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Confessions of a Web Developer XVI

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It's been quite a while since I've gotten a few things off of my chest and since I'm always full of peeves and annoyances I thought it was time to unleash:

  • If I were just getting into front-end development, I'd be so lost.  The norm these days seems to be JSX, CSS and HTML embedded everywhere, CSS and JavaScript crossing boundaries in functionality, wild webpack and Node.js configurations, and loads of build tools to make it all work.  Or maybe new developers don't know any better?
  • Don't let yourself grow bitter; instead, advocate for yourself. No one is looking out for your happiness beside you.  Make it happen and chase what makes you most happy.
  • Treat every code review, both as the reviewer and the submitter, as a learning and team building experience.  Your code doesn't represent you personally but your review comments certainly do.  Be a cheerleader, don't be a cancer.
  • Does desktop Safari still exist?
  • Redesigning a blog is hard.  I've thrown away probably a dozen designs since the current design.  The love for a design is lost long before any users see it.
  • I'm shocked at what appears to be the lack of React performance tools.  Not having used React as much as I'd have liked, I often hear that React leads to slow sites.
  • The Xbox One X is amazing.  Lightning fast processing, glorious 4k assets, backward compatibility, and a few awesome launch games.  100GB game downloads though?  My word...
  • It's difficult for me to keep focused these days, especially when it comes to blog topics.  Gaming, PHP, JavaScript, CSS...my mind is everywhere...and I absolutely love it.
  • I'm glad the modern JavaScript framework "wars" aren't as negative and cancerous as the original JavaScript framework wars (jQuery, MooTools, etc.) . We all need to be grownups these days...
  • ...the browser wars, however, are heating up.  Mozilla's being more direct in marketing and Brave has gone in a whole new direction.  Your move, Chrome?
  • The past year and a half of working from home has been a nightmare.  Two kids bursting in at every moment, hearing nothing but whining few minutes...it really drains on one's motivation and ability to think.  Another point of bitterness.
  • I'd be totally lost without this blog and all of you.  Thank you so much for your support.  It means more than you'll ever know.
  • Owning crypto is a butt-clenching experience.  You almost feel more comfortable when the price is dropping.
  • I'm slightly horrified to do a podcast and videocasts. I'm less confident about my appearance and voice than I am my coding skills. And that's saying something.

Those are my thoughts at the moment.  Let me know what I'm wrong about!  Confess your own dev sins!

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Discussion

  1. Mack

    David keep up the good work. Coding in family enviroment definitely has it’s own dissadvantages I know it too well..,,

    I would love to see some videos from you? Open discusion about how modern websites are working and modern tools used? Maybe a live video via fb or other social media?

  2. Ram

    I have been reading your words and code for so many years now. Glad you can vent, keep up!

  3. Kevinardo

    I started this morning with getting some stuff off my chest to my doctor. Decided i do not want to chase bugs in a React app as a living anymore and read this good post of yours. Thanks!

  4. Colton

    About React leading to slow sites, I’d like to point out that I’ve come to realize that no tools make your app fast or slow. Preact may be 100% faster than React, and Vue may be 300% faster than Knockout, but what matters is how you create the application, not what tools you use.

    I’ve worked on Angular 1 apps that are speedy.
    I’ve worked on React apps that are slow as hell.

    It is all about the developer and his/her ability to efficiently architect and maintain an application, not the tools themselves.

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