Rewriting the Script
18 Jan 2022
Javascript Babysteps
In the past couple of years, I have mainly learned and worked with Java and C/C++ which has got me more and more interested in computer science as a whole. Although Javascript is new to me, I really enjoyed working through FreeCodeCamp’s Introduction to JavaScript as I feel it helped tremendously with truly understanding the basics of Javascript by going through things step by step regardless of how tedious it may seem. It made it very easy to get into Javascript and transition into the slighty more advanced topics through having a good grasp on the basics. When working through the ES6 problems they seemed pretty straight forward at first and I loved that things seemed more open with variables and functions being more flexible than in other languages like Java. As the problems went on and they became more complicated I definetly had to take time to stop and think but I found it very satisfying being able to complete them having just picked up the language recently. I believe that, in the flexibility aspect especially, Javascript is a great programming language from a software engineering perspective as it gives more freedom given you are careful about what you are doing. There is a lot of potential with Javascript and I am very excited to learn more about it in the near future.
Stress Testing the Brain
Personally, I really like the concept of WODs and believe that they are a great way to test and sharpen my software engineering skills. Aside from coding, I really enjoy working out and believe that the same principles that apply to excercising the rest of the body are great for growth when applied to something like software engineering or excerise of the brain. The limited time aspect adds an extra level of stress and urgency where you really need to have an understanding of the material and how the software will work to succeed. One thing that really stands out to me with WODs is the importance of fully understanding the problem before you start working even though there are time constraints. With the added stress of a time limit, I feel like it can be very easy to brush over the problem and start searching for a solution quickly in hopes of finishing faster. However, I believe that having a firm grasp on the problem is even more important given a small time window because working towards the incorrect solution is even more detremental. In the past, there were always deadlines for the programming problems given but they were never as urgent as the WODs and I feel like it is really interesting look at the speed at which you can problem solve as opposed to just if you can solve the problem over time. WODs are great at pinpointing weaknesses and quickly finding what holes in knowledge you have because there isn’t time to go back and look through notes or worry too much about formatting. Personally, I have had problems in the past where I don’t remember the exact formatting or implemtation despite knowing what I need to do to solve the problem at hand. I think that WODs will definetly help me fine tune my coding skills as well as efficiency. I believe that putting yourself and your brain under that extra stress can really help you to grow, prepare better for the next time, and lead to many benefits in the long run.