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Monday, May 25, 2015

6 months into programming.

I'm 6 months into the world of ruby and coding.  I'm still chugging along, trying to improve a little every single day.  I try to write some code everyday.  If I don't do that, I'm at least reading/studying something about coding.

This weekend, I picked up two more advanced Ruby books to read: Sandi Metz's Practical Object-Oriented Design in Ruby and Eloquent Ruby.  I'm really excited to read more in-depth about OOD now that I've been programming for 6 months... I think I'm ready to dive in deeper and that I'm at a point were I will be able to process the information better than a few months ago.  I've already started reading it...

Never a moment wasted....Reading about OOD on the train.

In general, I keep myself pretty busy.  Outside of work, I'm working through the JavaScript courses on Treehouse.  I started with the absolutely most basic ones, so it's a bit of repetition of things such as loops, arrays, etc, but the way I see it, practice is practice and solidly understanding these fundamental concepts is not harmful.  I'm still studying Dutch.  I finished up my Dutch course, and I'm continuing to practice on my commute using the Duolingo app. 

I've been tackling larger tasks at work, building bigger features rather than small modifications on existing features.  I'm getting more comfortable and knowledgeable on some different gems that are used frequently like Interactors and Serializers.  It sometimes feels like I'm a weird mix of knowledge.  Some things that are new, I find easy to tackle and can handle without much guidance, I just kinda know what to do and how to write the tests as I go to guide my coding.  And other tasks, I don't really know where to begin without a good bit of coaching.  My brain feels a bit jumbled and unsorted with all the new information I'm trying to add to it in a fairly short amount of time.  I like the mix of things I get to build, and I like that I split my days between 2 different projects.

Thursday, May 14, 2015

Learning Javascript....

The social networking of coding community is an amazing part of being a software dev.  I have really enjoyed connecting with new folks through emails and twitter.  It's funny that I've also gotten in touch with 2 former colleagues that have or are in the process of making the transition from scientists to software devs!  It's been great to share tips about learning resources and experiences so far.

Since I've very interested in learning JavaScript, jQuery, Angular, etc right now, one of those colleagues who has learned JS himself suggested I check out Treehouse for their JS resources.  So I did.  I have a couple months to check it out for free, so I started today on their Javascript Basics course.  I got 1/2 through the coursework today.  It's extremely basic stuff right now... beginning syntax, using the JS console in the browser, variables, etc.  They have a lot of resources from JS to jQuery to NodeJS to AngularJS, so I'm excited to check it out and see how their material progesses.  One thing that really bugs me with a lot of the online resources is that the coding takes place in their own browser based workspace environment rather than locally.  I do not like that.  I guess it is a ok way to learn the basics, but it bugs me to not have a record of my work and progress locally or on github.

I haven't studied too much Ruby/Rails outside of work this week.  I'm pretty immersed in it during the day since it's my full-time job, so it's nice to break that up with learning JS outside of work.  I have had some moments lately where things that previously did not make a lot of sense getting clearer in my mind and I feel good about it... I can see that I'm making progress.

Saturday, May 9, 2015

Slow going progress.

I'm slowly still working on Ruby/Rails mastery and trying to add some AngularJS and jQuery to that as well.  I've only been working on Ruby/Rails at my job during the week and trying to do some online coursework on AngularJS during the weekends.  My study pace has slowed down the past few weeks because I'm also making time for running and freeletics and trying to find a flat so we can finally move to Amsterdam permanently.

I've been super encouraged over the past few weeks by other aspiring devs out there in the world!  I've gotten messages and tweets from folks that are also working their butts off to become software developers.  It's very humbling to get messages from others that say I'm an inspiration and motivator for them on their own journeys.  I appreciate the fact that others are taking time to contact me, and I love the community of coders worldwide.

I'm glad to give inspiration or advice to others out there!  I love chatting with others in similar situations.  But, I feel it's necessary to clarify my current skills levels.  I'm very much a Junior Ruby developer.  I can figure some stuff out and generally understand tasks set before me, but struggle with how exactly to write code to build out some features.  I need guidance often from my boss, an expert Rails developer.  I hunt google & stackoverflow A LOT.  I know it sounds awesome that after studying & interning for the past 5 months that a got a job as a dev (which it is), but please realize that it wasn't some magical turning point in my coding abilities when I got a job or that I'm some coding rockstar.  I am not.  I struggle everyday, just on new things than the day before.  I am painfully aware of my inadequacies.   I've been working from home for the past 2 weeks with minimal support from senior devs and that has been a struggle...No one around to talk through things I don't really understand or get guidance on problems.  That's definitely added to my frustation with my jr skill level lately.  I sometimes wonder what the hell I'm doing, but I'm hopeful that in a few months, that my skills and confidence will grow a lot more.

I really like learning another new language (jQuery & AngularJS) so far.  It's challenging to think in a new language and learn its context.  I think it is helping me solidify RoR concepts as I push my brain to think in a different language.

Saturday, May 2, 2015

Week's Progress. Starting slowly on jQuery/JS...

Another week, more coding.  I completed Codecademy's jQuery course and started their AngularJS course this week.  When I first started coding, I spent a couple days playing around and learning a little jQuery.  It was very confusing and weird looking to me back then.  Now, it seems manageable to learn and understand (eventually).  It's also nice to look at something besides Ruby.  It makes me realize that I definitely can tell I've gotten more comfortable with code since I started out.

May 1 was my first day as a full-time employee and not an intern.  Didn't feel much different. :-)  I've been working at home for the past week.  I think it's just such a cool thing that I can do that.  I've never had a career where I can do that.  (...You can't exactly do that as an analytical chemist.)  I've been taking advantage of it, replacing my morning commute with a run a couple times this week.   Studying coding full-time for the past 6 months, I didn't feel like I had the time to exercise.  I had to make one or the other a priority and I choose coding.  But now, I feel I'm in a position that I can refocus and make some time for myself to stay healthy and in shape.  So, I am trying to get back into an exercise routine.