Need Coding Advice

[NeverNotTired]

Hello,

I have fallen on hard times and have children to support (don't want to bore you with the details) and I need to pull myself out by re-training in coding. Can anyone in web development etc please advise me which coding language I should learn please? I need to be able to secure a job in 6 months to a year. I am a complete novice so any advice will be really appreciated.

Many thanks in advance.

Most websites aren’t built with just html though. You need a course the combines javascript, some computer design, and stylesheets otherwise it won’t be realistic.

You need a front end development course. Html by itself is easy - often it’s easier and preferred to train someone who already knows a language or has design / art skills.

That’s why I suggested SQL - the type of development here often needs experienced business professionals not just developers / coders.

It's not just about learning a coding language but also about the most efficient way to stucture the code for performance and reuse. There is a lot more than just learning the syntax of a language.

OP it seems like you have a goal of getting a job quickly that earns you a set amount. Personally in that situation I would be more inclined to look for distance learning courses, college or university.

For coding do you enjoy problem solving? Trying to unpick something that isn't working when the reason is hidden in the depths of code which isn't obvious when it behaves different in certain circumstances is rewarding. So is working out how to restructure a huge lump of code to make it more efficient.

Hi Friedgreen. Thank you for some brilliant advice. Is SQL reasonably straightforward to learn?

Mushypeas, I used to enjoy problem solving and optimising working practice and processes. However, that was in a non IT role. I don't know whether I will be able to transfer those skills to a code. I know that if I 'get' it, as in understand code, then I could tackle problem solving. Going back 20 years, I just did not 'get' Java.

Most jobs that ask for data analyst want SQL in the toolset that you could bring. The language (syntax) rules are simple, the tricky part is understanding the logic of what you're trying to achieve. DH who works in web app stuff says he does lots of basic SQL but never does SQL scripts; to understand the scripts you just need to have done some other coding (like fortran or python, etc).

I had lectures about relational databases at university and worked with a closely related language for yrs. I don't know how easy SQL is for avg person to get from scratch. It might help if you're good at geometry!!

The good news is unlike 20 years ago there is so much information on the internet which can help when trying to solve a specific issue. Personally I think it might be harder when you are starting from the beginning with no real coding background as you may need more help understanding the basic concepts which is why a part time college course might be more useful.

You are asking which language to learn but that again depends on what job you might want to do. A front end web developer will need to understand usability and human factors more than say a back end database developer.

I really like your enthusiasm to learn something new but I think maybe just take a step back and investigate what jobs/roles you want and are achievable so you focus your efforts in the right place.

Check out job opportunities in your local area before spending time learning to code. Some jobs specifically ask for a degree and you will undoubtedly be up against candidates with a degree. A lot of small web firms are run by young people who only want to hire other young, fun people. I say this as someone who graduated with a computing degree aged 31 - employers regarded me as too old for junior developer roles because they were looking to hire graduates in their early 20s. Reasons for being rejected for programming jobs have included not being young, fun and sociable enough to fit into the company culture...

In terms of salary I tend to see adverts for junior developers around £15-18k; with several years experience you might achieve £30k in a senior role. You can work from home but probably only if you went freelance.

Lljkk, I used to be good at geometry in GCSE maths. Don't know if I am anymore. Don't know if I can remember much of it anymore

I am going to google jobs in my area and see what they are looking for, then report back. The trouble with courses is that they cost and I am not in a position where I can pay out much for a qualification.

I appreciate the reality check aswell as the encouragement

are you looking for something you can do from home, what salary and how many hours would you want to aim for? Aim low enough salary, there's usually a job out there in the sector.

(Freelance) DH keeps getting jobs thru word of mouth. He gets to talking to some other dad at DS swim pool lesson who needs a database manager, that kind of thing. I know a local graphics designer guy in same position. He can't stop people trying to contact him to ask if he has a bit of spare time for their job.

I taught myself SQL (oracle flavour) in previous jobs and whilst reasonably competent, because i'm self taught I'm always aware that whilst what I write might get you to the end goal, it's not necessarily the best way to get there. I think it's this aspect to do with optimisation and efficiency that is the hardest part to learn on your own.

Just as a heads up unless you have a good track record already in the industry I would expect companies to give you a coding exercise as part of a job interview.

As BombsAway eluded to optimisation and efficiency is a hard part of coding. Personally I think the best way for that is once you have something working write lots of tests to make sure the code really does everything it should for both good and bad input. Then go back and refactor it to look for 'better and more efficient ways' to code the same thing. This will also help you understand the actual language and concepts as there are many ways to code the same behaviour.

I'm not sure your goals are realistic.

There is no doubt there are many forty-year old coders working from home and earning a very good living. However, most of those would have built up years of experience beforehand and would have a considerable contact network of previous employers, customers, colleagues, old college mates, etc. very willing to hire them or refer them to others.

If you're in Scotland, you could look at CodeClan - it's an intensive 16 week course that has an employer network, so they can support you finding your first role. codeclan.com/

(I have no affiliation with them, but thought it was worth a mention)

I have been in a similar position as you but without the restrictive time limit.
I have a background in Computer Networking and was made redundant from that. I had a big interest in Web development so I did a full time year long course (HTML, CSS, Javascript, PHP and SQl). When I finished the course, I started applying for junior positions as a web developer as were many newly qualified students that had degrees in Development area. Although I have one in a different area of IT I didn't stand a chance as they had many advantages like many languages over me.
I went back and did a degree in Software Development so I am now a newly qualified junior developer at 39 years old. At work I use languages like Angular and Typescript. As I am a junior developer, I cannot work from home full time(I also have children) it is only when I gain experience that I can do that. It is not simply knocking up some code for work, there is a lot more to it. We work in teams, there are different methodologies for teams and projects(Google agile/scrum for an idea).
I think you are being unrealistic for many reasons, working in development is difficult and at many times frustrating(it is well paid for a reason!), patience is essential. You really have to like what you do and have a passion for problem solving, it is not all about coding. The interviews I have done I have been given exercises in which I have had to code something in an allocated time frame. I have also had to show previous projects that I had done. You need a Git or Github account for your code like a portfolio of sorts.
Don't do it if you are just looking at the financial side, you need to research this a bit more before you decide.
Sorry if I come across as negative or anything like that but that is just my experience of this road, HTH.

I did learn SQL including script writing as part of an analysis role and have kept it up. As a non-grad you won’t usually need Python - it tends to be requested from grad analyst roles. But for a business or commercial analyst role, just knowing how SQL works and being able to read the code will make you valuable.

I think with some coding you have to have the mindset for it. I really enjoy html, CSS, JavaScript, pho and a bit of Perl but I despise Java. It just didn’t penetrate my brain at all. My colleague on the other hand hates everything apart from Java and he can quite happily sit for days on end writing Java programs

Just wanted to say that each and every post has been very useful and informative. Different posters and their experiences have really given me a fresh perspective. I think the best thing to do is try it out for fun and curiosity and then see if I enjoy it or not, before launching myself into it. i will come back and update.

This is a page of SQL examples
www.itl.nist.gov/div897/ctg/dm/sql_examples.htm

Have a look at it and see if you can get an idea of what it is doing. You don't need to understand it all or in detail.

"As BombsAway eluded to optimisation and efficiency is a hard part of coding."

I'd say that what's a harder part is knowing when you've optimised "enough". Over enthusiastic optimisation is responsible for a huge proportion of the problems in applications.

So to go along with the technical stuff I'd also spend some time reading up on some of the philosophies/methodologies of software development.

Know a little bit about things like test driven development, agile, waterfall, peer programming, application lifecycles and clean code to name a few. That, in turn, will help guide your work and the field that you want to work in.

For example, personally, I've always had a thing about writing clean, understandable, maintainable code. And writing code to those standards at the cost of having it be the fastest code possible. So I've moved away from areas like games, where you often need to be as fast as possible, to areas like business applications with very long life spans, where you need to the code to be maintainable years after it was written but it doesn't really matter if a thing takes 0.01 seconds or 0.1 seconds.

As an interviewer it's also always a good sign if a developer has thoughts and opinions on coding outside of just how to write code.

Cdtaylor, I looked at that link, and I can see what is going on when creating the table and populating it.

I need to grasp the query side of things as it very quickly became confusing. I must admit, it was enjoyable going through that link you sent me. I need to find the time to out into this. Right now I am lying down beside my baby. Need to quietly sneak out and get onto my laptop.

Badger, I will definitely read around the subject and methodologies. Google is my friend

Joined freecodecamp and was hoping to make a start with the databases section, but it started me off with html. Started working through it. It is ok so far. Wondering if there is any way to skip it and go direct to databases. I am now getting a bit more into primary keys and entities

Next mission is to sign up to github whatever that is.