In HackYourFuture we focus on web programmming (also known as web development): writing code that creates websites and web applications. Look at the following video to learn about what you'll be doing:
{% hyf-youtube src="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEfuOMzRgXo" %}
The field of programming is broad. As a software developer (a general term for anyone that writes code to create software) there are several career paths you might take. The following are some of the biggest:
- Web. Developing websites and web applications to be accessed and used in the browser
- Mobile. This refers mostly to Android and iOS application development
- Desktop. Every application on your computer has been made by desktop developers
- Data science. Writing custom programs to extract patterns from big piles of data is what this developer does
- Gaming. Game developers work with a variety of designers, artists and testers to realize a video game
- Quality Assurance. Applications need to be tested, and these developers write tests that check for the correct working of any piece of code
Read the following article to read more about different career paths:
Note: once you've chosen a certain track it doesn't mean you can't try out any other! If anything, you are encouraged to explore and see what fits your taste, while building your career :)
You might have heard these terms used interchangeably. They are, however, two different things. A web developer writes code and handles the logical, technical side. A web designer decides how things are going to look and handles the creative side. The following video will explain this more clearly:
{% hyf-youtube src="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDtxF7qSofg" %}
Before we get started with the meat of the module (which is JavaScript), we need to make a small but important distinction: are we going to make websites or web applications? For non-developers, there is no difference but for you as a developer you must know what it is that you'll be producing.
The difference between a website and a web application is the difference between Wikipedia and Facebook. In Facebook, the data shown changes depending on the user. If you are logged in, you'll see different things than that I will. However, on Wikipedia the information will always be the same, for both you and me.
In other words, we're talking about static(= website) versus dynamic (= application) sites: a static site always has the same information and serves only to be information, while a dynamic site changes the data shown to the user depending on who it is and what their interactivity on the page is.
The following video explains this:
{% hyf-youtube src="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sP7fp3cp24" %}
Our own Uday, former HackYourFuture student and now successful web developer also made a video about this:
{% hyf-youtube src="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IH1GGUMdRak" %}
If you want some extra information, have a look at the following link: