Catching my breath: Comments about work that is yet to be seen

I know I haven’t updated this in a while. The activity here doesn’t match the work I’ve been doing.

It’s strange to look back on old posts and see my trepidation at attending my first meet up and first Hackathon. To look back to that first step out into the real world of coding, and socializing with people that know much more than I do.  I’m now engrossed with volunteer projects that have been occupying much of my free time, and maybe some of my not free time.

Continuing my work on the Leverage project, I’ve added two other projects from Code for Philly to sharpen my skills with. One is in a fertile stage that I’ll keep under wraps. The other is the City as a Service Hackathon (#Caash)

Risking the whitest pun available, #Caash has been ruling everything around me. (Cream, get the money!)

Initially, I just wanted to offer my time to help with day of activities. Leverage will be working during it, but I figured I’d show up early to check people in, get to know a few folks to network with, then get started on the Leverage work. But then the first conference call happened.

My intentions this year was to focus on coding. Not design. I’m not the best designer, but those skills are much sharper than my HTML/CSS skills, let alone any other language. Because of this, it feels strange to me to make the hackathon logo and other promotional materials. Somehow I’ve become the communications team leader of sorts. What happened to sticking to coding? Well, no one else seemed to want to do it. I have the knowledge base, so why not contribute any way I can?

So here I am. About 9 months into my new Year’s Resolution to get better at coding. I don’t have much to show, but I know I’ve learned a lot so far. And one of the best parts: I feel like I found a place that I can contribute, feel supported, and can gain incredible job experience. And, now I’m contemplating marketing positions as a viable career path.

This blog may seem inactive, but I haven’t been.

Resources for new coders

I want this post to act as an incomplete list of resources that are helpful to new coders. It is not exhaustive for many reasons, one of which is because this does not come from research. I’ve found each of these resources in different ways. Either stumbling on them somehow or by word of mouth. Each of the resources to follow I have found helpful. It is my hope that by organizing them here, someone might find something helpful.

CS50: Harvard University Introduction to Computer Science. The course is available online for free. You can enroll through edX.org, or watch the lectures from each week. I found this helpful because of the way I’ve learned computers. Computers have always been around me, and I’ve learned from my own experiences. But this way of picking up information can often lead to gaps in knowledge. This course was helpful in filling gaps in my knowledge of how it all works together. The instructor David Malan is entertaining and easy to follow, though he does move fast. The Shorts are helpful supplementary videos to the lectures. If you don’t know what is happening when a website is loaded from the server, this course could be helpful for you.

CodePen.io: If you like tearing things open to see how they work, this site is for you. If you want to see how code works by comparing the code and the end result, this site is also for you.

CodePen almost harkens back to an old HTML standard of frames. Three frames along the top house code for HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Below is the pen, a frame that displays the code from above. Change the code above, see how it affects the display and behavior below. You can fork other people’s work to their code.

CodeNewbie.org: If you’re new to coding and don’t know about CodeNewbie, it is an amazing resource. CodeNewbie is a community that nurtures its participants to help from feeling overwhelmed. They have a message board, the podcasts, and the weekly Twitter chat. Here is a recent example of on of their Twitter Chat questions. The topic is like the theme of this blog post: https://twitter.com/codenewbies/status/722962585780264964

Slack: it’s a chat room styled communication platform. Use their website or download their app. Each Slack team has channels, which are themes. CodeNewbie has a Slack team, with a channel for anything you’re looking for. These are great places to actively take part by asking questions or passively by reading along with the discussions.

Slack is something you might have to get invited to. As in the case for CodeNewbies. But, it’s an automated process. Follow the directions on their site, and you’ll be in shortly.

CodeCademy: Free tutorials inside their IDE help guide you through specific programming languages. Learn Python, Ruby, Command Line Git, or any other of their large selection. You can start with their simple HTML and CSS course, or learn programming through JavaScript. There’s a premium option, but if you’re focused, you most likely won’t need it.

Code for Philly: This is a local group that is great of coders to develop skills. As they say, it’s a place to go from level 1 to level 2. They don’t offer classes, but support and opportunities to meet other coders. They have big on civic minded projects, and have hackathons built around this concept. If you are in the Philadelphia area, you should check them out.  They also have Slack.

Meetup.com: This has been invaluable for me. Networking and meeting new people can be scary, but it can be easier when  you share common interests. Through meetup.com, I found Code for Philly, which is a great resource for me. I’ve also found other meet ups that have helpful talks. I found it helpful to  see what other people are doing. I even signed up for a hackathon because of discussions I had at meet ups.

I implore you to go out and meet coders nearby. They have resources like these, but probably better. Many of the resources I’m listing here came from suggestions from people I’ve met through meet ups. As I stated in the beginning, this list is not extensive. A list made by someone researching coding resources would have more links. Over the last couple months, I’ve found myself returning to these resources for help. Because of this, I wanted to share.
If you have any extra places, please share below in the comments.

Learning how to code is like riding a bike…

Seeing code in action. I’m visual, I need to see it, rather than just read about it. That’s how I learned HTML.

View Page Source was my first step into coding in any sort. It was like a secret code. I built a site on HTML 3, stealing ideas from sites. It felt like a collage to me: find something I liked, view page source, copy + paste code, then edit for my purpose. As a ignorant, isolate kid newly initiated to the Internet, I didn’t credit the way I should. The inspirations have been lost to time. I can find my site on the Wayback Machine*, and see I credited a few, but most of that code was stolen.

That first real site was built using AOL’s member site CMS. It was like using Front Page, but there was a way to view the tagging. This is where I did most of my site building.

Years later, when I enrolled in a Web Design course at Moore College of Art and Design, the first class was like visiting an old friend and seeing how they’ve changed over time. We both grew up a bit.

This experience in class was a fleeting thought back then. I’ve returned to this thought as I pondered the notion of finding my bike riding experience I mentioned in an earlier post.

Over the last couple days I’ve been returning to this practice more and more. I used it when looking for a bike-trying to barter my rudimentary skills for a commuter bike. (The place wouldn’t budge on anything that I tried to counter with. You would think they would be a little more flexible when trying to sell bikes in February.) I’ve also used this as I start thinking about building an address app for my work. Additionally, when I’ve just happen across a site I like, I’ve viewed the source just to get more experience looking at code.

*There’s no way I’m sharing this old site. Not because I’m ashamed of the borrowed code, but I’m embarrassed by the content. As in, I’d be willing to burn the internet down to have it not see the light of day…

First MeetUp

I’m preparing for my first meet up. It’s with Code for Philly. I don’t really know what to expect, but I’m trying to keep my mind open.

I’m used to learning this kind of stuff alone in a room, no one else around. My social skills have always been in need of some help. Then there’s my crushing lack of confidence in myself with this.

Oh, and I’m bringing a Mac. I’m going to be totally out of place, right? Yikes.

Since I’ve been feeling extra poor these past couple months, I’m walking one and a half miles in new boots, just to save an extra token. Can you understand more now my impatient compulsion with trying to learn?

Slow down

I have been mainlining the CodeNewbie podcast this week, hoping to absorb as much content as I can.

I’m starting to think I’m just hearing the podcast, and not really listening. But, then a phrase will pop out at me that hooks me in.

I’m currently listening to episode 17: Getting Involved with Scott Hanselman. He’s suggesting blogging about what you don’t know. Then he compares it to learning how to start a car. 
Much like coding, I started driving much later than others. It did not take me long to know I’m a much better driver than all those other bozos on the road. But in seriousness, I drew upon my time riding a bike in Philly to know how to move in traffic.

I need to find that experience of being on a bike to draw from. The trouble is, I’ve been trying to century before learning how to fix a flat.

Frustration

One of my biggest flaws is my lack of patience. 

Part this comes from an innate sense of wanting to rush through everything. This post is already taking longer than I’d like. 
Another part of my impatience currently stems from changing career and feeling like I’m not making the progress of like with advancement. This is not to point blame at anyone or anything. Except myself, maybe. My wife wants to change careers, but the field she would like to enter requires a degree or at least some formal education that she does not currently have-even though she’s pretty well versed in the field through reading about what interests her.

When she goes to school, I will need to support us. At my current salary, that will be near impossible. Maybe this is excessive pressure that I am putting on myself. Yet, here I sit, on the precipice of 34, struggling to rise from an assistant position. 

This is not helping my impatient nature. 

Getting Started

I think I know what I’m about to do, though who can tell?

The point of this blog is to serve myself. I want to document my steps as I try to learn computer coding. I’m leaving it open to “coding” as I’m not even sure what I want to pursue with coding.

Like many people, I have a secondary degree for a career I didn’t want to do anymore.

I have a certificate from a program on Web Design, where I learned HTML and CSS. From here, I’d like to move forward learning more.

I quit teaching, and begun working in an office. The was a big change from a classroom in a neglected school building. In my interview for this job I talked about what I knew, and didn’t know. The job was to be an assistant. When I was offered the position, I saw it as a great foot in the door for a new industry. I’ve learned a lot from this job. I’ve learned stuff that I didn’t know I needed to know, and stuff that has made me more aware of what else is out there.

From here, I’m not sure where to go. I’ve tried many of the CodeAcademy tutorials and Lynda.com videos. I’ve talked to the few people I know who do this. I’m planning on attending a Meet Up soon for the first time.