Done Codecademy, what now?

[Diddums]

Morning

I just finished off Codecademy's most basic course yesterday which covered the basics of HTML and CSS. The next suggested part covers Jquery and JavaScript, but is this the way I should be going? I would've thought that I should focus more on what I've learned already before going into other languages to prevent me confusing myself, or am I looking at this wrong?

If anyone has any ideas on what to do next, I'd greatly appreciate it as although I thoroughly enjoyed the first part of Codecademy's course, I don't really know where to go from here.

 

[peterwalkley]

Go back to your turbo pascal days and think what sort of programs you used to write and then think how could you do those in html and css. Short answer is that you can't

Javascript is a programming language in the same vein as TP. JQuery is a helper library that will make it a lot easier for your javascript to interact with the html and css work you have been learning.

 

[Diddums]

Thanks for your reply.

I don't know what to do though, I don't feel confident in my HTML abilities at all, yet Codecademy is telling me to start with other things. Surely it'd make more sense to seek out more advancement in HTML before beginning on something completely different?

 

[Zefan]

I have very little knowledge on this, however from what I do know is that javascript, html and css go hand in hand. As a result it is probably more sensible to learn them together, which will make you use them together, as opposed to learning one completely and then trying to bolt another on later. It's akin to learning how to drive an automatic fully, then having to learn manual gear changing later - probably best to just learn simultaneously.

 

[GravyMonster]

I agree with the above. Continue on with the JS tutorials as it's a vital part of front-end web development these days (and becoming more so for back-end too, but that's another thread entirely).

Also, make sure you ground yourself in JS principles before learning a framework such as jQuery.

 

[Chaos]

There is a popular course on Udemy you might be interested in where you build 14 websites. its £157 but you can use the coupon code - SUMMER1001
and get it for £8

https://www.udemy.com/complete-web-developer-course/?dtcode=wclz7LB2ZqaO

 

[Hutchy]

It depends on what you want to do with your HTML and CSS knowledge. If the basic courses have covered enough to make something of your own, then go ahead and do that and get some more practise in.

If it was me I'd be looking at my ultimate goal and figuring out where I need to progress to achieve it. If it was to build modern and responsive websites for sale then you'll need to take your HTML and CSS knowledge and apply it to CMS based platforms. This will lead to some basic PHP learning, learning the CMS framework you chose to create a site and a little bit of javascript to do basic tasks such as form validation or other little bits and bobs.

If you were looking for a job in the industry, you might start to think about looking at bootstrap / foundation to cover the responsive aspect of HTML and CSS, which will lead on to SASS / LESS and ultimately ways to deal with your workflow such as gulp / grunt.

 

[mark66]

There is a popular course on Udemy you might be interested in where you build 14 websites. its £157 but you can use the coupon code - SUMMER1001
and get it for £8

https://www.udemy.com/complete-web-developer-course/?dtcode=wclz7LB2ZqaO

Bargain! Thanks for that, be meaning to do one of these online courses to fill in the gaps for ages.

 

[Biz.Kid09]

Thanks for your reply.

I don't know what to do though, I don't feel confident in my HTML abilities at all, yet Codecademy is telling me to start with other things. Surely it'd make more sense to seek out more advancement in HTML before beginning on something completely different?

Could start to look at coding some HTML websites to practice your skills whilst also learning more as you go a long, but also do the Js and JQuery on the side to just add more functionality to your site(s)?

 

[Diddums]

Thanks folks. That Udemy course looks great, I'm going to enrol for it right now!

I'll give that a go and see where it takes me. I've got a very specific idea in mind for a website but the more research I do into it, it would appear that I need to learn everything from smoke signals to the Matrix code


Still, loving this coding stuff. It's great to do it as a hobby with no pressure. Thanks for the replies all, I'll be sure to pick your brains again when I can't figure out how to do the next stupid thing

 

[Sauced Apples]

Me too, time for some brushing up!

 

[SynologyHosting]

There is a popular course on Udemy you might be interested in where you build 14 websites. its £157 but you can use the coupon code - SUMMER1001
and get it for £8

https://www.udemy.com/complete-web-developer-course/?dtcode=wclz7LB2ZqaO

Thanks for the Link just had to pick it up.

Am trying to teach myself HTML / CSS / JS as well as some backend stuff.

If there are any other udemy courses that you guys recommend please let me know, would be very interested. (Hopefully while I can still get them for £8 each)

I'm in the same boat as Diddums, Done code academy, also did 14 days free trial at TeamTreeHouse did enjoy doing their course. And now I'm confused as to what to do from here.

After completing the udemy course I will try going solo and recreating pages / creating my own pages and see how I get on with that.

 

[tonym]

Just as a heads up, that coupon has expired now, but you can use EXPLORE1010 for the same discount.

 

[Sauced Apples]

Udemy emailed me this code for 75% off after buying the above course, the course I used it on gave me 92% off with the coupon :S

Emailed on 1st June 2015 IN5PIRE75

 

[Chaos]

The guy that done that course has recently launched a Kickstater for an android development course if anyones interested.

http://kck.st/1FXZmVc

 

[Scotty123]

Just as a heads up, that coupon has expired now, but you can use EXPLORE1010 for the same discount.

Just used this. Expires today, good timing haha. Thanks <3.

I've been wanting to learn web development. I'm a C++/c# programmer mainly and know some php and mySQL. So much more to web development and I think it's a useful thing to know, as well as interesting.

 

[dowie]

have you taken a look at udacity:

the below 'nanodegree' would seem to compliment what you're doing

https://www.udacity.com/course/front-end-web-developer-nanodegree--nd001

Learn the fundamentals of how the web works and gain a working knowledge of the three foundational languages that power each and every website: HTML, CSS and JavaScript. This Nanodegree will provide a guided, efficient path for you to learn to build beautiful, responsive websites optimized for security and performance. You’ll see the efforts of your work with each click of the browser’s refresh button!

By the end of the Nanodegree you'll have built a diverse portfolio of projects to show employers. You'll also have the opportunity to prepare for your new career with reviews of your online presence (resume, LinkedIn, portfolio), prepare for interviews, take part in workshops covering topics like networking and salary negotiation as well as take part in a new program facilitating job placement.

In the Nanodegree program, you’ll build six portfolio-worthy projects. Depending on your knowledge and skill level, you can either learn the necessary skills through our supporting courses, or jump into the projects directly. A summary of each of these projects, as well as links to their supporting courses are included in the sections below.

PROJECT Build a Portfolio Site

You will replicate a design mockup in HTML and CSS. You will develop a responsive website that will display images, descriptions and links to each of the portfolio projects you will complete throughout the course of the Front-End Web Developer Nanodegree.

Prepare for this project with: Intro to HTML and CSS, Responsive Web Design Fundamentals, and Responsive Images

PROJECT Interactive Resume

You will develop an interactive resume application that reads your resume content from a JSON file and dynamically displays that content within a provided template. You will use objects, functions, conditionals, and control structures to compose the content that will display on the resume.

Prepare for this project with: JavaScript Basics and Intro to jQuery

PROJECT Classic Arcade Game Clone

You will be provided with visual assets and a game loop engine; using these tools you must add a number of entities to the game including the player characters and enemies to recreate the classic arcade game Frogger.

Prepare for this project with: Object-Oriented JavaScript and HTML5 Canvas

PROJECT Website Optimization

You will optimize a provided website with a number of optimization- and performance-related issues so that it achieves a target PageSpeed score and runs at 60 frames per second.

Prepare for this project with: Website Performance Optimization

PROJECT Neighborhood Map

You will develop a single-page application featuring a map of your neighborhood or a neighborhood you would like to visit. You will then add additional functionality to this application, including: map markers to identify popular locations or places you’d like to visit, a search function to easily discover these locations, and a listview to support simple browsing of all locations. You will then research and implement third-party APIs that provide additional information about each of these locations (such as StreetView images, Wikipedia articles, Yelp reviews, etc).

Prepare for this project with: Intro to AJAX and JavaScript Design Patterns

PROJECT Feed Reader Testing

In this project you are given a web-based application that reads RSS feeds. The original developer of this application clearly saw the value in testing, they've already included Jasmine and even started writing their first test suite! Unfortunately, they decided to move on to start their own company and we're now left with an application with an incomplete test suite. That's where you come in.

Prepare for this project with: JavaScript Testing


You’ll host all your projects on GitHub and make regular commits. If you haven’t learned version control yet, use our latest course on the topic: How to Use Git and GitHub


We will be periodically reviewing the Front-End Nanodegree curriculum - both courses and projects - and making adjustments based on student and industry feedback. We will notify active students working toward the Nanodegree about any effects updates may have on the degree requirements.

obviously it costs $$$ but the courses are put together with industry partners like google...

https://www.udacity.com/courses/all

alternatively you can just do the courses yourself for free (no certificate for this but perfect if it is just for knowledge, also given that you've already got some knowledge in this area you can probably skip quickly through some of the initial content). Perhaps another option is to do the courses without registering then just register for a couple of months to complete the projects and get the qualification + career service*

*afaik they try to help you with jobs too, employers recruit from the courses and they'll help you with you CV, linked in profile etc..

 

[dowie]

There is a popular course on Udemy you might be interested in where you build 14 websites. its £157 but you can use the coupon code - SUMMER1001
and get it for £8

https://www.udemy.com/complete-web-developer-course/?dtcode=wclz7LB2ZqaO

that looks pretty awesome in terms of gaining practical knowledge

 

[Diddums]

That's a good link, cheers dowie.

 

[HalfBakedJake]

I would use your new HTML and CSS skills to create a basic website layout. Then look for some neat things you can do within the site you are building.

For example how to create some buttons with great hover features.

It's best to get yourself very familiar with the code you have learned before you move on. Just like learning french. You need to speak the language fluently before learning anything else.