerequisite for being successful as a programmer is building patience. Patience can let you take blows to your chin yet still be able to stand up – like a ninja! It makes you ready for disappointments.
Not to mention, patience can help you become a better problem-solver, and improve your understanding of computers.
Computer concepts are complex and require resilience, patience, and hard work to understand. Most of the time, beginners don’t have the right expectations when starting their programming journey. Yes, you don’t come with all the power at the beginning. Too much optimism is dangerous anyways.
Due to faulty expectations, too many beginners just give up, and move to another trade. To counter this, you should build patience, and always think of the end goal.
There is no end to learning and improvement in programming, and that’s why it is a good idea to keep setting goals, and not to lose track of your primary goal.
So, as a learner, what goals you can aim for? Let’s quickly go through some sample goals:
You can also choose to do any project of your liking. Who doesn’t have a unique taste after all? I bet you do!
The goal should be achievable, so don’t try to focus on building Facebook or creating a fully-featured game at this particular moment. Try to move slowly, and then aim for bigger and more complex projects as you progress further.
4. Do more projects
By doing more projects, you can understand not only your limitations, but also improve your analytical and problem-solving skills. After all, learning to code is not all about learning syntax, but about learning how to solve problems using the tools at your hand.
Programming also requires a creative outlook, and a plan to build something meaningful. For beginners, it is tough to get access to projects ideas. You can gain new ideas from platforms such as Livecoding where engineers build products live. Watch people do amazing stuff live. Ain’t that exciting?
You can also sign up for GitHub, a place where you can store your code for easy access. You can try to find project ideas by going through other public repositories for the programming language you are learning.
5. Get into social coding
Learning to code is never a solo quest. If you are thinking of building the next big app without any help, then you are in the wrong trade.
Programming is a group activity, and if you want to survive, you need to get help from different social platforms catering to programmers just like you.
Check out GitHub, StackOverFlow, Livecoding, or any other social coding site to find a suitable community for yourself.
Each of the communities mentioned above has its own perks, and will help you improve your skills. For example, you can explore public project repositories on GitHub.
Another good example is Livecoding, where you can see other people code their projects live, giving you an idea of the challenges a programmer faces while working on a project.
6. Balance your learning
As a developer, there is no end to improvement, and the continued state of helplessness is just part of being a developer. New technology releases also don’t let developers relax, as they have to constantly upgrade their skills to meet the latest market requirement. As a beginner, you need to always be ready to learn new things.
The number of possibilities doesn’t help the cause either, as you can always find an experienced developer who is unsure of his/her skills because of the constant influx of new tools, technologies, and standards to follow.
So, what can you take away from this? It is okay to not know everything that is out there. Whatever it is that you know, that’s okay. As long as you never stop learning new things, you’ll never go wrong.
Ok, what’s next?
You started learning, and now you have crossed the beginners’ tunnel. Now, you might be thinking, “What’s next”? Is this the end? Or is there something that you can still achieve?
As we have already mentioned, programming is endless learning. You can continue your learning experience by following the next four tips.
1. Learn algorithms
After you have gained some experience doing projects, it is now time to move to algorithms. Algorithms constitute the core of computer science. It doesn’t matter if you are doing web development or game development, you are always using algorithms to achieve the end-result.
With increased proficiency in Algorithms, you can take your skills to new heights. Algorithmic thinking can also help you land your first job, as most job interviews are based on algorithms and problem-solving. Aim to solve at least one algorithm problem each day, and keep your problem-solving skills top-notch.
Code documentations help you learn about the programming language or framework or library you are using. They are rich with information about that particular topic, and can help you learn faster!
As a beginner, you need not be intimidated by them as they are your best friend when it comes to learning. Get started slowly, and learn how to read code documentation. They can be intimidating at times, so always keep Google as your rescue boat.
3. Get used to tools
Just like any other trade, tools can help you do trivial things faster than usual. It doesn’t matter which programming language or framework you are learning, take advantage of the available toolset.
Tools can also help you automate most of the manual work, and enable you to focus on the main problem. For instance, you should get used to tools such as Git, Slack, code editors, Chrome DevTools, programming frameworks (both frontend and backend), and others.
4. Get a mentor
Programming can be a time-consuming task if you don’t have a mentor. With the help of the mentor, you can save not only your time, but also get value from the experiences your mentor possesses. A mentor can easily guide you through projects, and help you become a better programmer.
So if you are starting to learn programming, getting a mentor can help you hasten your learning process. You can get a mentor locally, or try out an online code mentorship program as well.
Final words
You have made the best decision of your life — to learn programming! One of the biggest thing you should focus on is to get into a hub, a circle or a social platform where you can find like-minded people.
Once you are comfortable with your skills, you might want to earn money as well. There are many online platforms, such as Upwork and Freelancer, that offer freelance work for programmers.
With a real-life project, not only can you learn new things, but you can also learn to utilize your skills. Alternatively, you can look for job opportunities within your peer group, and maybe help them with their projects!
Already started? Share your experience with beginners, and help them take on the world of coding.
Editor’s note: This is written for Hongkiat.com by BELLO MUSA KAMBRA
Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps
Comments
Popular posts from this blog
Computer programming Language Download PDF Watch Edit Example of an internet chess program, Lichess , showing artificial intelligence programming – if the white bishop at b3 moves to a2, capturing the black knight, then the program is designed to find the most advantageous move for black, very likely capturing the bishop with the b1 pawn. Black has just moved a pawn to c2. Computer programming is the process of designing and building an executable computer program to accomplish a specific computing result. Programming involves tasks such as: analysis, generating algorithms , profiling algorithms' accuracy and resource consumption, and the implementation of algorithms in a chosen programming language (commonly referred to as coding ). [1] [2] The source code of a program is written in one or more languages that are intelligible to pr...
Advantages of TTL Logic circuit: Advantages of TTL logic family, one should have a basic idea about RTL, DTL etc. Diode logic (DL) uses diodes to implement logical functions like AND and OR. But the disadvantage is that it can not perform NOT operation. As AND and OR are not complete functions by themselves, they can not perform several logic functions without NOT. Hence, there was a need for some device which can perform a NOT function as diodes can not. That device is a transistor. Then came the DTL which uses a transistor along with diodes. As a transistor can act as an inverter, NAND (NOT-AND) & NOR (NOT-OR) operations can be performed. But this logic uses several diodes which will slow down its operation. Due to the delay offered by them, the logic levels may sometimes change i. e. 0 t0 1 or 1 to 0. Then came TTL. This logic uses a multi emitter transistor, a transistor with many emitter terminals. As every emitter is nothing but a diode, this logic eliminates the use of al...
Comments
Post a Comment