Caleb Curry - Developer Lifestyle, Coding Tutorials, Software Engineering Tips

September 15, 2018September 15, 2018

Worst 3 Programming Languages of 2018

There is a plethora of blogs about the top languages to learn, but what about the languages you should NOT learn? You’ll want to avoid these languages like the plague.

I’m going to be calling out three very popular programming languages that I’d advise against you spending your time learning them or taking a position where you’ll have to spend a lot of time using these languages. Just because something’s popular doesn’t necessarily mean you should try it.

September 8, 2018September 15, 2018

The Complete Guide to Becoming a Node.js Full Stack Web Developer – Quincy Larson / freeCodeCamp

Recently I had the privilege of working with Quincy Larson, the founder of freeCodeCamp. If you don’t know, freeCodeCamp is one of the largest online learning platforms for people to learn to code. With over 2000 hours of free training, people are using freeCodeCamp to learn everything they need to get hired as software engineers or full stack developers. I talked to Quincy to figure out exactly what it takes to become a full stack web developer (this content was edited by me from a video interview and are not direct quotes, with my thoughts in gray).

Full stack web development is when you are in charge of the entire project rather than one particular piece. This means you must be fluent in both front end development and back end development.

What does it take to know the front end for full stack web development?

I definitely recommend learning the fundamentals – HTML, CSS, JavaScript. These have all been around for 20 years. They haven’t fundamentally changed that much. JavaScript started out as a basic, browser-native language created in a week, but is getting better every year as the ECMASsript committee piles on additional features.

September 4, 2018September 15, 2018

6 Steps to Ace the Coding Interview

Code interviews are what every developer either despises or looks forward to (if you know what you’re doing). Why is it that so many people despair at the thought of going through an intense code interview?

This blog will go through my experience with technical interviews and what I’ve done to get through them despite not being a coding wiz.

1. Study Your Face Off

The reality is that most of the fear around coding interviews is rooted in the mere challenge of getting passed the technical questions. It’s like taking the ACT or SAT all over again, but difficulty x1000. Topics include data structures and algorithms, design patterns, distinctions between languages, seemingly ridiculous math problems, frameworks, and more.

September 1, 2018September 15, 2018

freeCodeCamp Database Design Full Course

As many of you know, my technical roots are in databases, SQL, and full stack web development.

I’ve spent a lot of time creating videos on YouTube over databases. For example, I have a 51 part video series on Database Design.

Who or What is freeCodeCamp?

Recently I was reached out to by freeCodeCamp. For those who don’t know, freeCodeCamp is one of the most popular online learning platforms for software development. freeCodeCamp is a nonprofit organization that brings people from noob to developer through their online curriculum.

freeCodeCamp came to me to talk about potential collaborations. I’m happy to say that we came to agreements and decided that we would aggregate my database design series into one long, undivided video! As a result, the Database Design Full Course was born.

August 31, 2018September 15, 2018

Top 3 Programming Languages to Learn Before 2019

Seriously? Another top languages blog? You may be right, but I’ll try to give you some insight as to why I made the selection that I did.

I often find myself a step behind every one else. I’m the one reading the Top Languages of the year blogs as the year is coming to an end. NOT THIS TIME! This blog contains my recommendations for languages to learn before 2019, just to get that upper edge a bit early 😉 (unless you’re reading this in 2019).

August 29, 2018September 15, 2018

5 Reasons Why I’m NOT a Software Engineer

As some of you know, I’ve created videos like A Day in the Life of a (Future) Software Engineer. This obviously implies that I’m not currently a software engineer. It’s an obvious statement to say that not everyone is meant to be a software developer or engineer. At one point, I thought that was me. Let’s talk about why, until now, I never really saw myself being a software engineer. Even now, I’m not a software engineer. Maybe these are the same reasons you’re not, too.

1. I Didn’t Want to be a Software Engineer

Software development and computer science is overwhelming. As I began learning to code, I always had the same problem – Issues would come up and I’d have no idea how to solve them. This was great for my problem solving skills, but it often left me feeling frustrated or defeated.

This was before going to school and getting a Bachelor’s in Computer Science. This was just me doing it for fun in high school and some professionally.

August 28, 2018September 15, 2018

How to Get Your First Coding Job

Job postings are annoying because every job requires 3 years of experience and you can’t get that experience without having a job. What do!?

If you’re reading this post, I’m assuming you’re a complete newbie. You may have done some coding for fun or for school, but now you want to take it to the next level. This blog will share with you the steps I took to get my first software development job.

1. Own the Tech Interview

I’m jumping to the meat of the article because your long-term career success is likely going to come down to your performance on a (relatively) short interview. If you do all of the other things in this article perfectly, but do not have what it takes to impress a hiring manager, you will likely fail at becoming a software developer or software engineer.

August 27, 2018September 15, 2018

The Imposter Syndrome

I can’t code. I’ve been developing for years and still have no idea what I’m doing. John, on the other hand, is like a coding master. Thanks a lot for making me look bad, John. Thanks a lot!

Maybe this is what goes though your mind at work.

We’ve all experienced this feeling. It’s known as the imposter syndrome. The imposter syndrome plagues those around the world. I’ve seen this syndrome a lot in the tech industry. The wealth of knowledge available around software development is crazy. Somehow we’re expected to know everything, or at least that’s how we feel.

I Can’t Code. I’m not Smart Enough.

This feeling overwhelms the developer. This leads to anxiety. We put on a face that shows we know what we are doing, but ultimately our truth will be exposed to the masses. We fear that the day might come… the day when we’re humiliated in front of others regarding our lack of true knowledge.

August 18, 2018September 15, 2018

A Day in the Life of a (Future) Software Engineer

What exactly do I mean by future software engineer? No, I’m not from the future. I am currently working towards becoming a software engineer. I originally developed software as a contractor before I took a role in marketing. Now I’m trying to get back to my roots and get a software engineering position. Not just any development position, though. I want one that is challenging and one that will give me reputable experience.

Because of this, I am preparing for the types of interviews given at the big name software companies (Google, Microsoft, Facebook, Amazon, IBM, Netflix, etc). I documented and recorded my experience for an entire day. The video is at the end.

Because I work full time, I only get so much time to work on my development skills. This is challenging because I feel it takes me a very long time to get anywhere, but it’s good because it’s teaching me not to waste time.

August 18, 2018September 15, 2018

What is Coding? 💻 Part 3

At this point I assume you’ve read Part 1 and Part 2. You’re fairly well acquainted with what coding is and why we do it. You even understand the basics of design and delivery. Now, we’re going talk about branching in software, source control, deployments, and more.