With the Internet of Things allowing everything from cars to kettles to be inter-connected across the globe, the industry has never been more in need of people to bring these elements to life. The demand for programmers has never been higher and it doesn’t look like slowing down any time soon. Whether you want to move into programming as a professional or to supplement skills in your current career choice, learning to code proficiently will come in extremely handy. Coding is part of pretty much everything we do now within the IT Industry, from writing mobile applications or adding Java based content into web pages, to creating whole bespoke projects with a Raspberry PI and your imagination.
Learning to code will enable you to bring to life various projects in a wide variety of industries. From the realization of an idea to the streamlining of an existing one, coding is not reserved just for web designers any more. However, knowing where to start on the programming path and the expected time commitment of doing so can be tricky to gauge. Mastering a particular code type can take thousands of hours, although understanding the basics of coding can be a perfect grounding before choosing which code type to delve into. It is always a good idea to understand why you want to code in the first place – be it simply to make money or to fulfil a drive and passion to be creative, hopefully while making some money along the way.
While learning the theory behind coding can be rather tiresome, as with most things in life it enables you to put together the building blocks, which will then enable you to go on and create, essentially, whatever you want. Putting the various elements together can be extremely rewarding, and in the first instance at least, little programming knowledge is required, as you just need to know what it is that you want to create.
The benefit of starting out like this is that the project does not have to be huge and complicated. In fact, it may just be something to ease the pain of an existing situation in the workplace, as long as you have an interest in what you are trying to achieve. Choosing the right technology is crucial as there are various coding languages out there, and diving straight into the world of C could be extremely off-putting and possibly demoralizing. Starting off with understanding variables and functions is a fantastic way to introduce yourself, as these elements will theoretically be the same whatever you decide to learn, just their design and placement will be different. If you are planning on creating an application for the Apple product suite, then learning Ruby is not going to be of much use, but if you are looking to code for web applications, you have a plethora of framework options including Java, Ruby, PHP and Python.
Take Python as an example, a code that is also used a lot within the IT security and penetration testing world. It has an easy to use syntax, and it can be relatively easy to pick up what is happening when reading through an existing example. A further benefit is that Python has cross-platform support, being perfectly at home on Windows, Mac or Linux operating systems. You can learn more about Python online.
When starting out to learn a coding language you need to know the philosophy behind it, but whichever one you choose, it is strongly suggested that the practical elements be concentrated on. Whenever you are given examples in training material, take the time to type them out in full, even deleting the finished code and re-doing it if required.
Typing the syntax in and making examples work is an important part of the learning process. You will start to see the nuances in the code and how the structure sits together, allowing you to unlock the meaning behind what you are doing. As with most areas of education, there is always a commitment required to get the best from it, and learning to code is no different. The more you are willing to put in, the more you will understand the language you are trying to learn. In fact, one other tip is to go beyond what the tutorials are teaching you, and try to apply an extra element of control. This will require you to read the documentation and fully understand the language you are using, which has two major benefits, in that not only do you become familiar with how the code is structured but it also reinforces the concepts you are trying to learn.
Python can be an ideal starter into the world of programming, and the support community is also an important area to research. Peer review and assistance with coding can be very valuable, but always make sure you have done some work on the problem before asking for any help, then people are more likely to assist. The online world can be an extremely rewarding place to learn a coding language, given the wealth of information available. This area has seen strong growth over the past few years and there is now a wide variety of education options available to teach these technical skills, including the University of Potomac, which offers an associate’s degree online.
Learning a coding language will open up a host of career possibilities and give you a distinct feeling of satisfaction when you finally get to make something for yourself, putting your imagination and creativity into practice. However, don’t think it will be all that easy. While the initial coding elements might be picked up fairly quickly, you really need to go that extra mile and make sure you fully understand and appreciate what it can do for you. With the online resources available to you, there is every chance that this can be a lucrative as well as an enjoyable career choice.
(Photo credits go to Treehouse
Source: CSSmania