Mastering Chaos: Javascript Journey
17 Jan 2024
“Beeeep!” The loud car horn echoes through the bustling city. Loud pedestrians walking past you, footsteps that varied in intensity and urgency, a hat lying on the ground as a street performer plays his vibrant and energetic music while dancing in front of a large crowd full of smiles. I stand in the middle of all this chaos feeling contentment and ease. This is how I would describe my experience learning Javascript. Starting from highschool I had gained a small experience in working with the Javascript programming language. My first ever project was a tip calculator website that had basic uses. You input your total amount and it would tell you how much to tip based on the percentage you picked. As a teenager, I was astounded as I realized what you can create with a few lines of code. So, I learned more. I became familiar with other programming languages like Java, Python, C, and C++. When it came time to revisit Javascript, I was amazed. How can a programming language that I learned years ago feel so mind boggling?
As I have described at the beginning, revisiting Javascript felt like I was in the middle of a chaotic city. When learning about variables, the experience of not specifying it as a string or integer felt outlandish. Another example is the difference between “==” and “===”. I did not expect that the slight difference in equal signs could affect my code. Similar to ES6, I was confused how a multi line function can be compressed into a short line. Some topics from ES6 were also new to me, like destructuring and spread syntax. Although, I knew that every programming language has their quirks. So, I went along with it, embracing the intricacies of Javascript and ES6. By the end of the Javascript modules I felt like I mastered the chaos and I felt contentment. Regressing back to high school making my tip calculator. Lastly, I would say that Javascript is a good programming language because of its ease of learning. Its syntax can be very forgiving which is good for any beginner programmers.
Overall, I felt accomplished revisiting and learning new things about Javascript. I feel that I have only scratched the surface of Javascript. I can’t wait to learn more and in my way contain the chaos of Javascript.
Athletic Software Engineering: WODs
My initial views on WODs is that it’s an anxiety inducing, gut wrenching, and heart pumping experience that I would never voluntarily put myself in. But, having been able to practice them by myself and with others had a positive impact on my initial beliefs about WODs. I have fully understood that they are a great way to not only teach yourself how to program but also improve your problem solving skills. I think WODs are a great way to experience the pressure of working in the tech environment and being able to produce work that you know will work. I would say that WODs are enjoyable in the sense that they are like playing puzzle games. Lastly, I hope to gain valuable experience from this style of learning and use it towards my career.