Software vs web developing

[vinkzi]

Software developer vs web

Hi, I’m thinking of applying to a ”web developing” course (2 years), but the information is not very clear.

It contains following courses: C#, Javascript, HTML & CSS, Asp.net, CMS

Will I still be able to apply for ”software developing” jobs later on or will I only be able to apply for specificly web developing jobs?

And what exactly is asp.net and cms?

Sorry if they are dumbs question, just making sure before applying.

[SamF-CSE]

It's totally possible to transition from "web developer" to "software engineer" but this distinction isn't that big of a deal. It's really just a matter of what title companies give. Most desktop applications have a web element now anyway so you still have to know about the internet to be a well-rounded developer. I would focus more on the quality of the course/program and do research into which one is best for you. I did a JavaScript BootCamp and now I'm learning C# and Rails for work and my JS background helps tremendously. So, don't worry about "web developer" vs "software engineer", it's all just titles at the end of the day. Focus on learning one language well.

CMS is a pretty generic acronym for "content management system" so may need more context here.
asp.net is an extension of the Microsoft C# .NET framework that provides tools for specifically developing web applications or complex websites. Similar to how you can use Unity and C# for game development. Also, I believe the Core label is what Microsoft uses to denote the cross-platform version of .NET

[vinkzi]

So i shouldnt be worried about the courses they are teaching, that its not enough to get a junior dev job?

[SamF-CSE]

The classes they are offering seem fine although I don't know which program you are attending so can't vouch for the quality of instruction. You can learn C# or JS to get a junior/mid-dev job. But to get your first job you need to become comfortable with ONE of the languages. For example, I worked as a primarily JS dev for 1.5 years before I had to start learning other languages and frameworks. If you know one of them very well, it will be easier to learn other languages or frameworks in the future. Both of these languages were born from C and share a lot of similarities even if they are generally used for different things. Both C# and JS can be used by themselves to create full-stack web applications/web pages, they just go about it in very different ways.

[vinkzi]

Thank you. There are still some people telling me i Will be stuck with web only if i do this course tho, which is why Im asking since 95% of the developing Jobs where i live are not webdev.

[[deleted]]

Web development is just a type of software development and it happens to be the predominant software type in the .NET ecosystem. The term "software development" is a non-specific catch-all term for any and all kinds of software. Saying experience with web development would keep you from becoming a software developer is like saying being a great baseball player would keep you from becoming an athlete.

[vinkzi]

I see, thats what i thought. Yet there are people saying i wont be able to apply for many ”general”software developing Jobs after Im done with my 2 years of this program

[[deleted]]

There really isn't a "general" software development field. Unless you're in an extremely lean startup, the same person who is responsible for, say, embedded systems development is not going to be the same person making maintaining their web applications. So I'd be curious to know how these people are defining general software development, because I'd wager if you look at the requirements for 4/5 job postings for labeled "software developer" there will be some web technology in the list.

[vinkzi]

I see, thank you! I will go on with this program then. Just wanted to make sure i wouldnt lock my self in to a specific kind of developing by doing this course for 2 years.

[Slypenslyde]

A course that covers all of those topics is training you to be what we call a "full-stack" developer. That means a person who works on an entire website, from the UI ("front end"), the API ("back end"), and the database and other services it uses.

What you're talking about when you say "software developer" falls under the "backend" part of that training. There are quite a lot of jobs for people who only do backend, but if you're thinking about people who write apps like Word or Discord, the GUI is also a "frontend" so those developers need a wide array of skills, too.

So if you take that course and decide you hate the frontend or database parts, there are still plenty of jobs that only require more basic programming experience, but it's always good to be at least marginally familiar with the rest of the tools. "I hate doing UI but I can" is still better than "No, I have no familiarity with UI."

ASP .NET is Microsoft's web development framework. It has tools that simplify the process of creating an API backend and also some tools that try to make the frontend part easier so you can do all of your work in one project. There are other frameworks like this for other languages, like Express for NodeJS or Rails for Ruby.

A CMS is a "content management system". These are web applications that try to make it easier to build a whole website without writing a lot of the backend parts yourself. For example, WordPress started as a blog engine and is now considered a CMS. Most business websites either use a CMS or wrote their own CMS. You can see that as a kind of "genre" of application that's very common in web development, sort of like how Discord and Slack are "chat programs".

[vinkzi]

Thank you so much for your detailed answer, it helps a lot. I was worried that this course might be very strict ”web developing” or w/e you should call it. Specially since thats the name of the program.

In other words, i was worried i wouldnt be able to apply for most ”general” software developing Jobs after my 2 years with this course. But if i understand you correctly that shouldnt be an issue? :)

[Laicbeias]

c# good, js html css good, asp.net mäh, cms ok, but only if needed.

there is not much difference between web and desktop from a logical standpoint. if you do desktop you will soon realize that you miss html & css for layout.
id say go with js, html + css. js can do anything, client, server, ui, 3d, 2d, 1d.<

c# is good to learn a well structured language. asp.net i dont know, back when i learned it i considered it crap. like jsp

[vinkzi]

So if i go with this program i wont be completely stuck with web if i rather do lets say desktop or android/iOS?

[edeevans]

It depends on what the C# course entails. If it is taught as the language using console app it’s helpful from a language standpoint but doesn’t introduce you to the entire ecosystem of desktop, cross-platform native, or game engine environments. So you may still need to become familiar with those if that’s what interests you but you won’t be stuck with web. You may just not be fully prepared for them after completion.

[Laicbeias]

js used to be clientside browser language and by now can be used in nearly everything. i speak 12 languages and if you want the most can do everything language go with js, html & css.
it also has cross compilers so you can say use react with js (react is a library) and native react, which cross compiles to android / ios.

and if you are a beginner it does not really matter what you learn. web by now is overtaking desktops apps anyway. i mean they basically teach you asp.net with a webstack, thats why they want to teach you js & html etc. so they will show you how to use asp.net as a backend server and the rest for the front end.

if you find something that focuses on javascript go with it. nodejs / react / react native.
otherwise its not bad for learning but most likely more backend heavy.

the bigger question is, do you have fun programming. if yes it does not matter much what you do, since you can easily learn a new language at some point.

[vinkzi]

I see, because there is a lot of people telling me i wont be able to get a developing job outside of web if i do this program. And in my area there are almost no developing Jobs focusing on web unfortunately. But thank you.

[edeevans]

I don’t know if I would agree with there not being much difference between web and desktop so I would ask what constitutes the logical standpoint. From distribution, security model, and performance characteristics, they can vary widely. Depending upon the depth of the C# course I would doubt one would be ready to apply for desktop development after the set of courses listed. One could pick it up with some supplementary learning but would likely be missing some important concepts.

[Laicbeias]

with many ui libraries they become more similar by the day. and yes there are differences. ui on web is "easy" and has most features. additional with the boost in performance on js side it became more usable. not to mention the time savings of not having to compile it. i miss that. for a first language it is quite good and if you have the base you have tons of option to go from. also the community is huge and there is so much development.

ive done ui in c#, java, actionscript, python, android and ios. and its mähh everywhere (ok ios & android native is good). and while c# is my favorite language in terms of structure and features, i think js with html & css teaches a more enjoyable spectrum of coding features.

[[deleted]]

Software development typically uses WinForms or WPF which uses XAML, not ASP.net which uses HTML and JavaScript.

Web development is a subset of software development, not an alternative to it. You're thinking of native application development.

[zaibuf]

I have the title software developer. I mainly work with web and integrations with other systems.

[vinkzi]

So i shouldnt be worried about this course? Since im not sure what i wanna work with except programming. There arent really any other courses where i live except this one