Tag: student

Web Designer vs Web Developer

Carl Setzer
apple monitors

Someone recently pointed out that I should label my studies “web design” not “web development”. Now, this was not meant as a troll! But to better describe what I’m studying, and what I offer.

My coursework does NOT dive DEEP into code. Edmonds College does offer an associate’s degree with a similar title that does. That program includes two quarters of Java programming after the Introduction to Programming course I took. In addition, that program covers the same website coding elements I did: JavaScript, jQuery, and PHP. My program spends that time diving into design (two quarters of design). The design courses were what made this program interesting to me. I love studying design!

So, I’m quite happy with labelling myself a web designer vs a web developer. Actually, finding an accurate label for what I love, what I offer and what I “bring to the table” is exactly what I want. I don’t want potential employers to think I have a skill-set I don’t have. That doesn’t end well for anyone.

Skill Acquisition

Carl Setzer

I was chatting with one of the baristas at my favorite local coffee shop earlier today. I like how she described her current, I guess I’d call it “focus”: the acquisition of skills. She’s gained barista skills, store manager skills, she’s now working on hair-dressing skills. There was far more to that, but you get the drift.

This describes much of my career life. I’ve loved learning, new skills, new business types, new business functions (you can see the range of work I’ve done over on my resume). I relish breadth of knowledge. However, I did get to a point where I wanted depth, to become an expert in something. Much of my mental effort over the past few years has been seeking that something.

As I love so much, and focus requires denying, saying “no”, this has been a painful challenge for me. But I’m making progress. I do have something of a focus now. Something.

When I started down this web-development path, I assumed that at the end I’d be good at making websites and, well, then I’d make websites. Oh, my goodness, no…it’s been far more than that. I’ve studied data systems, systems analysis and design, graphic design, programming, project managment…so many things, and I would argue I have explored databases and system analysis in more depth than I have HTML, CSS and JavaScript. So, even while refining my focus, my opportunities have expanded.

Back to my friend, and to anyone else out there in a similar place: there’s value in focus. Maybe, to start, just start compiling a list of what you want to study/learn. First, having a list is the first step in a plan. And having a written list makes it much more likely to happen. Also, you’ll start to see patterns. Within that will be the first inklings of a focus.

I’m working on the same. I’ve started journaling on paper again (I’m using a Leuchtturm 1917, if you’re interested). And that’s where I’m working on this sort of thing. Paper engages the brain differently, which I find important. It also slows me down (I type pretty darn fast). Right now, I’m focusing on the kinds of work I want to do. Do I want to code? Do I want to design? Do I want to dig into data? Manage projects? Figuring out these elements, I can then craft a plan to achieve them and build the next phase of my career.

Have you done anything like this? What do you think of this notion? Let me know!

Student Life Update

Carl Setzer
gray laptop computer showing html codes in shallow focus photography

One of the more interesting phenomena I’ve observed: the weird pivots between emotions. Late last week and earlier this week, I struggled with some basic concepts in database structure and math that left me feeling like I had no business pursuing this web developer thing. Then there’s today where I blast out two quizzes, that I budgeted an hour each for in just under 20 minutes. With perfect scores, mind you. So, right now, I feel a bit like superman. I’m sure I’ll be humbled again soon, though.

On another note: I’m changing the focus of this blog. Earlier this year I shifted my haiku and other poetry away from Questionsall.net to here, CarlSetzer.com. There were a few reasons, mainly the ads on Questionsall were annoying me. Plus, I thought it would be nice to only blog in one place. Well, a few folks let me know that it was a bit of a confusing muddle. And, as I approach the end of my ATA efforts, I need to give some thought to my “brand”. This site is my most powerful tool regarding SEO. It’s beenbtop of fold when you search “Carl Setzer” for quite some time. I want those HR folks researching me to view what I’ve been doing with my education. Plus, I plan to use this site as a way to generate freelance work.

Thus, I intend to move my poetry back to Questionsall.net. As a side project, that seems fitting. I don’t want haiku, etc, to be my career. Quite the opposite: I want it to remain free of the stress of production. It’s what I turn to in order to relieve stress.

And this site will focus on my journey through my web development studies and how I’m integrating all that into my overall life. My professional brand, so to speak.

Hopefully my little experiment wasn’t too jarring for you. I’ll work on a clear vision as I move forward.

Thank you all for your support and for reading my missives. It means a great deal to me.

My Web Developer Evolution

Carl Setzer
List of Programming Languages

I was just thinking about the programming languages and environments I’ve studied over the past year.

  • The first one was Visual Basic. I have a basic understanding. Not sure how much additional effort I should invest in expanding these skills.
  • Though there’s some argument about whether HTML and CSS are programming languages. I’ll accept that they aren’t languages, but I’ve studied them, and they’re critical to web development. I expect I’m at an intermediate level with these.
  • The last of the web development trinity is Javascript, which is a true programming language and a lot of fun. I don’t know anywhere near what I want to, and so will be continuing in that.
  • With javascript, this quarter I’m studying frameworks, and I’ve been focused on jQuery. I really like how much cleaner it is than straight javascript. I’m just over a month in and enjoying this. Looking forward to continuing to build my skills.
  • Also, this quarter, I’m studying PHP. This has been a lot of fun. This language makes so much more sense to me, at an intuitive level than javascript.  As I’m only 4 weeks in, I’m looking forward to growing that knowledge.
  • At other points in my life, I’ve explored Java and C/C++. This knowledge is quite old and was very basic even in my hey-day. I’ve also explored Fortran and Cobol, but that really just entailed reading some books. If I have the opportunity, I want to explore these deeper.
  • I’ll be diving into tools like SQL and MySQL in the next few quarters. I also want to add Python to that list.

This is just my programming journey. I’ve also explored tools like Access, Excel, Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Visio. All of this, for me, is fun. I must be a nerd.

PHP and WordPress

Carl Setzer
phplogo

This quarter I’m studying PHP at Edmonds College. Many of my classes have a cumulative project that we build towards over the quarter. For this class, we’ll be creating plugins for WordPress. I’m pretty excited as I’ve used WordPress for years and deepening my knowledge will be fantastic. Hopefully, I’ll get enough knowledge to come up with creative ideas.

 

Documenting Everything

Carl Setzer
code-as-documentation

Currently, I’m taking the second quarter in a two-quarter series on Systems Analysis. One of the lists my text presented is “7 Design Habits”. (side note: I appreciate the reference/nod to Steven Covey’s 7 Habits Of Highly Successful People). I like the list, so I wrote it out on a post-it and have it on the wall next to my desk.

  1. Understand the business
  2. Maximize graphical effectiveness
  3. Think like a user
  4. Use models and prototypes
  5. Focus on usability
  6. Invite feedback
  7. Document everything

I value each of these. While maximizing graphical effectiveness has been an area of interest for quite some time (it’s the roots of my interest in design), what really speaks to me right now is “document everything”.

I’ve lived by this mantra for years. I try to drop everything into Evernote*, for instance. Articles I’ve read, people I’ve met, things told to me. This collection of notes is but one element of documenting everything. Knowing where I got ideas is pretty important. But this notion means more. To me, it implies a certain thoughtfulness to the documentation. Sure, it’s great to have dozens of pages of random notes. But “documentation” is organized. Not just links to articles, or pages of feedback, but also analysis, explanations of the “why” within choices. Being able to reference, at some random point in the future, how we got to a certain decision can be crucial when evaluating a problem and determining a response. Also, in a more negative vein, it can show due diligence in a lawsuit.

So, yeah, my propensity for collecting information has saved me plenty of anguish over the years (“you never told me that!” “well, here’s the email I sent to you with your reply”). It’s also been helpful to friends and colleagues (“hey Carl, who was that guy from Facebook we met with last year”. Yeah, it’ll be in my notes). I appreciate the reinforcement that this is a best practice that’s valued at least by textbook writers.

*this link to Evernote is an affiliate link. If you subscribe to the service, I will get rewarded with a free year of the service. 

Looking At Laptops

Carl Setzer
Apple M1 Logo

My main laptop right now is an OLLLDDD MacBook Pro. It’s nearly 10 years old, and it’s starting to really show its age. And we do have need of a laptop.  So, it’s time to think of a replacement.

I’ve been very pleased with what I’ve seen of Apple’s new M1 chip. Also, my wife is most comfortable with Mac OS. And I pride myself on being OS agnostic. Additionally, one of the things I’m considering once I’m done at Edmonds college is UW’s Interactive Design program. They require a laptop and, though they don’t mandate a MacBook, they do highly recommend one. So, with all of that, I’m leaning towards an M1 Macbook Air. I still need to explore more, though. Due diligence and all that. Fortunately, I do get a student discount.

So, I’ve done a bit of research already. Check out these videos below. The first is a review of the MacBook while the second talks about the M1 chip compared to Windows PCs. Both point towards the M1 and Macbook.

Some Thoughts 2 Weeks Into Winter Quarter

Carl Setzer2 Comments
Student

It’s been a busy couple of weeks. Winter quarter started January 4th. This round, I’m taking 3 classes: one I’ve already talked about, “Web IV Joomla! and SEO”. I’m also taking Systems Analysis, and, lastly, but not leastly: JavaScript.

Web IV has been the most puzzling. Besides Joomla and SEO, the course also covers Amazon Web Services. All of these are cool, but, what a hell of a collection. I feel a bit of whiplash as I move through the week.

Systems Analysis is something I’ve been looking forward to. Understanding how to look at business systems in a strategic way excites me. I think this will be critical to my future career work.

Then there’s JavaScript. This is the grail! Yeah, this summer I coded in Visual Basic, which was fine and all, but JavaScript is what actual web developers use daily. So I’m delighted. But, code is a double-edged sword.

For several days last week/early this week, two of my projects were stuck. Try as I might, I couldn’t get the code to work. I went through all kinds of imposter syndrome stuff. Finally, grabbed one of my other classmates. It took both of us over an hour, but we figured it out: I was missing ONE curly brace (this thing: “}”). But as I’ve started interacting with the developer community on Twitter, I know this is not uncommon. Every keystroke is important, and variable names are case sensitive. Meaning “GetByID” is not the same as “GetById”. At one point in my career, I highly prided my typing skills. Back in the days of typewriters, that is. Spell check, autocorrect, and even simply being able to delete and re-write have spoiled me. Now my keyboarding kinda sucks. And just when it became critical.

And since I’m never happy unless I’m silly busy, I’m also filling in for a friend who’s on paternity leave. I’m “working” as a media coordinator for Trinity Lutheran Church in Lynnwood, WA (unpaid, but that works fine for me right now). This mainly entails creating graphics, as well as editing videos. Nothing too dramatic. I’m doing some of the photo editing in Photoshop to keep my skills up, but a lot of the stuff I’m creating I’m doing in Canva. It’s a pretty slick tool that really speeds up some workflow. Videos are also pretty straightforward. Our church services are online, and we’re using a fair amount of pre-recorded music and such to keep the number of people in the space to a minimum. Mostly I’m trimming down the videos, adding fades and such, and also plugging some b-roll in so that the videos have more visual appeal.

Here are a few things I’ve crafted recently.

Featured image:

Photo by Oladimeji Ajegbile from Pexels

Windows Programmer Calculator

Carl Setzer
Windows Programmer Calculator

It may be because I’m still pretty new at this whole programming/coding thing, but I was pretty stoked to discover this feature within the built-in calculator that comes with Windows 10 (it might be part of older versions of Windows. I just don’t know). I’ve built Excel sheets for these conversions to check my work. This is actually easier and less clunky. Sure, I can do these manually, and I’m getting better at doing so in my head, but it’s good to have the ability to check my work easily.

Along with this, a friend of mine let me know about HiPer Calculator for Android phones.  I look forward to trying it out. I downloaded the free version, but there is a “Pro” version for $3.49. I’ll see how the free one works. Trying to be frugal and all that.

Do you have any tools that you love and recommend to an up-and-coming developer? I’d really love to hear about them. Leave a comment!