In this episode we discuss our experience using WordPress, why it might be a good tool for those just starting out with development (or freelancing), and how to learn to this popular skill.

Sharpening the tools: Resources for Flexbox
What the Flexbox (free video course)
Flexbox Cheat Sheet
 
What is WordPress?
WordPress.org is the open-source, customizable Content Management System we focus on in this episode.  It is the most popular CMS in the world and is used by nearly 75 million websites, and powers more than 25% of the world’s websites (statistics from Forbes).Wordpress.com is a web hosting service.

Where to learn more about WordPress?

* WordPress.org Documentation
Lynda.com
Digging into WordPress ebook

 

Episode 17 - ImPress with WordPress

A podcast about building, maintaining, and surviving a career in software engineering.

Technology

Tech News

Podcasting

Gadgets

Software How-To

In this episode we’ll be talking about different considerations when building an application outside of your day job. We’ll talk about gathering requirements, choosing a tech stack, and setting the right expectations with your client.

“Sharpening the Tools” – the section of the show where we discuss what tools we’re using, concepts we’re learning, and generally how we are continuing our learning in software development.
————————–
Erin:
Making progress on the Python track. Finished the Lists course and workshop on __dunder__ (double under) main. Currently working on Object-Oriented Python.
Spent a couple of weeks being a Teacher’s Assistant in NSS’s Jumpstart class.
Also, got a job promotion to “Software Engineer”, so I suppose I’m officially no longer a “junior” developer.
Dave:
Followed a dotnet core tutorial for a simple Todo App, and built the Angular UI to integrate with it. Excited about Angular Testing workshop that work is sending me to later this week!
 
“Opening the Toolbox”
Today we’re discussing things to consider when getting started on a side project.
Considerations:

* What are we going to build? How to approach it?
* Talk with stakeholders about Requirements
* Plan for getting feedback from them throughout the project
* Tech stack
* Hosting
* Deployment platform (Heroku, Digital Ocean, etc.)
* Cost? Budget?
* Timeline & availability for those working on the project
* Splitting up the work
* Tracking the project

* Use Trello or a similar project tracking tool



 
References
==========
 
Extra Links
===========
 
Enjoy the podcast? Consider supporting our work by becoming a patron on our Patreon page. Every little bit helps cover our basic expenses and keep the show going.
You can also donate to our JDT PayPal page.
 
You can reach us at helloworld@juniordevelopertoolbox.com
Facebook: Junior Developer Toolbox
Twitter: @JrDevToolbox
Instagram: JuniorDeveloperToolbox
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/juniordevelopertoolbox
PayPal Donation Pool: https://paypal.me/pools/c/86X3cA2N3O
 
www.juniordevelopertoolbox.com

Episode 39 - Starting a Project on the Side

In this episode we’ll be talking about popular languages in 2019, some common traits they share, and deciding which ones to learn next.

“‘Sharpening the Tools’ is the section of the show where we discuss what tools we’re using, concepts we’re learning, and generally how we are continuing our learning in software development.”
“Sharpening the Tools”
————————–
Erin:
Finished with JavaScript Objects. Started digging into Python a bit just because.
Dave:
Office Olympics, remembering to take care of your physical self.
 
“Opening the Toolbox”
Episode Outline
===============
According a TechRepublic article, here are the 10 most popular programming languages as of December 2018:

* Java
* C
* Python
* C++
* Visual Basic .NET
* C#
* JavaScript
* PHP
* SQL
* Objective-C

We wanted to take a cursory dive into some of the different languages if you’re curious about them or trying to figure out which one you want to learn next.
 
Erin has experience with: JavaScript, C#, SQL, Python (minimal), and Java
Dave has experience with: JavaScript, (minimal) PHP
 
Lots of languages are based C in some ways, borrowing some ideas and syntax.
 
Compiled vs. Interpreted languages –

* Interpreted means executed directly – JavaScript, Python, PHP
* Compiled means it gets translated first (into machine code or similar) before it’s executed – C, C++, C#, Java, Objective-C

 
Static vs. Dynamic (Timing)

* Static typed languages are those in which type checking is done at compile-time
* Dynamic typed languages are those in which type checking is done at run-time

 
Weakly Typed vs. Strongly typed (Behavior of variable types)

* Strongly typed means a variable will not be automatically converted from one type to another. (explicit conversion is required)
* Weakly typed means variables can be implicitly coerced to unrelated types

 
Strongly typed languages: Must use explicit type declarations when declaring variables

* Examples: Java, C#

 
Dynamically typed languages:

* Examples: JavaScript, Python

 
JavaScript, Java, and C# are popular Enterprise languages and are very well established.
While Java and C# are server side languages, JavaScript is both a client side and server side language (Node.js).
 
Python and R are popular for Data Science
 
PHP: Hypertext processor: an early web language that’s pretty widespread throughout the internet, especially due to use of popular CMSs like WordPress.
 
Objective C

* A general-purpose, object-oriented programming language that adds Smalltalk-style messaging to the C programming language. … It was selected as the main language used by NeXT for its NeXTSTEP operating system, from which macOS and iOS are derived.

 
10 Best Programming Languages to Learn in 2019 (for Job & Future):
https://hackr.io/blog/best-programming-languages-to-learn-2019-jobs-future
 
References
==========
Top 10 Programming Languages as of December 2018:
https://www.techrepublic.com/article/10-popular-programming-languages-developers-should-learn-in-2019/
 
10 Best Programming Languages to Learn in 2019 (for Job & Future):
...

Episode 37 - LOL: Lexicon of Languages

In this episode we talk to Jonathan Edwards about final bootcamp projects and presentations, job interviews, and landing your first developer job!

Jonathan is a recent graduate of NSS cohort 27. Previously, he received his BS in Communication Advertising from UT Knoxville and moved to Nashville four years ago to pursue music. He developed an interest in web development while working in digital marketing, after which he decided to enroll in NSS’s full stack software bootcamp. He’s a new employee at naviHealth, and we’re talking to him today about what the post-NSS job hunt was like and the process of landing the job.
“Sharpening the Tools”
—————————
“‘Sharpening the Tools’ is the section of the show where we discuss what tools we’re using, concepts we’re learning, and generally how we are continuing our learning in software development.”
Erin:
JavaScript Objects refresher tutorial. And dreaming about JavaScript Objects?
Dave:
Meet-up presentation on Impostor Syndrome – working toward my 2019 goal of submitting a talk to a tech conference.
Jonathan:
Angular tutorials, and finishing a React app
 
*Shoutouts*
We’d like to give a shoutout to Brandon, our newest patron on Patreon. Thanks so much for your support!
 
“Opening the Toolbox”
Episode Outline
===============

* Tell us a little bit about your background.

* From Knoxville, TN. Studied Advertising at UT. Moved to Nashville for music


* How did you get interested in web/software development?

* Always had an interest in learning how to code, but kept coming up with reasons as to why I couldn’t do it
* Was looking for ways to grow digital marketing skill-set when I came across web development and web design.
* Took some online classes to teach myself some basics and fell in love with it.
* Decided this is where I belonged and decided to attend NSS to make sure I was learning the right material in the right way


* Can you describe your overall NSS experience? Do you feel adequately prepared for a junior level developer position?

* Absolutely, attending NSS was the best decision I’ve ever made.
* The second half of the course is spent working on teams doing weeklong sprints with planning, standups, retros, etc
* The biggest thing was learning how to learn, because there will always be something new to learn in this field.
* Another big plus of NSS is all of the extra help they give us outside of the classroom, with resume writing, interview prep, etc


* Were there other paths in development that you considered?

* Originally wanted to do more front-end focused work, but after going through the back-end of the course and getting experience with C# .NET, SQL, etc., doing full-stack work is where I see myself longterm. I like different parts about both front-end and back-end development and look forward to using both in my career


* Can you tell us about your capstone projects? What languages/technologies did you learn?

* Front-end capstone written in React using Bloomer and Bulma for styling

* App called progressions, goal is to help beginning guitar players write better-sounding chord progressions
* Users select the key they want to write their song in and are show the 7 different major and minor chords that make up that key
* Users can press keys 1-7 on their keyboard to hear audio of each chord and write a chord progression that will sound good without ever having to pick up an instrument or even know how to play a guitar
* Users then select their 4 chords they want to use to write a song and are shown a chord chart of how to play it on a real guitar.

Episode 36 - The Bootcamp Experience: Landing the Job with Jonathan Edwards

In this episode we have a special guest! Lesley Boyd is deep in the thick of her Nashville Software School bootcamp, and is here to talk about her experience. She has a background in corporate roles, from supply chain management and business analyst. In her words, always “on the edge of IT” but she has now taken the plunge and is about 4 months into the NSS program! Welcome Lesley!

“‘Sharpening the Tools’ is the section of the show where we discuss what tools we’re using, concepts we’re learning, and generally how we are continuing our learning in software development.”
Erin:
Fixed my website! After finally being contacted by a real person from CloudFlare, they pointed out that I had multiple A records pointing to different IP addresses in my DNS settings, which could cause problems such as the one I was experiencing.
I found an article on Github with different IP addresses (of the host server) that I should point my A records to, and violá, my website resolves successfully.
Dave:
Chugging along with my Angular tutorial, I’ve been learning about building custom Directives and Services and how to use / inject them!
 
Lesley:
Went to a data science meetup, and discovered https://pybit.es/
 
“Opening the Toolbox”
 
Today we’re talking with Lesley Boyd about her experience at Nashville Software School’s bootcamp. We’ll discuss her decision to go into the bootcamp, things she’s learning, and challenges she has faced, and her aspirations after the program is finished.
 

* Tell us a little bit about your background.
* How did you get interested in web/software development?
* Can you tell us about how you made the decision to go to NSS?
* Were there other paths in development that you considered?
* You’ve completed the front end segment, right? Can you tell us about your capstone project?
* Tell us about your cohort, is it a tight knit group, or …? Are a lot of them in the same career phase as you, or is it varied?
* How does it break down in terms of solo work, group work, access to instructors?
* What are you most excited about the bootcamp? Anything you’re worried or apprehensive about?
* Do you have a sense of the kind of role you’re interested in after you complete the program? Front-end? Back-end? UX/UI Design? Web / mobile?
* Have you thought about what kind of industry you want to work in? Fin-tech, healthcare, building websites for an agency, etc.
* Is there anything you wish you had known about the program before you started?
* Any other goals or things you hope to learn in the program?

 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lesleyaboyd/
Twitter: @boyd1lesley
Personal site: https://www.lesleyaboyd.com/
 
References
==========
https://pybit.es/
http://nashvillesoftwareschool.com/
 
Enjoy the podcast? Consider supporting our work by becoming a patron on our Patreon page. Every little bit helps cover our basic expenses and keep the show going.
You can also donate to our JDT PayPal page.
 
You can reach us at helloworld@juniordevelopertoolbox.com
Facebook: Junior Developer Toolbox
Twitter: @JrDevToolbox
Instagram: JuniorDeveloperToolbox
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/juniordevelopertoolbox
<a href="http://www.

Episode 35 - The Bootcamp Experience: In the Trenches with Lesley Boyd



In this episode we’ll be talking about the planning that goes into attending a software bootcamp, comparing different programs, and factors in making the right decision. 

We have a special guest today, Sarah Weatherbee is here to talk about her experience with the Nashville Software School Jumpstart program. Sarah has a background in journalism, which she obtained while studying and working abroad in Beirut, Lebanon. We met through discussing her interest in podcasting, and discovered she was attending NSS’s Jumpstart program at time.
 
Sharpening the Tools’ is the section of the show where we discuss what tools we’re using, concepts we’re learning, and generally how we are continuing our learning in software development.
 
Erin: 
Wrestling with my personal website and CloudFlare.
 
Dave: 
Working through a ‘Complete Guide to Angular’ tutorial on Udemy
 
Sarah:
NSS Pre-Work:
Smarter Way to Javascript book
https://internetingishard.com/
 
Cool news! We were recognized on FeedSpot’s Top 10 Software Engineering Podcasts You Must Subscribe & Listen to in 2019! We are #7 out of 8 on the list (not sure what happened to 9 & 10?). Thanks for the shout out, guys!
 
 
“Opening the Toolbox” (main episode)
Today we’re talking with Sarah Weatherbee about her decision to attend Nashville Software School’s bootcamp. We’ll discuss her thought process, pre work and preparation, and how it’s going for her so far. Questions we ask:

Tell us a little bit about your background.
How did you get interested in web/software development?
Can you tell us about the Nashville Software School Jumpstart you did, and how the experience was for you?
You’re starting the full time evening program at NSS very soon, right? What process did you go through for making the decision?
Were there other paths in development that you considered?
Can we ask about the tuition for the program? How did that affect your decision? (Opportunity Tuition Program)
How is your pre work coming? Did your jumpstart help with this, or are you learning anything new?
What are you most excited about the bootcamp? Anything you’re worried or apprehensive about?
Any other goals or things you hope to learn in the program?

Sarah mentioned the Code for Nashville meetup, for those of you in Nashville who’d like to check it out.
How can listeners get in touch with Sarah?
She’s on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-weatherbee-a518556/ and Instagram at: @sweatherbeez
 
Enjoy the podcast? Consider supporting our work by becoming a patron on our Patreon page. Every little bit helps cover our basic expenses and keep the show going.
You can also donate to our JDT PayPal page.
You can reach us at helloworld@juniordevelopertoolbox.com
Facebook: Junior Developer Toolbox
Twitter: @JrDevToolbox
Instagram: JuniorDeveloperToolbox
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/juniordevelopertoolbox
 

Episode 17 - ImPress with WordPress

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