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"Learn to Code"

Posted on 5/23/22 at 2:26 pm
Posted by Corso
Atlanta
Member since Feb 2020
10712 posts
Posted on 5/23/22 at 2:26 pm
I've never posted on here and I'm sure there's been plenty of discussion about it, but I'm looking for a change. I've had 2 seizures since December and while I don't think it's actually epilepsy we can't find an explanation for them other than dehydration, certain low levels in the lab workups, etc. Anyway in the state of Georgia I can't drive for 6 months and as you can imagine I'm pretty freaked out. My sister is trying to get me into coding but other than random googling I'm not sure where to start, what programs are legit, what actual job or career options there are after completion, is "learn to code" even legit, would it be steady income, etc.

I'm not going to be able to drive until 6 months after the seizure so I'm looking for anything from home that's legit. Any other CIS type options I should look at in addition to coding? Thanks
Posted by Korkstand
Member since Nov 2003
28709 posts
Posted on 5/23/22 at 2:44 pm to
Sorry to hear about your health troubles, and I wish you the best.


The world of programming is absolutely massive, there is code in everything. Aside from the obvious electronics, there are chips and code in pretty much everything with a plug or battery, and even some things without them. And it reaches into more things every day.

So the easy answer is "start with Python and go from there". There are tons of legit programs to guide you, but there is also plenty of free documentation and tutorials if you prefer more of a choose your own adventure style. I'm not sure how far you will get in 6 months starting from scratch, but you will get somewhere.


It may help if you have an idea of what type of systems you'd be interested in coding. Mobile or desktop apps? Web sites/apps? Embedded systems and automation type stuff? Better chance of sticking with it if you start with something that interests you.
Posted by big_tuna
Member since Jun 2019
596 posts
Posted on 5/23/22 at 2:48 pm to
This is a good place to start. Treehouse

LINK
Posted by j1897
Member since Nov 2011
3568 posts
Posted on 5/23/22 at 3:36 pm to
You trying to code as a career, or just bored?


This is fun LINK /



For a career, if you're over 40 don't waste your time. Ageism in IT is rampant.
Posted by Fat Batman
Gotham City, NJ
Member since Oct 2019
1382 posts
Posted on 5/23/22 at 7:36 pm to
Self taught, no formal degree, fulltime programmer/developer here. Learn to code is legit. That said, if you are just looking for something to pay the bills and aren't really interested in or passionate about learning coding, I would probably look somewhere else. I've run into plenty of later in life people "looking for a change that heard about coding from their friend" and most, not all, tend to struggle. It's easy to teach someone enough to push them through a bootcamp and have them feel like they know it all but the thing about coding is its really easy to immediately tell who gets it and is good and who doesn't and you will be asked to prove it on the spot. If you get it and grind you can progress quickly, if not then you'll struggle to get your foot in the door and if you land a job you'll probably peak low and stay at the bottom of the pay scale if you can stay employed.

If you're serious though, start now. Expect to spend a year, fully dedicated to learning, before you're worth a shite. Treat it as a fulltime job. The first 6 months is the hardest. After that things should start to really click. Then you can start to pick up freelance gigs while continuing to learn. If you play it right you can pick up gigs around stuff you want to explore more and kinda get paid to learn it. Everyone is going to tell you to do Python, but if you are doing this to generate income the fastest then skip Python. Python is mostly used by companies doing real mathy shite, its a smaller net to cast, competitive, and they are going to want to see a relevant formal education. Learn Javascript in that first 6-9 months to get your base in programming. Once you know one language you can pick up others almost immediately. There is an abundance of learning JS materials online as well as plenty of people out there willing to help via stackoverflow, reddit, etc. After that spend the next 3 months learning Elixir. The entry level JS market is super saturated. Elixir is an up and coming language with a rapidly growing demand for devs and not on all the entry levelers radars yet.

js resources
watch and code (no longer just takes anyone, but if you can get in you'll find out if this is for you or not) , freecodecamp, w3school, udemy courses (don'y pay more than $15 there is always a promo), reddit: r/javascript, r/learnprogramming, r/learnjavascript, r/programming, r/programmingbuddies
This post was edited on 5/23/22 at 7:38 pm
Posted by Korkstand
Member since Nov 2003
28709 posts
Posted on 5/23/22 at 8:43 pm to
quote:

Learn Javascript in that first 6-9 months to get your base in programming. Once you know one language you can pick up others almost immediately.
I thought the same until I tried a "real" language.

I know I'm not very good at it, but I've toyed with Python, Ruby, Javascript/Typescript, Go, and maybe a few others. I started looking at Rust lately and the learning curve is quite a bit steeper.
Posted by tide06
Member since Oct 2011
11190 posts
Posted on 5/23/22 at 11:25 pm to
quote:

You trying to code as a career, or just bored?

This is fun LINK /

For a career, if you're over 40 don't waste your time. Ageism in IT is rampant.

There is some truth to this, but I promise you as someone who has hired many people in this segment: if you can do the job, show up with a positive attitude and are willing to update your skills over time you will never have to worry about finding work.

I know guys in their mid 70s still getting calls trying to talk them out of retirement because they have the right skill set.
Posted by dakarx
Member since Sep 2018
6850 posts
Posted on 5/24/22 at 7:57 am to
quote:

For a career, if you're over 40 don't waste your time. Ageism in IT is rampant.

There is some truth to this, but I promise you as someone who has hired many people in this segment: if you can do the job, show up with a positive attitude and are willing to update your skills over time you will never have to worry about finding work.


/\/\/\ THIS /\ /\ /\

Best thing you can do is try it and if it agrees with you and you enjoy it then go for it. The market is pretty fluid, 30 years in the industry and have been watching developers (of all programming languages) come and go in waves with regularity.

The forced WFH deal has really twisted the market up, more productivity with less overhead means teams (that are well managed) are able to produce more bugs, I mean code than ever.



Posted by BoogaBear
Member since Jul 2013
5572 posts
Posted on 5/24/22 at 1:54 pm to
Learn SQL, it's always going to be in high demand. If you can work with data and understand it you will always have a job.

Data warehousing
Reporting
Data science

The shift in IT is towards data, front end development gets shipped offshore for 32 bucks an hour.
Posted by LSshoe
Burrowing through a pile o MikePoop
Member since Jan 2008
4009 posts
Posted on 5/24/22 at 2:31 pm to
What did you do before? That could guide responses. Also, as some have eluded to, "Coding" is as much as anything else, a mindset. Good programmers think in certain ways. It is very much a 'language' as English, French, etc. are, but it's not the same. I guess all that to say, most people with enough training can be a coder in the same way most people could be an architect or an accountant or something of the sort. That doesn't mean most people can be good at those things.

If your thing is just looking for something that's WFH since you can't drive, there are lots of those jobs, especially nowadays. Lots in tech obviously, but also in other fields. If you want a change from what you're doing now, don't pigeonhole yourself or you may be looking for a change again 3-5 years from now. Figure out what specifically you liked about your old job, interacting with your coworkers, crunching numbers, problem solving, managing a project, building/assembling things, etc. Perhaps a suggestion would be to take a personality test, then use that to see what kinds of jobs match that personality type, then see of that subset what are good WFH candidates.
Posted by DoubleDown
New Orleans, Louisiana
Member since Oct 2008
12873 posts
Posted on 5/24/22 at 2:32 pm to
quote:

I know guys in their mid 70s still getting calls trying to talk them out of retirement because they have the right skill set.

Right. I think ageism does exist but in the opposite fashion he's referring to. Most people that we've hired recently are lazy, self-entitled, expecting a day off work every 10 days mid 20something year olds.

They seem to expect a raise every 6-12months of 3%-8% and it just don't work that way lil kiddo, not for just showing up. Anyhow, if you're good, you're good at 24 or 64.
Posted by kywildcatfanone
Wildcat Country!
Member since Oct 2012
119204 posts
Posted on 5/24/22 at 4:51 pm to
quote:

Learn SQL, it's always going to be in high demand. If you can work with data and understand it you will always have a job.

Data warehousing
Reporting
Data science

The shift in IT is towards data, front end development gets shipped offshore for 32 bucks an hour.




This is the overall best answer. This is where the future money is.
Posted by FLObserver
Jacksonville
Member since Nov 2005
14470 posts
Posted on 5/24/22 at 5:33 pm to
quote:

This is the overall best answer. This is where the future money is.

Agree Companies want to Use their data to determine future spending, trends, what's needed and not needed as far as Labor, products etc...Analytics is the future.
Posted by McCorkleJonesGOAT
Member since Apr 2022
362 posts
Posted on 5/25/22 at 2:54 am to
How much do you drink per week? are you taking any xanax/benzos? The best legit programs are at you local community college, and then transferring to a university if you want to make real money. Web development is only an A.S and it can be 40-50k
Posted by jdd48
Baton Rouge
Member since Jan 2012
22118 posts
Posted on 5/25/22 at 7:27 am to
I'd caution anyone that thinks software development is some glamorous rockstar position as well. It certainly can be very fun and rewarding, but just like many tech positions, it can very easily chew you up and spit you out in a hurry if you allow it too.
Posted by j1897
Member since Nov 2011
3568 posts
Posted on 5/25/22 at 12:58 pm to
quote:

Most people that we've hired recently are lazy, self-entitled, expecting a day off work every 10 days mid 20something year olds.



I mean, if they are even remotely decent they can get that pretty much anywhere they want.
Posted by Brisketeer
Texas
Member since Aug 2013
1437 posts
Posted on 5/25/22 at 2:45 pm to
quote:

I'd caution anyone that thinks software development is some glamorous rockstar position as well.


This is true. It's also something you either get or you don't. Once you get over the initial wall, you should feel driven to learn more. My only advice is to give it a shot, but if you get down the road and it doesn't click, move on to something else.
Posted by LSURep864
Moscow, Idaho
Member since Nov 2007
10910 posts
Posted on 5/26/22 at 5:59 am to
This thread actually inspired me.

Around 2016-2017 I was in a dead end sales job. I wanted a way out. Tried learning Java on treehouse. ZERO tech experience of any kind. Was a complete disaster. Absolutely scared me away from coding completely.

Fast forward to current day. I’ve been working in IT since late 2017. I obtained CompTIA trifecta and CCNA in 2018.

Been working a jack of all trades hat do everything system/network admin job since 2019. Started tinkering with Linux in 2021.

With python being listed on all the higher paying networking job postings these days I figured time to try python/coding again. My nerding around with Home Assistant and YAML files made code click a little before.


So I signed up for the Python tech degree on Treehouse. I am blown away at how much more it’s clicking with me now. Sure a lot of it is probably just python being easier than Java.

But there is such a difference for me in terms of just already being extremely comfortable with the console from Cisco and Linux. Knowing tab to complete, understanding navigating the file directory with cli etc. Understanding indentation matters from Home Assistant YAML files, all the thing that aren’t really related to coding but are just kind of expected to be understood.

I don’t really plan on a career reboot or anything with this skill. I also realize just because I feel like I’m picking it up easily now doesn’t mean anything because like all things in tech, none of us really know ish. That moment where I realize I am a big moron and tempted to quit is coming. Been there with a few technologies.

Which brings me to my ultimate skill that has translated. Googling stuff. I was already a master at searching google to fix all kinds of general IT problems with stuff I had never touched. So I feel right at home opening a dozen tabs digging for the right way to code something when I’m stuck.

Not really a point to this rambling. But just wanted to encourage anyone who failed at
This before to try again. The fact that I can even look at code on a YouTube video or out in the wild now and have a general idea of what is going on is amazing to me.
Posted by Korkstand
Member since Nov 2003
28709 posts
Posted on 5/26/22 at 9:40 am to
quote:

Which brings me to my ultimate skill that has translated. Googling stuff. I was already a master at searching google to fix all kinds of general IT problems with stuff I had never touched. So I feel right at home opening a dozen tabs digging for the right way to code something when I’m stuck.
There is a meme among programmers, people who get paid to code, that their most important skill is googling for code samples. Impostor syndrome is rampant. Don't get discouraged.
Posted by Meursault
Nashville
Member since Sep 2003
25172 posts
Posted on 5/26/22 at 2:10 pm to
Lately to me it seems more and more like “serverless” frameworks, microservice architecture, and cloud technologies are at the forefront. Definitely more in the “Dev-Ops” realm of IT work, but it pays top dollar. My current company is pushing all of us to pursue certifications in AWS and/or Azure.
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