Working as a web developer requires a lot of passion, patience (yes, you need that in this job), knowledge and willingness to learn all the time. As this is my first Happy blog post I’d like to write today about never-ending learning in web development/design, why it’s so important and what are the methods of learning which I usually choose and why they work for me.
I remember when I made my first tiny step into the web world. I remember my first website project, first IT book, first day at Happy Creative. These are amazing memories which motivate me to the further actions I take. But I wouldn’t be where I am now without spending thousands of hours on learning various technologies, building websites, testing different codes… and guess what…? I’m not going to stop!
Why is non-stop learning so important in working as a web developer? Well, because our clients hire us for our knowledge and experience with leading-edge technologies. Therefore, to provide superior service, we need to stay up to date with the latest technology advances. Whether it’s flat design, scrolling one page website, parallax website, animated elements, CMS, bespoke website or responsive web design, good web developers need to know the ins and outs of these trends and, what’s more, of the technologies which allow them to build these elements.
In my opinion, the most important rule in the IT world is: If you keep yourself up to date with the latest IT news you are on the right path! This is never illustrated better than if you take a break and come back to things after some time, you will see that it has moved a lot and you’re a long way behind.
The web technology world is changing very fast. By 2020, employment in all computer occupations is expected to increase by 22%! It’s also impossible to know everything, and that’s why you should choose your niche and become a master in that field. But again – if you want to be very good you need to quickly learn the latest methods and techniques and constantly check for any updates.
Learning methods
When I learn I always rely on good, old printed books! Maybe I’m a little bit old fashioned, but in my opinion a well-written book is an amazing source of knowledge. What I like in printed books is that I can read them, make a note and then peep again quickly when I need. I like also to have all of the information which I require in one place. I generally choose American authors who work for Google, Yahoo and other big companies in Silicon Valley. I find their books very professional and pragmatic with an amazing amount of practical advice. After all, USA is the leader in the Tech world!
However, we live in a digital world and as I’m a web developer online tutorials also form a key pillar in my learning strategy. Personally, it’s not my favourite way of learning, because it’s difficult to find good IT tutorials, most of them start on the beginner level, which you need to pass before go on the highest level.
Tutorials which I can recommend include:
• http://www.lynda.com/
• http://teamtreehouse.com/
• http://www.codecademy.com/ (free)
All of them offer an array of various courses, to which you have access whenever you need. The first two listed have video courses with the ability to write code in a built-in editor but these come at a price. CodeAcademy doesn’t offer video tutorials, but it does have the built-in code editor with handy comments and instructions.
My most recent discovery is Coursera (https://www.coursera.org). Coursera is an online educational platform from USA which offers courses prepared by different Universities mainly from USA, but not limited to these. They offer training from different fields. They’re free unless you want to have a certificate from chosen US University (cost usually about $49). Courses are only available when one of the Universities allows them to be available, which is a slight disadvantage, as you aren’t as flexible in when you can start learning. Usually they last for about 7-8 weeks and require about 8 hours of learning per week. I’m already signed up for three courses. The first one starts today, so I’ll let you know how they are. Exciting!
Sylwia Lukjanowska is a Creative Thinker and Junior Web Developer at Happy Creative, a full service marketing and creative agency based in Blackpool, Lancashire. To learn more or contact us please go to www.happy-creative.co.uk
