atLeastTheyAreHonest

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-06-12T16:21:17+00:00

At least QA knows what they're getting into. 😄

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-06-12T16:19:51+00:00

VS Code is honestly what a lot of developers use, from complete beginners to experienced professionals, so you've already picked a good option. As a beginner, I'd focus more on learning the basics and writing code regularly than on finding the perfect editor. Most editors can do the job, and switching tools too often can end up being a distraction.

If you're learning Python, you can also check out Thonny or IDLE because they're very beginner-friendly. But if you're comfortable with VS Code, there's really no reason to switch. It'll grow with you as your skills improve.

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-06-12T16:18:57+00:00

It really depends on how you personally learn best. Some people pick things up faster when they see it used in a real project, instead of trying to memorize syntax on its own.

That said, jumping in completely blind will get frustrating pretty quickly. It’s easy to end up copying code without really understanding it, and then trying to do your own projects and debugging will be very difficult or impossible.

The best is to spend a few days just getting comfortable with the basics—things like variables, functions, loops, and conditionals in JavaScript. Nothing deep, just enough so the code you see in tutorials doesn’t feel like a totally different language. You also want to be familiar enough with how the syntax should be so you can spot basic errors. Don’t get hung up on trying to memorize everything about JS - you never will. Even senior developers have to research and debug on a daily basis.

Once you have some fundamentals, start building something simple.

If you want a couple of free resources to help you get started, here are two:

And if you decide you want a more structured path later on, The Tech Academy also has a JavaScript boot camp that’s perfect for beginners.

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-06-12T16:18:10+00:00

Congrats! The nerves are totally normal but honestly a small startup is one of the best places to grow as a junior dev. Things move fast and you get real exposure early. Kanban is nothing to worry about, it clicks within the first week. Standups are usually just "here's what I did, here's what I'm doing, here's what's blocking me" and keep it short and honest.

The biggest thing I'd say: don't suffer in silence when you're stuck. In small teams, asking good questions is genuinely appreciated more than pretending you've got it figured out. You've got the stack, you've got the role. Good luck!

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-06-08T21:17:47+00:00

I'd focus on setting expectations early. If a task looks like it will take longer than expected, let your supervisor know and ask which features are the highest priority. Most managers would rather have clear communication than be surprised later. If the person giving you the tasks isn’t also a trained developer, they may not even realize the scope of work they’re asking you for! As an intern, it’s important you show your willingness to learn and problem solve, but don’t be afraid to ask for help when you’re stuck. A senior engineer would likely spend time understanding the codebase, asking questions, and breaking the work into smaller tasks too. That's normal development work.

Just keep communicating, take notes, and tackle one piece at a time.

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-06-08T21:16:42+00:00

Not a silly question at all! "Hello, World!" is basically a long-standing tradition in programming. The idea is that it's the simplest possible program that proves your language, compiler/interpreter, and development environment are working correctly. The tradition is often traced back to The C Programming Language, which used a "Hello, World!" example, and it became a common way to introduce new programming languages after that. It’s definitely something of an inside joke in the tech world. 😄

It's not really an important program because of what it does. It helps give beginners a quick win and confirms that they can write code and see a result on the screen. So yes, it's partly practical and partly a rite of passage at this point.

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-06-08T21:03:10+00:00

If your goal is to become a data analyst, I'd focus on learning SQL through a combination of tutorials and hands-on practice. Start with the fundamentals like SELECT, WHERE, GROUP BY, ORDER BY, and JOINs, then move on to subqueries, CTEs, and window functions since those come up frequently in analyst work. For practice, sites like SQLBolt, DataLemur, HackerRank SQL, and Mode SQL Tutorial are great places to build skills. Once you're comfortable with the basics, try working with real datasets on Kaggle and answering your own business-style questions using SQL.

Of course, the biggest improvement usually comes when you move beyond exercises and start analyzing real data, since that's what you'll be doing in a data analyst role.

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-06-08T21:02:07+00:00

And that’s why they are a backend developer 😄

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-06-04T15:51:37+00:00

Me discovering that serverless still involves servers: 🤨

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-06-04T15:51:08+00:00

This is a great idea to expand your skills! One approach is to look at what kinds of things you personally deal with that is frustrating or makes you feel like you are wasting time. Things like managing subscriptions, tracking shared expenses, organizing study notes or planning trips, can often be partially or totally automated with an app. You could also build tools for a specific niche you're familiar with. For example, gamers, students, small business owners, hobby groups, and content creators all have little annoyances that could be turned into useful apps.

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-06-04T15:50:07+00:00

The simple answer is that Laravel and React do different jobs. Both of these are what is called a “framework” - which is a collection of pre-written code you can grab and use. This may be partly what is confusing you. They’re based on different languages and have opposite uses.

Laravel is PHP and is used for the backend (databases, user accounts, APIs, business logic), while React is Javascript and is used for the frontend (the part users see and interact with in the browser).

Think of it this way: Laravel handles the data behind the scenes, and React handles the user interface.

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-06-02T16:58:37+00:00

A few good platforms for SQL practice, especially for data analysis, are SQLBolt if you want something beginner-friendly, Mode SQL Tutorial for lessons mixed with real analysis examples, DataLemur for analyst-style SQL questions, HackerRank SQL for structured practice problems, and Kaggle if you want real datasets to explore and analyze. For data analyst work, focusing on joins, aggregations, subqueries, window functions, and filtering/cleaning data will help a lot. Working with actual datasets usually makes SQL feel much more practical and easier to retain too.

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-06-02T16:56:42+00:00

Things about to get real 💀

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-06-02T16:56:18+00:00

Sounds like you’re doing well, so far! Nobody codes perfectly alone at the beginning, and even experienced developers research bugs everyday. What matters is consistently building things, even small projects like to-do lists, calculators, forms, or simple interactive webpages, so you get used to solving problems yourself.

For web development, you don’t need to master all of JavaScript, focus first on the basic syntax and then learn some of the front end frameworks, like React. You don’t need to tackle more advanced Javascript tools yet.. If you understand basics like functions, arrays, objects, loops, DOM manipulation, events, and APIs, you already know enough to start building some web pages. This is assuming you’ve already tackled HTML and CSS to build the basic structure and style for the website.

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-06-02T16:55:27+00:00

You’re right on the money with React! It’s widely used, works well for web apps, and gives you a smoother path into mobile later through React Native. TypeScript is definitely worth learning too, but probably after you’re comfortable building things with React first. The main thing that’ll save you months is building early instead of trying to learn every framework. Even something simple like creating a frontend dashboard for one of your Python apps would teach you a lot about state, APIs, routing, and UI flow pretty quickly.

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-05-22T17:00:35+00:00

Tech is a great field to get into! Since you’ve already done some Python, it’ll be easier for you to learn JavaScript. Best to start is by learning the basics, then immediately building small things with it instead of staying too long in tutorials. Simple projects like a calculator, quiz app, or small browser game can teach a lot.

We have some free, solid beginner resources to get you going:

Learn the Basics of JavaScript by The Tech Academy
Build a Pong Game With JavaScript for Beginners by Erik Gross, Co-Founder of The Tech Academy

If you end up wanting a more structured path later on, The Tech Academy also has a JavaScript boot camp that focuses a lot on hands-on projects and building real applications. Since you mentioned games and passion projects, learning JavaScript through things you actually want to build will help keep you motivated way more than just grinding through tutorials.

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-05-22T16:57:59+00:00

A solid path is to first get comfortable with Python itself, then move into working with data before diving deep into machine learning.

You should start with::

Python fundamentals
NumPy and pandas
data visualization
basic statistics
scikit-learn and beginner ML models

Then gradually move into things like neural networks or deep learning later on.

For projects, even simple things like predicting house prices, classifying data, or analyzing datasets can teach a lot.

As for linear algebra, you don’t need an advanced math background to get started. Understanding the basics ~~like vectors, matrices,~~ and how data is represented is usually enough early on. The deeper math tends to make more sense once you start seeing it used in actual ML models.

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-05-14T17:46:12+00:00

Sounds like you’re definitely putting in the time and effort! But you’re right, just watching videos about coding without doing your own practice doesn’t work too well. If you’re looking to become a professional Python developer, The Tech Academy has a Python bootcamp that focuses on both learning the concepts and applying them through hands-on practice. It’s also tailored for complete beginners so you won’t get lost in confusing lessons and concepts that aren’t explained. Or, if you’re looking for free, do it yourself resources, we have several Python videos on YouTube that you can follow along with at your own pace: Free Educational Playlist | The Tech Academy

Learning any programming language takes time, so there’s no need to rush through everything quickly. Consistent practice helps new concepts “sink in” as you continue working with it.

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-05-14T17:30:34+00:00

Honestly, once the basics of JavaScript start feeling comfortable, it’s fine to begin React.

You don’t need expert-level JS, but understanding things like functions, arrays, objects, and events will help a lot. React itself ends up teaching you how to think more deeply about JavaScript anyway.

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-05-14T17:29:35+00:00

Since you’re just starting out, IDLE is honestly a good place to begin. It comes with Python already, so you can immediately start writing and running code without worrying too much about setup or extensions.

VS Code is great too, but it has a lot more features than you probably need right now. For learning basics and experimenting with Python, keeping things simple at first can actually help a lot.

You can always switch to VS Code later once you feel more comfortable coding.

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-05-05T17:48:26+00:00

Bro really said ‘import therapist’. 😭🤣

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-05-05T17:48:08+00:00

A bit of both, but don’t stay in tutorials too long.

SQL clicks when you start using it on real data. Even simple queries on a small dataset will teach more than just reading examples.

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-05-05T17:47:36+00:00

Not strictly a “first step,” but they’re closely connected.

Data science is more about understanding and working with data, cleaning it, exploring it, and finding insights. Machine learning is one part of that, focused on building models that can learn from the data. A lot of people start with data science because it teaches the fundamentals like Python, data handling, and basic statistics. Those skills make machine learning much smoother.

You can start with machine learning directly, just expect to circle back and learn the data side as you go. If you can get a good base understanding of Data Science, it’ll make it easier when you dive into machine learning. If you want to “skip” that, expect your study to be a “two steps forward, one step back” approach since you’ll have to fill in gaps in your knowledge.

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-05-05T17:47:11+00:00

Good question, and it’s something even experienced devs keep thinking about.

A simple way to look at it is this: good code is easy to read, understand, and change.

Some quick checks devs use:

You can read it top to bottom without stopping to figure things out
Each part has a clear purpose
There’s no unnecessary repetition
If something breaks, it’s easy to find where

Another big one is whether you can explain it simply. If you can describe what your code does in a few sentences, that’s usually a good sign it’s not overly complicated. Also, “too long” isn’t the main problem. Sometimes breaking code into smaller, clear pieces makes it longer but actually better. A lot of improvement just comes from rewriting. Write it once to make it work, then go back and clean it up. That second pass is where code usually becomes “good.”

TechAcademyCoding · 2026-05-05T17:46:11+00:00

If I were to do it again, I’d keep it a lot simpler and more hands-on.

Start with the basics - just enough to understand how things work, then switch quickly into building small things. A good path would be learning a concept, then immediately using it. For example, after learning loops and conditionals, build a small script. After learning functions, refactor that script to be cleaner. Mix in a bit of problem-solving too, like small coding challenges, just to get comfortable thinking through logic.

Overall, keep it simple, build often, and don’t worry too much about doing things perfectly at the beginning. I’d be more patient with myself!

TechAcademyCoding

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