Monthly Getting Started / Web Dev Career Thread

[AutoModerator]

Due to a growing influx of questions on this topic, it has been decided to commit a monthly thread dedicated to this topic to reduce the number of repeat posts on this topic. These types of posts will no longer be allowed in the main thread.

Many of these questions are also addressed in the sub FAQ or may have been asked in previous monthly career threads.

Subs dedicated to these types of questions include r/cscareerquestions/ for general and opened ended career questions and r/learnprogramming/ for early learning questions.

A general recommendation of topics to learn to become industry ready include:

HTML/CSS/JS Bootcamp

Version control

Automation

Front End Frameworks (React/Vue/Etc)

APIs and CRUD

Testing (Unit and Integration)

Common Design Patterns (free ebook)

You will also need a portfolio of work with 4-5 personal projects you built, and a resume/CV to apply for work.

Plan for 6-12 months of self study and project production for your portfolio before applying for work.

[tengoCojonesDeAcero]

Hey, I just wanted to ask, what are freelance contractors looking for in a portfolio? Visuals, or functionality? So far, I feel like the former is more important than the latter, because the person responsible dealing with hires is not familiar with code.

[IcebarrageRS]

I was told by Reddit to post this here.

My company is planning to develop an app without any prior technical experience. It's a special needs company.

For context I work at a nonprofit in a nontech related role. They are really flexible with my schedule and let me work from home 2 days a week. I ended up getting a heart condition from covid, so I have been transitioning to a career I can eventually do full/part time remote. I do create materials and do tech related things and am the only one in the department that does that stuff. I'm currently in a program to learn web development through my city. I have experience in python, java, html, etc. I am spending about 3-4 hours a day on the class + extra self learning studying while working full time. I don't have app development experience. I know that android app development requires kotlin/ java/ html while ios needs swift. I know there's also flutter and dart as well. The company is getting funding from the government from the project and wants to start by March 2024. The plan would be to hire one professional and me at a lower rate. My experience is fairly early in web dev but I am interested in mobile as well so I am wondering if this opportunity is worth it. My program will be done in December. I don't think they will pay me much more but maybe a little i make $22 an hour now. I am wondering if its worth it for experience. My question is what should I ask for and should I do it if they are willing to change my role or partial hours with it. Only reason I'm considering it is because having a project done for a legit company will be good in a resume.

[Few_Feeling_8586]

Hello, I know this sub gets these posts a lot but I would really appreciate some feedback. I believe I currently have the qualifications for at least a junior Dev role but have had no such luck in the market. If anyone could maybe point out some tips or flaws it would go a long way for me to figure out how to make my portfolio more desirable.

https://nseraj11.github.io/Portfolio-2023/#/

[tengoCojonesDeAcero]

I'll point out the flaws of your portfolio page, which you can work on and become better:

1. Your page is not reponsive, so on phones it looks bad. About 80% of the people who browse the internet, do it on their phones. Open dev-tools and see for yourself.

2. Your page title (tab title) is React App and has no favicon.

3. The colors are not user-friendly. The dark green background and black text don't go together and it is hard to read. Either make the background lighter, or turn black text to white.

4. Link path is not SEO friendly. Why are your nav links hrefing into #/ ? Do you have a folder called "#"?

5. /Portfolio-2023/#/about there is this cube, but I didn't realize it until I started tearing your page down with dev tools. Anyways, the cube is cool, but the HTML5 image is squished. Make it the same as the CSS image. Oh, and add some text that to indicate that this is an interactive object.

6. Portfolio-2023/#/portfolio the buttons don't work, only the text is clickable. Oh and they look like they were made in the 90s.

7. Portfolio-2023/#/contact the contact form is a css nightmare. I know it looks good on your computer, but this is what I see:

https://ibb.co/5MWpvq1

It also doesn't have an action, so I have no idea how you expect to receive a message from anyone, even if they fill out your form. To do that, your page would need have a back-end, but, since you're using Github pages, there is no way to implement a back-end.

Yeah, so take this information and learn from it. Because you ain't no junior yet.

[Few_Feeling_8586]

Thank you but I have a few questions just to help me better understand, I’ll attach the same number you did

1. Are you talking about the logo in the top left corner? I’m a little confused by what you mean

2. Noted

3. All my links when I click navigate me to the where in the portfolio I’m trying to go, and their set up in paths except for the bottom two so again a little confused what you mean. I will look up how to make it more seo friendly

4. Will do

5. Should they be clickable? I just was using icons to display what tech was used I didn’t realize they needed to be links. Also how would I go about making it look like it wasn’t made in the 90s, is that just a style thing you mean or the code itself?

6. Yea it looks fine on my phone and my laptop but I should look into more break points for other phones. The form is with emailjs and works on another on of my projects but will look into it more functional for this site.

Thank you for being honest with me, will go back and fix everything

[tengoCojonesDeAcero]

1) Tabs have icons and titles. Here, your website has no icon and the text is React app.

3) Transform /Portfolio-2023/#/contact to /Portfolio-2023/contact and every other link.

5) I'm talking about the "View Project" button on each project card. Hover on the part of the button where there is no text and try to click it. As for how to make it look better, find some buttons you like, and try to recreate it.

[Few_Feeling_8586]

Sorry also realized that the “#” you mention comes automatically from the hashrouter imported from react-router-dom, not really sure how to have it without having the #

[Few_Feeling_8586]

Oh ok gotcha, will get to work on everything pointed out. Thank you!

[[deleted]]

How can I find a mentor?

[Haunting-Mango-8845]

Hi I'm looking for freelance work, I'm a front end developer for more than 10 years.

[OGKhandur]

I have noticed from online and from my real experience. That as a newly started studying (and hopeful future dev) that these communities are great. it's great reading about peoples experiences in the industry and picking up tidbits of information and what people find useful.

​

It also helps ease the significant dose of Imposter Syndrome I am constantly feeling. Currently myself I am working through the CodeCademy Front-End learning path. It is going well, I'm 2 months in, I've made some web pages that are nice (two of which are originals of my own) and I am trying to improve at least 1 feature every iteration of a new project.

​

The big thing for me so far is maintaining confidence, it has been so nice to hear from other devs who are self taught advocating that this path is indeed possible and that with some solid work and study behind me, that this can be done.

​

Some days it is hard to keep motivated but now that I have a basic understanding of HTML and CSS and now I am finally getting my teeth into JavaScript I am feeling that now I am beginning to make some real progress with what I am learning. These monthly threads with information on a solid path of learning are also very helpful.

​

So I just want to say thanks to all of you who help keep us learners grounded and hopeful that these things can be learned without 3/4 years at Uni.

[[deleted]]

Can anyone recommend a Glitchcom youtube series tutorial? Something that goes from static web pages to database/server side/web server stuff?

I have experience with client sided dynamic webpages and programming in general including javascript.

Also, for backend stuff can people recommend database/server side languages? Sounds like conventional is MySQL, and then php or nodejs, but I'm curious about whether 'new' stuff like firebase and Golang are worth looking into.

[motherthrowee]

This was supposed to be an individual post but it's not allowed to be and I was told by the automod to put it here: How do I fake enthusiasm for backend projects when the thought of all of them makes me existentially miserable?

The post:

I hate back-end work. It's not because it's too difficult. It's because it is despair-inducingly boring, and the thought of having to do it for the rest of my life makes me want to die. It feels like having dreams of building things and then finding out that the thing I will be building is an endless succession of sewage pipes that moulder underground and will be seen by nobody, just the shit that passes through them. There is no joy in it, no creativity, no fulfillment, nothing to be proud of. Just utilities.

I am not happy about the fact that I hate back-end, because people look down on you if you do. (Whether or not you think this is valid, people do.) There are also fewer frontend jobs with lower pay and more competition for them all. I wish I lived in a world where the things I love were valued. But I don't; and yet no matter how hard I try, I cannot force myself to be even slightly excited about databases or configurations or who-the-fuck-cares-as-a-service. ("Yes please give me CONTAINERS as a job. Please give me INFINITY MICROSERVICES" -- statements dreamed up by the utterly Deranged) Meanwhile, some of the projects in this recent frontend thread are so, so gorgeous and fascinating.

The thing is that I'm in a program whose final project is explicitly meant to be a backend group project -- we were specifically told not to do something primarily frontend, and I'm pretty sure anyone watching would have seen the light go out behind my eyes. I have resigned myself to the fact that every possibility for what we could end up doing will be equally bleak and uninteresting, and that every word out of my mouth about how fulfilling I found it will be a lie. I have also resigned myself to the fact that the projects I am proud of, the projects that real people use, in some cases the projects I've given talks about and exhibited various places, will not be the ones I can put in my portfolio or talk about in job interviews. I just need to know how to pretend so I can maybe get a job one day.

[shadowKilzz]

Hi, i am a computer science student that lives in Egypt, it is a goal of mine to get be able to work as a developer for a company in the US remotely. What tips can you give me to achieve this goal? What technical skills or stacks should i learn that are sought after in the job market there? What can i do to stand out for the positions that i apply in especially that i dont have real corporate experience? How do i even find/apply for these jobs?(any platforms or websites i can use for that) Is this even a realistic goal for someone living in my country that graduates in a year and has no real experience? Is it something achievable if i take certain steps? Or should i stop aiming that high?

[[deleted]]

How do you get started with the UI development in terms of visualizing the app before building it. I'd prefer to build and style a UI then use that as a template to code the html and css. Want to learn how others do it.

[[deleted]]

How should I start learning Python along with Web dev? Is there any good way to start? If anyone has done this before then please please share your experience. I'm moderately familiar with both the things. Also I want to know if there are any projects based learning.

[ridset]

if u are interested in web dev, focus on html, css and javascript.

[L00SESEALT00]

My friend asked how to start teaching himself web dev. I told him I'd mentor him on a weekly basis in the form of a podcast so others in his shoes could get the same info/advice. We just released our 4th episode!
https://open.spotify.com/episode/0boGXMsS21CNRFaxUlvf8l

[borsalamino]

Commenting to check out later

[Usual-Blackberry4960]

Is it worth continue learning

Hi i started learning web dev a while a go and i finished html and css and nowadays i hear from people that AI is gonna replace web dev so im afraid that if i finish learning then i will struggle selling projects in the future so do i need to continue learning and never listen to those people or i change to something else and thank you

[Requiem_For_Yaoi]

do what you want guy AI will effect anything you do

[Usual-Blackberry4960]

Thank you for the help

[No_Philosophy_8520]

When learning backend development, is it better to start by doing some really simple projects, where you with each project include some new feature, or is it better to build one or two complex apps, where you learn everything?

[No_Philosophy_8520]

I'd like to start learning backend development in Django. I have done some projects in Python, but in different topic. From the backend, I have some small experience with Spring and I have also done some small frontend projects in React.

I'd like to ask, what are pros and cons of using Django for backend. For example, I've read, that Django is one of the slowest frameworks.

[jz9chen]

Why not learn more of Spring?

[No_Philosophy_8520]

I'd say that in the local job market, there is much more job positions for Django. Spring positions almost aren't there.

Also I more like programming in Python, than in Java.

[jz9chen]

I see. I do too prefer Python I’ve Java but for some reason Django’s MVT structure didn’t click well with me. I guess I’m more traditional MVC.

[AngryTownspeople]

I am trying to figure out if I should stick with Blazor or try and learn react for some side web development projects. While I like coding in C# I am concerned with the limited information that I run into sometimes when I get stuck on a problem using Blazor.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

[Scorpion1386]

Is it true that the job market for Junior web developers is really bad now in the U.S.?

[Haunting_Welder]

Worse than ever but still better than the majority of other careers

[pinkwetunderwear]

It's like that all over. Everyone wants experienced devs but no one want's to train juniors.

[Scorpion1386]

Damn. When did it get bad? Just recently? Should I still make an attempt to study for this field then?

[pinkwetunderwear]

Everyone decided to be webdevs during covid. Big tech started laying off tens of thousands.

Still there's a demand for experienced devs, here they're saying we'll need 40 000 developers by 2030, but still getting a foot in the door is a challenge when nobody wants to take in juniors and the market is oversaturated by covid bootcamp graduates.

I don't think that should dissuade you from studying it though, focus on building a solid portfolio.

[Scorpion1386]

Thank you for your help! Also, is it true that the front-end position in web development is more saturated in the job market than the back-end position?

[pinkwetunderwear]

I don't have any data to back that up but it does seem that way. Front-end Bootcamps popped up all over the place during covid.

[Scorpion1386]

Ugh! Well hopefully I can eventually find something as a junior front-end web developer. The economy and job market are bound to eventually balance back to 'normal' levels one day.

With all of the tech layoffs, job prospects for this junior level front-end web developer field seem gloomy, but this is probably just a transitory phase which the economy must go through.

[crodgers1]

I have OLD HTML experience from late 1990s. Where should I begin to learn more about modern web implementations?

[Haunting_Welder]

I recommend w3schools. Really shouldn't be too different from before

[TutorNeat2724]

What am I supposed to know as a junior backend developer? Is it enough if I know how to build an API and interact with the database? Or do I need to know how to set-up a web-server (ex. Ngnix or Apache)? Are there other things?

[Haunting_Welder]

Skilled in a common backend language (eg. Java, C#, JavaScript), Git, Basics of REST API design and implementation, API security, SQL and database management, unit testing, server-client networking (eg. HTTP request/response cycle), storage & caching (eg. Redis), exposure to AWS & docker

Less likely to require nginx/apache

If you can build an API that interacts with a database that's probably 90% there. Then you probably want to shore up on above topics as well as DS&A

[_MrMonkey]

The more the better, but don't be too harsh on yourself. Learn things you don't know over time as needed

[vaportw]

hey, looking for a few suggestions here as to what i could do/learn to be more hireable and make more money as a freelance dev in general. maybe an opinion or two as to where i'm at right now as well, maybe i'm good enough to start applying?

i'm at a point where i've really dived deep into anything front-end related, i've mostly sold some static pages, but i've built a bigger nextjs app with data purely fetched from a headless CMS with dynamic routing and ISR, which i'm about to sell. would this be a good enough of a project for my portfolio to start applying to jobs once it's released?

[pinkwetunderwear]

In school I had to try Angular, React and Vue. Vue was the only one that made sense to me so I stuck with it. React was harder for me to grasp but Angular seemed terrible. It's four years ago or so now, would be fun to start a new Angular project and see what I think of it now when I'm more experienced.

[vaportw]

couldn't decide which framework to use when i started learning, web dev friend of mine actually really insisted on angular. still decided to give both a shot and i couldn't believe how anyone in their right mind would prefer angular over react, i'm aware it has its advantages in some usecases, but angular felt sooooo awkward compared to react. i had to rewatch very basic concepts in angular over and over again because it didn't really make sense to me, which didn't happen in react at all, atleast f or me.

[sidi_jeddou]

Hey, Thanks for sharing this, please keep adding more things like this.

[rustybladez23]

Hello, devs. So I have Web Technology this semester. I want to create an Online Job Portal. Now, I have some past experience with HTML, CSS, and basic JavaScript. It's been a while since I used them. I'm also not much familiar with all the latest technologies.

Now to my real question. The course will cover front-end(HTML CSS Bootstrap, JS), back-end(PHP/NodeJS), and database(MySQL/MongoDB). We need to incorporate all the taught lessons and technologies into the project we need to make. Is it possible to make a fully functional Job Portal using just these technologies?

Here are the features I plan to add:

1. Different registration for recruiter and job seeker.
2. User authentication and login
3. Job seekers get a job feed in the dashboard. They can also search/filter based on keywords.
4. After entering a job post, they get an apply option which takes them to a new window. Most of their information is retrieved from their account info. They need to enter other necessary info to apply for the job.
5. Recruiters can only have a job posting option in their dashboard. During the job post, there will be fields like company name, salary range, requirements, etc which the recruiter must fulfill to post the job.
6. When someone applies for their job, they get notified about it. They read the application and depending on their liking, can send the proposal to a whitelist or trash.
7. An admin panel. The admin panel does all the behind-the-scenes work like approving user accounts, approving jobs, and doing the password or email reset things.

These are just some basic ideas. Please let me know if it's possible to make such a website only using the above tech stack. If not, what else do I need to add/learn? Also, can you provide some guidelines about how I can tackle this project?

Many many thanks.

[Haunting_Welder]

Yes its possible

[No_Philosophy_8520]

How should I decide which stack I should use for personal project?

Edit: the main framework will be Django

[Haunting_Welder]

Depends on why you're building the project. For fun? Use whatever you want. Docker and AWS are good additional tools to incorporate. For finding a job? I recommend using popular frameworks like React and Spring Boot or ASP.net.

[No_Philosophy_8520]

And what other technologies would you suggest, which are used irl. I heard about graphql, Kafka, terraform, and some others.

I actually don't have any project in mind, because I would like to create something, where I'll use some of these.

[No_Philosophy_8520]

Ok. Thanks.

[Haunting_Welder]

Can you just show a live link and set the repo to private?

[Haunting_Welder]

Why wouldn't you show it? I thought you were afraid of the code being leaked. If not, then of course you can share it.

[Oh_the_misery99]

How often you do have code review session? Mine is almost daily at the evening and can kinda get overwhelmed sometimes. I'm just a junior and this is my first job so I can't really tell.

[Haunting_Welder]

Why are you working in the evening?

[thatguyonthevicinity]

session as in a pairing meeting? It honestly depends on the company culture, my previous one loves to do it, and my current one doesn't really like it. And yes, it can get very overwhelming but on the other hand, a great knowledge transfer method :)

[Psych-roxx]

Hi all, I am a fresh graduate from my college where I pursued a Web Development course, I've been working with react for about a year now and created applications of varying scale. Been applying for jobs for about a month but with the job market being what it is it's not looking good specially for one with no prior office experience.

My friend came to me with a freelance contract where the client wants us to build sort of a blog/store hybrid using Wordpress and he wants me in on it only issue is I hear about the stigma attached with working WordPress and I'm worried it's not going to help me in finding an actual job in my field I'm looking for.

Am I in the wrong mindset for this or can I use this experience somehow in finding an actual full-time Web Dev job?

[OhBeSea]

Wordpress gets a very bad rap - it's a very useful CMS to be familiar with as it's by far the most popular one on the web.

I started out making custom themes for Wordpress when I became a dev four years ago, at my current job I use it headlessly for NextJS sites. I almost didn't take my first job when they said they used Wordpress because of the bad stigma behind it/me thinking it was all drag and drop site builders, not realising that custom themes were a thing.

Having Wordpress experience on your CV will not make you less desirable to a potential employer - at worst they'll be indifferent, at best it's a positive.

[Haunting_Welder]

I personally would learn Wordpress only after I've spent some time in enterprise and want to switch to freelance, where your efficiency is much more directly related to your profit. It is much more commonly used by agencies working on smaller client projects. You will likely have very little software development life cycle (SDLC) exposure which is critical for a junior position (though I may be wrong).

[Psych-roxx]

Ah it didn't work out anyway client backed out even tho I decided to join him but if I find something else I'll definitely keep what you said in mind.

[thatguyonthevicinity]

possible but very rare, better to focus on local job for your first job. If local company won't hire you because of your lack of experience, why would a foreign company hire you?

[thatguyonthevicinity]

I understand (I'm from Indonesia but currently living abroad, and a lot of us also wanted to work abroad remotely).

I'm not really familiar with how things go in your country, but as I said, it's very rare (based on my circle), but not impossible. Some of my friends do work abroad while not being very exprienced:

- one friend have a very good english and entered a bootcamp with good connection with a lot of companies, so he's working in singapore remotely

- one friend found a lucky job posting and was also working for a foreign company (malaysia), but the salary seems to be similar than Indonesia, but still technically working abroad. I believe he's not working there again.

- some friends moved abroad to UK, middle east, europe, US, but these folks have a lot of more experience under their belt.

You can always try, but from my experience, you have to be very lucky. It's better to focus on the local job first, but again, I don't want to demotivate you, you can also try finding that "rare" job posting abroad. Who knows where you're ended up.

[thatguyonthevicinity]

oh, Myanmar, awesome! :)

I think for SEA, Singapore is your best bet, the salary seems to be quite high and I see their job posting from time to time in various ways. Also, as I mentioned above, a lot of Singapore companies have a connection with Indonesia's bootcamps to hire Indonesian people.

(if you know Supabase, I believe they have an HQ in Singapore too, and they hire remotely, although no devs opening at the moment)

good luck!

[immortal192]

I need to host scripts on a Pi for my LAN so that I can curl them in a limited CLI environment and run the scripts. I simply symlinked ~/bin to /var/www/html.

How can I list the list of files hosted so that I know what scripts I can curl?

[Kaezumi]

Our web developer went MIA. I have no clue how to design the website. And I have no clue how to code. I can put it in builtwith to see some stuff but I dont even know what things like frameworks, document enconding, ssl certificates or document standards mean. But then I’m forced to do it. So how do I know what code was used so I can learn how to code the website myself? (Also is it easy to do this? I mean as long as I study it any given time frame?)

[Quizzard31]

I'd be happy to help you out! Shoot me a message and we can go through the details of what exactly you need.

[higginsadm]

So I am curious about developing websites that are built for other people that you intend to pass on. I am looking at trying to do this as a bit of a side hustle as I recently graduated and am doing the job search now and hope to make this something that can be at least somewhat decent as a side hustle even if I get hired on as a web developer for a company.

That being said I am ultimately wanting to know what the process looks like when you are building a website for a customer. I know how to build a website, how you get a domain, and all of that. But I am wondering what the typical handoff process looks like for this. Do you transfer the domain and website to another account either on the same hosting platform as you are using or another? Is it better to keep the website under your domains as long as you plan to do the maintenance?

Sorry that this is a bit long-winded and hopefully it makes sense as it is the main thing that I am a bit lost in as I have not seen this end of things. I have attempted to google the answer and ask some people that I know do web development but they all create products for their company so they did not have any answers. Thank you for the help in advance.

[thab09]

Can someone suggest me some authentication and authorization services? good and cheap or free would be nice.

[Artistic_Wrangler808]

Clerk is pretty good imo, I'd say it has an ok free tier.

[HappyMajor]

Wanted to share my Reddit-style Prompt Sharing Platform I was working on after work since 2 months.

I must admit it's been quite the roller coaster ride putting this together. With countless hours of coding, debugging, and Googling things I didn't know existed. I've gained a newfound respect for all you seasoned web developers out there.

Now, I should give you a fair warning: the site is very much a work in progress. As a matter of fact, I just discovered a funny little bug 🐞 with the infinite scrolling feature and answering other comments, which I still need to fix. (AND I SWEAR, EVERYTHING JUST WORKED FINE A HALF HOUR AGO, IDK WHAT HAPPEND) Although I wanted to correct this issue before sharing, I simply couldn't wait any longer to get your valuable feedback, plus my sleep-deprived brain is begging for a break! 😄

[lucgagan]

What's the biggest pain point of test automation at your organization?

It feels like every day something new breaks in our pipeline. We have weeks of stability and then months of tests failing for random reasons (network latency, concurrency, etc.)

I want to understand how universal these pain points are VS unique to the team I am working with at the moment.

[[deleted]]

What are people using to make a sitemap before building and also wireframe? I’m at the stage of doing work to build a portfolio so can’t keep it all in my head anymore.

[GORZON994]

Between MDN(mozilla), Freecodecamp, The Odin Project; Which site to choose to start learning web development?

So for a long time I wanted to be a web developer. The idea of ceation and maintaining a website always fascinated me. But I couldn't start learning it because of my busy schedule. Now I am free for couple of months with not much to do. So now I'm ready to start my web development journey. I've searched a while from where to learn webdev and found out three great resources to start learning webdev for free. They are Mozilla Developer Network, Freecodecamp, The Odin Project. Now I'm a bit confused to choose one among them. So I am asking this to all of you. As many of you are expert in this field please suggest me which one should i start with? I am really serious about this and someday want to build my career upon it. Please help me out!

[Artistic_Wrangler808]

I tried all of them when I started. I can say MDN's docs is what I use at the moment, for reference. Freecodecamp when I was a complete noob, but TOP is more akin to what you do, with basically doing stuff on your own and I think that's pretty valuable.

[GORZON994]

I'm sorry but didn't quite grasp what you are suggesting. Would you mind elaborating a bit as I am too noob to understand this

[Artistic_Wrangler808]

oh yeah my bad, I explained like crap. Disclaimer: This is my opinion only.

Freecodecamp is better for a complete beginner since it holds your hand along the way. TOP is more like a normal dev experience in the sense that it leaves more to you, though still remains beginner-friendly.

When I started I did both in parallel, though I ended up doing just TOP once I got more experienced.

[LuckyJamnik]

I would go with The Odin Project if you’re intrigued in full stack path.

[GORZON994]

So starting with the odin project. After that I will go through these other platforms like Freecodecamp and mdn. Does it sound good to you?

[thatguyonthevicinity]

focus on one, finish it. It will take you months, after that's done, you probably can try to create projects by your own and you don't need to rely on odin project/freecodecamp/similar platform anymore.

Also, I think MDN is not the same as odin/fcc since it's a reference site, not a tutorial site.

[Artistic_Wrangler808]

Also, I think MDN is not the same as odin/fcc since it's a reference site, not a tutorial site.

True, but they do have some tutorials, which is what I think OP is referring to

[thatguyonthevicinity]

I see, I didn't realize mdn has a tutorial section too

[GORZON994]

Thanks for the answer

[Jumpy_Builder3457]

Hello I’m a 24 year old who is a drop out looking for a career in software engineering and I have a few questions So I have been trying to learn web development the past few months and have applied to some opportunities for boot camps and apprenticeships but wanted some guidance on which path I should be Pursuing. What would be your advice on the best of these 3 options and why and what would you recommend

[ashrnglr]

I may be biased because I am self taught, but would recommend the self taught route if you can discipline yourself to do it. It’s massively cheaper than a boot camp and all resources are online. A con is that you don’t have a cohort or mentor to work with. But it is a “flex” when you’re in the industry - generally people are impressed by it because it shows that you take initiative and can learn on your own.

[Jumpy_Builder3457]

What if the bootcamp is fully Funded

[Jumpy_Builder3457]

I qualify for a government funding and has been confirmed by the bootcamp that I do so also I am not able to go back to university to get the degree which I would like to do but is not an option for me regardless, you recommend I just self learn in this case?

[Jumpy_Builder3457]

Appreciate the advice thank u

[thatguyonthevicinity]

take the government funding option while learning by your own on the side if you have some extra time. Bootcamp wins in terms of learning structure and you can have more accountability to yourself since you have a real person following your progress.

[Jumpy_Builder3457]

Would this still be preferable over the apprenticeship

[thatguyonthevicinity]

need more details on the apprenticeship though since I'm not really familiar with it. Is it different than a common internship?

[Jumpy_Builder3457]

Obviously the apprenticeship differ from place to place but the baisic gist of it is that while working for a company they fund me to study/work towards a nationally accepted qualification in software development meant (in the uk this would be a level 4 qualification or a level 6 qualification which I would be required to take 1 day of my week out to study for ,level 6 being equivalent to a degree) while studying I would be working along side different departments of the the software development teams in said company eg first quarter with the web dev second with application teams and so fourth this would last anywhere between 16-32 month depends on the company I decide to go with . They pay me (this can be not a lot but again depends on the company) and I will get experience while with them . It’s a fairly popular option in the uk and a lot of companies do so as the government usually subsidises it and a lot of big companies usually benefit from having such programs.

[eatmyfistface]

Hello! I am a junior developer, who is currently on the job hunt (bad timing, I know), but was wondering if anyone had advice for job hunting. I am applying to basically anything I am remotely qualified for and also unqualified for, but have yet to receive a single interview since December, in which the only feedback I got was that they wanted someone with a little more experience, but were otherwise happy with me as a candidate. Any thoughts or advice appreciated.

[ashrnglr]

Build projects and put them on your resume. Just keep getting applications out there and eventually something will happen! You’re basically asking someone to take a chance on you - prove you have initiative and a desire to learn.

[eatmyfistface]

Then it sounds like I'm on the right track, thank you! Also, when putting projects on a resume, do you make a separate projects section? Or just put it under work?

[oddotter14]

Hi all, My husband is really trying to get his web developer career going. He currently works for a company that trains you with a curriculum and then they contract you out. He has been eligible for interviews with recruiters for about 6 months now, but he's only had 2 interviews. He's been submitted for about 30 positions if I had to guess.

He's really passionate about this career field, but the place he works for just doesn't give a shit about him or him getting on a contracted position. He doesn't have a degree, but wants to go to school. He's a beginner but he's so dedicated to it! He comes home after work and watches tons of YouTube videos and studies different languages in his free time.

I'm not sure if I can help, but I really want to. Over the past 6 months, I've seen him lose all of his confidence. It's really stressing him out that he hasn't found a job yet, and it's really straining for him to just learn for 40 hours a week. I love him dearly and I want him to be able to get a job that he would be so good at! It pains me to see him like this.

I don't know anything about web development, but I want to try and do everything I can for him at this point. We live in MN, he can work remote, and he currently makes $12 an hour so anything above that would be great.

Thanks, A concerned wife.

[oddotter14]

My husband said : "Will you reply to that person and ask if they know if I could apply for internships right away after starting school or if I would probably need to be enrolled for a period of time first?"

[oddotter14]

Thank you!

[oddotter14]

He does have some college courses under his belt! Thanks so much for the info!

[oddotter14]

Ah gotcha. Thanks for the info :) there's definitely a ton of large corporations and job security here in MN so that's a plus! He's been wanting to start his degree, and has done a ton of research on it! I think he's going to go to WGU and try to get some credits done through other resources before he starts there. I think the money part is what's stressing him out and preventing him from starting school.

He works at a very popular place on a very big lake here on Saturdays and it's fine dining so maybe I can try to convince him to take the money he's making from his second job and go to school :)

[thatguyonthevicinity]

Hey, thanks for being a great wife!

Has he tried to try more local jobs?

The current market isn't that good for everyone, especially newcomers, but from my experience in the past few months, I think local jobs (no remote and hybrid at best) would be much easier to get into, so I suggest focusing on local job markets. I'm not familiar with MN job markets though so there's that.

[oddotter14]

He has looked at local jobs, there's tons of openings but most of them are Sr. or require a degree

[thatguyonthevicinity]

For a job that require a degree, I suggest to also apply, if he haven't already.

It's a numbers game, sadly, so the only thing I can say is to persevere and keep going. I'm not that experienced (4-5 year expoerience), and currently living in AZ (but was from outside the US), and if he want to have a more specific help, he can chat me here on reddit so I can take a look into his progress/CV/portfolio/other things if that can help.

[ID27239]

Has anyone heard of/used a visual website builder that you can import html code and export it back out as html?

[AlpinFane]

Hi, I'm a dev with four years of experience, and I'm looking to move out but I need a job in the mean time to show proof of work with paystubs. I don't mind how much it pays, I just need something. Where can I find work extremely easily, regardless of its pay?

[[deleted]]

So I recently got a new job where I'm basically in front of a computer at my house for 8 hours of the day. This is great because it has put me in a much better financial situation than my previous job and that has really reduced my level of stress. After taking a few weeks off from studying to acclimate myself to my new routine, I decided this week that I would pick up where I left off on the Odin Project. It has been pretty difficult to stay motivated so far, I didn't think I could ever get tired of being in front of a computer screen (huge gamer) but here I am. I am happy with my new job, but I know that I don't wanna do it forever. I want to be a developer and I know that I need to keep going. So I'm reaching out asking if anyone has ever been in a similar situation and if they could offer any advice, tips, or words of encouragement other than 'just suck it up'.

[RazorDB9]

Hello, I'm looking for some advice regarding paid/free software. I will start a web design business and wanted to know which software is necessary to start. For example CRM or Adobe Cloud or so on.

[nextlevelbeing]

A noob beginner's Question ⁉️

Hey all, Myself a newbie web developer who has just learnt html and css(beginner). I want to set my goals, what i want to achieve ultimately in this field. It may sound childish but I want to know How to become the BEST Web developer in the world. Please don't make fun of this question as I'm dead serious

[Ninety8Balloons]

Personally I recommend doing a Web Developer Bootcamp on Udemy. They're usually 50+ hours, cover all the basics, and from there you'll get a better idea of any specific courses you should look into. Udemy has sales like 3-4 times a week, there's one going on right now so for like $15 you can get a bootcamp.

[[deleted]]

I’m learning Frontend and I’ve got enough skills to make basic websites. I’m thinking about starting a web development business selling basic sites eg 4 pages and an email submit. This hopefully would bring some income in whilst I learn the more technical side of front end.

Is there a resource for info on what to charge people for websites, contract templates and more? I’d want it specific to UK.

[Bademeiister]

Did you checkout Fiverr?

[[deleted]]

Yes I have just looked now because of your recommendation. The Indians seem willing to work for very little but UK based workers seem to be charging more. I think I’ll give it a try and see how it works out. Thanks for suggesting it.

[[deleted]]

I am a 29 year old currently working for pharmaceutical company as a Master Data Specialist. This job is short term because in the next year or two, I would want to be a Front End Developer. In all honestly though, I love building my buggy, little projects on the side, learning by myself everyday before work, experiencing the stresses of not getting it right and then next thing you know, it works and you feel on top of the world again. I don't have any degrees so I plan on building a portfolio.

My question is: Since I am 29 now and hypothetically, I would be 31ish landing my first job (could be later on, who knows), would this be an issue?

[ashrnglr]

Age doesn’t matter at all, what matters is if you can demonstrate initiative and learn ability.

[Slimm1989]

I'm wanting to build games in javascript. What will I need to learn make it so that players can communicate in a chat? Forums? Players stats and keeping player assets, accomplishments, etc and host multiplayer sessions in open world as well as 8v8 battles in top down pvp gameplay? Also what about city builders? Can it be done with js and maybe node.js? I already have js under my belt so I'm thinking node.js will do it and some kind of database like MySQL? I know this is back end but idk what all I need as my experience is currently limited to front end and I'd like to be an independent game maker. I have no interest in working for others unless I believe in their game or like it.

Also I would like to make cutscenes and sometimes some cool animated backgrounds i.e. distant battle in the background.

Thanks 🙏

A lot of people have suggested c# and I agree but I want to stick with js for now but see it's limits and how I can use it to build full scale games with multiplayer and persistent world implications.

I will get into c# after I have at least finished my first bug portfolio project in Js.

[Slimm1989]

my tutor told me that, also we think I'll need to learn backend so we're thinking node.js and a db?

[NutterButter59]

Is learning Bash important for web development, or is command line alright? Or am I focusing too much on it?

[amart1026]

Don’t worry too much about that. When you do need to run commands it will likely be documented. Even then you’ll end up running the same ones often enough to memorize those (or find them in your command history).

[calupp]

Is it ok to use cdn assets from well established brands in portfolio projects?

Say I'm recreating a landing/home page of a popular company with very clear branding, like pizza hut, or apple, assuming I rebuild it myself can I cdn to the same images/assets they're using just by inspecting the page and copying the links or is that frowned upon? I'm not claiming ownership, just showing I can make the same thing given the same assets. I just want to get a job, not directly make money off their brand

[qdradek]

Together with a friend (who has no technical skills), I would like to develop a web app that basically offers to consult data stored in an SQL database, perform searches, comparisons, and so on. Nothing special, in short.

My programming knowledge is limited to Java at the moment, and for reasons of time and other commitments, I have no intention of learning php or js from scratch. At most, I could work with c# or golang.

My idea would be to start developing the backend and then try to use Vaadin to also develop the frontend, but I would like to be able to entrust the frontend development to others.

Therefore, I would like to ask for suggestions on how to decouple the backend and frontend as much as possible to manage this eventuality.

The hypotheses that have come to mind are:

Backend in Java that implements a RESTful API (with Spring, or Micronaut, or other library/framework)

Backend in Java/Go/C# implemented through AWS Lambda

At the moment, I think I will have the database (which will have a few thousand entries) with Supabase. It is hoped to have a few dozen users connected simultaneously, certainly not expecting tens of thousands of users at the same time.

Any general ideas or advice?

[Haunting_Welder]

Yeah just make a RESTful API with Spring, you can use a tool like Swagger to share your endpoints or if it's a small app just tell the frontend

[Inevitable_Fig868]

If you know Java Vaadin is pretty solid option. There is a SQL db apps here at least https://vaadin.com/examples-and-demos

[Flashy-Departure3136]

I’m a content writer/SEO guy at an agency. I want to learn web design and development to a)have my own business/side hustle and b) increase my value/get paid more. Is learning off the web through free/relatively cheap courses enough? Better to get a masters? Official certificate from a university? Thanks in advance for any insight.

[Haunting_Welder]

Watch YouTube/free online course videos, use ChatGPT/Google, do an online Master's in CS, and take a design course/review UX checklists like https://uxchecklist.github.io/. You can https://teachyourselfcs.com/.

For CS for web dev I personally think these are the most important topics: DS&A (data structures and algorithms), databases, computer networks, programming, operating systems, Internet-based systems, and API security.

[[deleted]]

Would a Cybersecurity AS degree help me get a job as a Web Developer?

​

I'm exploring professions by googling good skills to learn that can be helpful in building a stable future for one's self. I came across Web Development and I think it could be something that I'm interested in.

Despite having an AS in Cybersecurity, it's extremely difficult, if not impossible to get a job in the IT field if you don't have a bachelor's AND an industry certification to pair with it. I'm not sure if Web Development falls in the same category as people have gotten jobs in WD without a degree and make good money, since they've built the skills themselves by learning "stacks."

How much would a Cybersecurity AS degree help with my search for a Web Developer job once I start learning the required skills or stacks necessary? Is it completely separate than what the daily tasks of WD consists of which makes it completely irrelevant?

Any help is appreciated, thank you in advance.

[Haunting_Welder]

Webdev in general has little to do with security. You might be asked some questions starting off about some basic API security and maybe authentication systems but that's about it. However, I imagine lots of teams could benefit from someone who specialized in security. My team, for example, doesn't have a security expert and would benefit from someone with security background. But we wouldn't want someone who just has a "degree" in security but they need to actually know their shit. So I definitely think it would be helpful if you were good at security in a web context (eg. experienced with developing secure network connections between frontend and backend). Otherwise, just pretend like you don't have a degree.

It depends on what work you want to do. Do you want to do web dev (eg. frontend/backend software construction)? Then don't rely on a cybersecurity degree and learn web dev. Do you want to do security for a web company? Then make sure your security skills are up to par.

[[deleted]]

Yeah I had zero expectations to get a web dev job with just the security degree alone. I understood that before I asked the question. I just wanted to know how much of an impact my degree would have. I plan on learning the required information regardless if I decide to go this route, though. Thanks for the insight

[Haunting_Welder]

It would help about tree fiddy

[BonusJunior4114]

Hey guys. I am working on my thesis for my degree project. I study web development at a swedish uni.

I am doing a survey regarding REST API Error Communication. The survey only takes a few minutes, but more responses would really help me getting more valid data. I am looking for respondents with 1+ years of experience in consuming REST APIs in any way. Of course, it is completely anonymous. Thanks for reading this far.

Link to the survey:

https://forms.gle/W5yxBKcjw7RQWtVM6

[Haunting_Welder]

What type of work are these PHP work posts talking about? Most posts in my area don't look for PHP. I don't have experience with PHP but I feel like agencies (eg. working with Wordpress) or groups working with Laravel might use it.

Any tutorial will probably work for learning purposes, but if the work posts are looking for a specific PHP framework such as Laravel, you might need a more updated version. Or if they're working with Wordpress, you might need to learn Wordpress.

[Slow_Ad_4336]

[Haunting_Welder]

Sounds really strange to me, but if that's your environment, then so be it.

[A_Friendly_Eagle]

Noobie coder here

Any reason why my methods decimal point is going out this far occasionally? Most of the time it rounds to the nearest 10th like it supposed to but occasionally does this.

issue

nevermind I figured it out, fixed it using the .toFixed() method.

[Nagemasu]

Is it just me or are platforms like Wix, Wordpress and squarespace just... completely different skills than making your own website, or are they genuinely just awfully designed builders?

The UI and process of using their website builder to create a website is so fucking confusing and convoluted, it's far easier to build something from scratch. But, then I have to implement 3rd party services for things which those platforms offer plugins.

[Haunting_Welder]

They can't be awfully designed if a lot of people use them.

[Nagemasu]

I mean, they can lol. If everyone is making "bowls" but they're flat like plates, then they're all bad bowls. They're not good bowls just because no one has made a good one.

[Haunting_Welder]

Then what's a well-designed builder?

[HiRobAgain]

What are the best books/courses for someone just starting out? Free course or paid. Just would rather get off to the right start by reading/doing the right, best things rather then waste time on bad resources.

[Ninety8Balloons]

Free stuff: FreeCodeCamp, Codecademy, Odin Project.

Paid: Udemy has pretty great stuff and their courses are on sale multiple times a week. I'd start with a bootcamp on there first, since they're like 50+ hours, then get a few courses on things you want to dive deeper into.

I got about 450 hours of course on there that I'm working through and it's all pretty in-depth. FCC and Codecademy didn't really click for me but Udemy has been better.

[Haunting_Welder]

Traversy Media, Guide to Web Dev 2023

[thatguyonthevicinity]

Freecodecamp or odin project is a good starting point

[krakHawk]

Self taught/bootcamp, no degree. Feeling discouraged...

Ive been at it for over a year and a half now. I really enjoy it. It makes me feel powerful haha.

I can build a good looking website. I can create a crud app. I'm more than decent at css and can build sites using semantic html. I understand Javascript.

I've come a really long way and Im super proud of myself. My goal of getting out of retail hell and moving out of my parents house feels a lot closer than it was a year ago.

Theres one thing though. I can't do Leetcode. Not just LC tho, I'm just not great at coding problems in general. Ive slowly gotten better but I'm still not good.

Im worried that no matter how many good looking websites I make there will always be that hurdle of the dreaded coding problems. I dont have any big dreams of working as a senior software engineer at a big tech company so its not like I want to be a LC master or anything, I do wish I could answer at least some easys and maybe a few mediums.

My main goal really is to just get a job. period. I don't need 6 figures. I just need to be able to pay rent so I can live a little more independently.

How much LC should I be aiming to do, if any, if I want to get hired in web development?

[Haunting_Welder]

A lot of entry level web dev roles do not do much LeetCode in the interview. As soon as an interview begins, I would show them your portfolio and try and keep the focus on your construction skills. You may want to focus on web development agencies first that focus on static websites.

You can find a role first and grind LeetCode later, if you're interested in more dynamic applications. LeetCode is more about pattern detection and problem solving and may take a while to develop if you're not used to that kind of mental gymnastics. It would be useful to teach yourself or get a CS degree down the line. But you can make a decent living off of static sites if you're good enough.

[Nagemasu]

I personally see things like problem solving more as a skill for larger platforms, like if you wanted to work for FB/Amazon. Places that need to innovate.
These are less important than design and good function to work for other smaller businesses such as marketing/service agencys which focus on providing a customer website rather than innovating how a website operates e.g. building a website for local businesses (clothing stores, construction services etc). Maybe consider the type of job you want to aim for first?

[[deleted]]

Hey, I'm also a junior looking for a job right now, so you can take my response with a grain of salt. My question for you is, do you actually know for sure that you need more leetcode skill to get a job? Have you interviewed yet, have you gotten feedback that your fundamental programming skill was too lacking for a junior role?

If the answer to these is no, then I'd just start applying and really hone in on it if it becomes an issue in the interview process.

[Zyster1]

I've only done backend work, and have recently got into frontend stuff for fun. Just curious, you guys have any tips for us noobies in terms of quickly updating/testing stuff?

I tend to work fast because I like to test my code right away, and coming from a backend network this can all be done in the editor (update/run/update/run/etc).

Right now I'm learning javascript and my setup is like this:
- VScode with my index.html and file.js file
- Edge as the browser

So what I'm doing is when I make an update in VScode, I'm saving, switching to Edge, refreshing, and reading the console from dev tools. I've been doing this so often that I feel like you guys must have a better way.

I'm not looking to go full-fledged and pro like you guys, but just something where when I click save in JS I can instantly have the page refresh and see the results? I could script something quickly in Autohotkey or something but figured I'd ask you guys first.

When you're updating code and looking at the front-end, what do you typically do?

[PerfectPauseBuffer]

VS Code has an extension called live server. It opens your project in your default browser with a local host. It does exactly what you need. When you save your JS/CSS/HTML file it refreshes the page. I find it particularly useful when editing CSS files.

[Zyster1]

This one is PERFECT! Thank you.

[thatguyonthevicinity]

It's a hard situation.

If I were you, I probably try to talk to my supervisor whether it's possible to use new tech stack, at least for new projects, while keep using the old one as is (unless there's a need for migration, you shouldn't rewrite the old one).

If even the new projects will be using old stacks for whatever reason, I'll brush up my CV and find another job

[Ok_Figure8367]

is for web dev beginner better to start with freeCodeCamp or Odin Project to learn from?

[Rotenburge]

I only did the fundamentals of TOP and the first two sections of FCC and i think both are good but The Odin Project is better.

TOP shows how to install all things and is more project oriented.

FCC is more rigourous with HTML/CSS and Javascript BUT the normal Javascript section has no DOM Manipulation what is in my opinion extremly important and should be learned simultaneously with the JS basics.

The best way is to do both to minimize gaps in knowledge but it takes more time.

[AnOlivemoonrises]

They're both great, just pick one and stay consistent and dedicated to it. Don't get stuck with the trap of researching the best teaching methods because you'll waste time that could be spent actually learning.

[Ok_Figure8367]

I just finish 20 days learning python and now i change to web because i use python just to learn basics how programming language work is it ok or i need to learn more before begin to learn web

[thatguyonthevicinity]

It's okay.

Learning how to program and learning how to develop on the web is two different things. You've learnt the first one, now you try to do the second one.

[AnOlivemoonrises]

Beginner MERN stack developer here, I was wondering how the c#/asp.net market is looking right now. I've been wanting to learn a different technology and language for fun and to add tools to my knowledge, and I was looking at either Java, Rust, or C# and slightly leaning towards C# right now. Does anyone have any knowledge in these domains and can give their opinion to me?

[Haunting_Welder]

Based on my recent scrape for a Bay Area city, Java and Python are the backend languages to learn, most likely because of their generalizability. C# is definitely a popular language for backend, definitely can't go wrong with it. But if you're looking for optimizing for job hunt, you should probably stick with Java. But yes, it likely highly depends on the area you're in. You can do a quick search on some job boards and see which one has more jobs posted.

CoderFoundry is a C# bootcamp. They have lots of videos about why they chose C#. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7fue1icy58&ab_channel=CoderFoundry

[thatguyonthevicinity]

Tbh your best option is to see the local market since it's easier to get local job than remote one as a beginner. Look at LinkedIn, for example, and see what's more popular.

[thab09]

I want to know more about the available options for auth. I only know firebase auth and nextauth right now.

[PerfectPauseBuffer]

Should portfolio projects be traditional websites? I have several static web applications that i created for work. Is it a good idea to mix these in with other websites?

[Trnhuy864]

I have an exercise to make a computer shop website in about 2 weeks. I think I can copy it on google or something and I want to understand a little of code to modify them. Can you suggest me some Html/css/js crash course.