A journey of a thousand step begins with one step
31 Aug 2022The JavaScript journey
I have heard about Javascript before I took this class and never thought it would be a rough start since it seems like we dove in head first in a raging river. This to me is unheard of, especially since I am just a beginner that never really heard about the difficulty of this language. My prior experiences with this language would be mentions in different coding forums. From what I heard JS or javascript is used extensively in many workplaces in the nation and seems very crucial on many ICS students future endeavors. I believe it is not a bad language since it is required by many work places and jobs tend to have preference for people with JS knowledge(and a CS degree!). Even though, COBOL and python programmers seems to be in demand currently. Furthermore, it is a good language nonetheless since it has many shortcuts like python but will need some time to smoothen out the experience on learning JS or Javascript.
Shocking but a sad reality…
I admit I had no prior knowledge about athletic software engineering until I have read Phillip Johnson article about it and I am honestly worried and surprised about it. The industry focuses a lot on making things fast while leaving other slower programmers in the dust. This worries me since the article it seems like the only way to do well in the industry is to start early when you are child or in your teens. Even though, WOD’s seems to be the answer especially when he mentions that it should be “workouts not classes”. The idea of the WOD’s seems to parallel being in the gym but in a intense workout rather than a passive one. I believe this is to jumpstart many students in to “shape” and sculpting many people and myself opinions about the high-demanding industry(This is probably why many coding forums always have many programmers who want to switch jobs or professions after 1 year in the industry!).
Practice WOD’s are very useful but stressful at the same time since it focuses on stressing out the student that there is a time that needs to be met. While I find stressful since there is time limit that need I find enjoyable when finishing one. This reminds me of what professor used to say about coding which is always write on paper so you can always remember it. I believe it can work but it needs a lot of mental preparations to do so. That is where I believe is the greatest challenge present itself. Especially since WOD’s are a hit or miss quizzes and no partial credit are given. This will always rack on the back of my mind knowing that needing to study for Javascript is important that it needs to be a muscle memory.
Personal Anecdote
In the end, I believed that many of these topics comes to the conclusion that the industry is a brutal place where if you ever fall behind then you would truly feel it. That is why WOD’s act as way to shape many student knowledge and hone their intuition. But it will come with a price that many of them will feel restless and stressed knowing that any moment could be a deadline. But for now I think WOD’s will work for me since it will help me realize that there will be expectations that needs to be meet personally and by my peers. Finally, I hope this journey of a thousand steps does not end with the first step.