#roadtocode

The current title of this blog is pretty inaccurate. i tend to worry about everything, and coding is no different. I just happened to think of Dr. Strangelove at the time.

I started Fullstack Academy on Monday and realized quickly it would be a long road ahead. So far, we built a simple game using Node, took a test checkpoint on Foundations (our prework for the program), and learned about data structures. In both (or three, depending on how you’re counting them) workshops we’ve done, I’ve encountered roadblocks. In addition, on the Foundations checkpoint, I failed to get a few specs passing while a few people finished with over an hour to spare.

During the times I think about my weaknesses, I need to remember what Nimit told us on the first day of class. 

1)We’re competing against ourselves and no one else. I need to measure my growth instead of being concerned about others.

2) I’m not supposed to feel completely comfortable. Anxiety can push you to work harder.

The human race has managed to climb to the top of the world ecosystem because of our unmatched ability to create and use tools. The personal computer is arguable the most powerful of these tools. It allows us to process theories that otherwise would take lifetimes and make tasks mundane that would otherwise be impossible. In order to harness this power and create the world changing tools of tomorrow, we must learn to communicate with today's computing power untethered. 

Over the last few years, I have developed increasingly complex web applications for various industrial uses. With each new project, I become more enthralled with the "magic" that one can produce with simple instructions starting from a blank screen. I have developed an insatiable appetite for advancing my coding knowledge which is fundamental to creating applications. Active involvement in the global developer community will be crucial for creating the essential tools of our future. This knowledge inspires me to code, and has driven me to take the next step in my journey towards programming mastery by joining Fullstack Academy.

What an awesome weekend.

Just spent the last two days fully immersed in html, css, & js. Thanks to Fullstack Academy, I was able to write a 'game' that allowed me to text multiple phones a question, have a web server listen for a response, and then respond back to the phone if they were correct; really cool to write code and see it come alive.

More and more lately I find myself becoming interested in programming. I don't believe in regrets but I am a bit disappointed that I didn't expose myself more to technology & computer science when I was younger.

I remember learning a little bit of Visual Basic in HS. I used to play those silly online text RPGs that required clicking buttons to attack and heal. I wrote a program that continuously did this for me and within a day I jumped dozens of levels. But one of the admins got suspicious that a user could click the same two buttons for 18 hours straight and questioned me. It wasn't a big deal but inevitably I had to let that program die and unfortunately, my interest in programming went along with it. 

10 years later, I am finally rediscovering its power and importance. Of course, I've always been involved in tech - I speak with developers every day. But it wasn't until I made the move to AN that I started considering becoming one. Of course that destination is way way down the road but I can see it. I can feel it.

Lao-Tzu said [loosely] 'the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step'.