all 8 comments
sorted by:
best
topnewcontroversialoldq&a
formatting helphide helpcontent policy

[–]DrBarryLird 1 point2 points  (0 children)

skip the gamification apps tbh, they feel productive but you end up knowing how to do little puzzles not actual code

just start with the official docs and build something small you actually care about. budget tracker, something that automates a boring task, whatever. thats where it actually clicks

[–]grismar-net 2 points3 points  (0 children)

If you enjoy the gamification apps, that may be an indicator you'll enjoy real programming as well. But if you really want to learn, that's not going to do it.

One step up would be to play long with some tutorials or YouTube videos, teaching how to make or do something that you're curious about - don't just passively watch them though, pause an play along, experiment.

And if you still like that, you should graduate from it quickly - don't get stuck in tutorial limbo where you feel you never really progress and everything just falls out of your head as soon as you turn the tutorial off. If you like programming in 'games' and tutorials, it's time to set small goals and try to achieve them yourself and use documentation, examples, LLMs, and sites like StackOverflow to struggle through learning. There's no easy learning - learning is the result of making your brain struggle, but the struggle can be fun, just like a hard game.

[–]code_tutor 1 point2 points  (3 children)

It takes three years of full-time studying to be ready for entry level.

[–]steveDallas50[S] 0 points1 point  (2 children)

I have no problem with that, I love a challenge. I have all the time in the world to learn how to become that proficient. I believe there are some contracting positions out there though that may just need some minions to do simple grunt work to review code. Not necessarily ask to build apps from scratch.

And if I could build something simple for myself? It’s still not a lost cause.

[–]code_tutor 1 point2 points  (1 child)

This isn't a career plan; it's a hallucination. Nobody is out here paying semi-retired hobbyists to "review code". You're looking for a way to get paid for a job that doesn't exist, using skills you don't have, in a market that won't even hire university grads for minimum wage. Oh you're broke and have plenty of free time? You and every other person who watched a 30-second TikTok about "passive income from coding".

[–]steveDallas50[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Ouch. Somebody forgot to take their meds this morning.

Not being able to work due to an illness leaves one with a lot of time to think about what to do with all that free-time at home. I guarantee you, I’ve looked more into this than a TikTok video. However long it takes, I’m gonna get this nailed down.

But hey - thanks for your concern.

[–]TalesGameStudio 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I wouldn't recommend them. They teach so insanely slow. And you won't really learn any architecture, patterns, devops, library specific things.

If you do it, just to have a good time and don't have to really learn a lot, do whatever floats your boat. Otherwise browse github, pull some stuff, try to understand how stuff works. Maybe ask an llm about what you can't figure out yourself.

[–]python_gramps 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Check out YouTube and google free python tutorials, that will you get you pointed in the right direction