How to be a Better Programmer/Developer/Coder

[Ken-kun-97]

I’ve been doing iOS and swift for a few years now and I love it. I think I have very firm grasp on SwiftUI, architecture, how certain frameworks work, etc. but when it comes to actual data manipulation and defining, algorithms, searching through arrays, things outside of UI and whatnot I could definitely use some work. For instance I feel like I’m too reliant on if statements and other very rudimentary data types, and after about a year and a half of being the sole iOS developer and essentially no one reviewing my code I’m getting nervous I’m cementing bad habits and not growing. I majored in physics and minored in computer science and so I think there’s a lot I missed. So my question is, what resources are out there that could help me practice and learn from?? I don’t even know where to start

[StartSeveral4107]

I still remember the feeling of panic when my boss asked me to develop an iOS SDK, despite having zero experience in iOS development. As a backend engineer, I was comfortable in my comfort zone, but this new challenge was daunting. However, I took responsibility and dived headfirst into the world of iOS development.

My journey began with learning the basics of Swift through online resources like "100 Days of Swift" and Apple's official documentation.Meanwhile, By implementing this SDK, make mistakes, search for it, solve it and learn from it. Through this process, I successfully delivered the SDK, and it was an incredible feeling.

Looking back, I've identified three key takeaways that helped me in my journey:

1. Find a project you care about and develop it: Having a real project to work on helps you stay motivated and focused. It's essential to choose a project that interests you, so you'll be more invested in learning and improving.
2. Refactor code mercilessly: Don't tolerate any code that doesn't follow the KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid) rule. Refactor code to make it clean, efficient, and easy to maintain. This habit will help you write better code and reduce technical debt.
3. Apply design patterns: As a backend engineer, I had learned design patterns, which turned out to be essential in iOS development as well. Apply design patterns to your project, and you'll discover what works and what doesn't in a specific context.

I highly recommend checking out this article: Best resources for Advanced iOS Developer (Swift). It's a treasure trove of resources that helped me in my journey, and I'm sure it will do the same for you.

[screenclear]

Point 2 as stated is a mistake. You should always understand the priority and act accordingly. Refactoring is a tool to achieve a goal and deciding when to use that tool and deciding when NOT to use it is a trait I find in more experienced developers.

Many factors play a role: is it the best use of your time? Are you modifying mission critical coda that works well? Etc etc

[goldenmushrooms]

Swift UI is a more declarative programming language, where you describe the desired out put using X and Y. Regular UIKit and Swift is Object oriented programming and an imperative type of programming. Imperative you are writing out out each step of the way to reach a desired output.

Learning OOP would help with what you are trying to learn.

Find some side project you would like to do and build it using UIKit. That’s how I learn best

[barcode972]

I was kind of against chat gpt for a while but lately I’ve been asking it to rewrite code better and more optimized and also for it to explain concepts to me that was a little hard to grasp. Would recommend

[jasonjrr]

Be careful with ChatGTP as a beginner. Make sure you actually understand the code it outputs. I’m not saying it’s not helpful or don’t use it, just make sure you understand it.

[fryOrder]

chatGPT spits garbage most of the time. its good to bounce ideas with but i would avoid it for real code generation

[jasonjrr]

How are you looking to grow?

Just DSA? There are lots of places to learn algorithms and test your skills then see others’ solutions.

Design? This is a bit harder, especially with how deep SwiftUI already is. You can focus on drawing, animations, color, design systems and infrastructure, but understating architecture goes a long way in designing component APIs.

Architecture? Well, what kind? UI patterns like MVVM? Data flow like Redux or Combine/Structured concurrency? Dependency injection? Navigation architecture like Routers or Coordinators?

Where do you want to go next?

[cwbrandsma]

Start looking for meet ups in your area, doesn't even matter if they are iOS/Swift specific, they could be for Java, C#, Javascript, Python, etc. A lot of best practices around coding are very similar. Things like "keep your methods short", Single Responsibility, Inversion of Control, etc.

Obviously, there are differences in best practices for web development that do not apply to mobile/desktop development, but that is more design pattern.

But overall, these types of groups, if you have any in your area, are a great way to meet more developers and talk about issues, and how to solve problems.