{"id":335,"date":"2022-10-19T21:34:05","date_gmt":"2022-10-19T21:34:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bootcamps.org\/?p=335"},"modified":"2022-10-19T21:34:05","modified_gmt":"2022-10-19T21:34:05","slug":"how-to-learn-javascript-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bootcamps.org\/resources\/how-to-learn-javascript\/","title":{"rendered":"How to learn JavaScript"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-pm-slice=\"1 1 []\">JavaScript is the <a href=\"https:\/\/survey.stackoverflow.co\/2022\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><u>most popular<\/u><\/a> programming language, with an active community of over <u>20 million<\/u> software programmers, making it easy to learn JavaScript.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Java Script has added over <u>5 million<\/u> new developers over the last five years owing to its popularity in web and mobile application development.<\/li>\n<li>JavaScript\u2019s developer population now stands at an estimated <u>20 million<\/u> developers worldwide, and over <u>98%<\/u> of all websites use javascript code.<\/li>\n<li>Most JavaScript developers are back-end, front-end, database, and mobile application developers with an annual median wage of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bls.gov\/ooh\/computer-and-information-technology\/web-developers.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><u>$78,300<\/u><\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>With the growth of mobile-first websites, the need to learn javascript programming language has become quite marketable. JavaScript is used to design dynamic web content and responsive web pages. With<\/p>\n<p>Read on to deliver how JavaScript is used as a client-side and server-side scripting language and how to learn JavaScript.<\/p>\n<h2>What is javascript programming language?<\/h2>\n<p>JavaScript is a back-end and front-end development programming language used to create responsive websites and build the web elements that web visitors interact with and see. With javascript, developers can control dynamic web content such as slideshows, autocomplete text suggestions, interactive forms, and animations.<\/p>\n<p>While most of the emphasis in using JavaScript coding language is on client-side design, it is also used extensively on the server side. JavaScript works hand in hand with CSS and HTML code to enhance web functionality and control interactive elements on web pages. JavaScript is text-based and interpreted, which eliminates the need to compile.<\/p>\n<h2>How to learn javascript basics<\/h2>\n<p>How you learn JavScript will often depend on your availability and how many resources you want to direct to the learning process. Besides getting an undergraduate degree in computer science and taking extra credits in javascript programming, you can also get structured and guided learning by enrolling in a coding bootcamp. If you are looking for a self-paced learning schedule, you can opt to take online courses or self-led tutorials. Here are a few ways you can learn JavaScript;<\/p>\n<h3>Coding bootcamps<\/h3>\n<p>Coding bootcamp programs focusing on javascript programming language are the best way to learn and undertake technical coding projects under the guidance and support of experienced lecturers. Coding bootcamps are cheaper than enrolling in a college degree program and take less than six months to complete.<\/p>\n<p>A JavaScript coding bootcamp program will equip you with marketable coding skills without a fast-paced learning environment. Bootcamps also offer various learning modes, from online to in-person or a mixture of both, and the option to pick up self-paced learning, which might take longer to compile but is recommendable if you have other responsibilities.<\/p>\n<h3>Self-guided courses<\/h3>\n<p>Online self-guided courses and tutorials that teach you JavScript are often offered free of charge or at a very small price. You can get JavScript courses on Udemy, Coursera, or Codecademy. The study materials offered should be supplemented with other sources, such as Youtube coding tutorials, to give you a detailed view of what to expect and how to go about the coding process.<\/p>\n<p>One thing to note while dealing with self-guided courses is that you might end up in tutorial hell, where you watch and read content from multiple tutorials and still cannot retain any useful information. The easiest way to escape tutorial hell is by practicing what you are learning and creating a custom project so that you can practice the technical coding skills you learn from the courses.<\/p>\n<h3>Reading documentation<\/h3>\n<p>javascript community and Oracle maintain detailed documentation on the programming language, frameworks, and common use cases. Reading JavScript documentation will give you the best understanding of the coding language. The documentation goes beyond explaining how the coding language is used; it also details the best practices which will help you write efficient code.<\/p>\n<p>Documentation provides a detailed outline of every feature in the coding language and advanced concepts that they might not cover in detail in online courses. The sample code included in the documentation will also give you an idea of how to write better code.<\/p>\n<h3>Contributing to open-source projects<\/h3>\n<p>The best way to test your technical coding skills is by writing javascript code. There are numerous open-source JavaScript Projects that you can take part in that will make it easier to advance your JavaScript skills. These projects are often categorized depending on the complexity, so you can get beginner-friendly open-source projects that let you collaborate with other learners on your way to more technical projects.<\/p>\n<p>Contributing to open source projects improves your existing coding skills as any errors along the way get pointed out, and you gain deeper javascript knowledge and best practices. It also gives you the confidence to tackle bigger projects which will help you grow your career as a JavaScript programmer. Open-source projects provide the right environment to network and find mentors.<\/p>\n<h2>Why you should learn javascript skills<\/h2>\n<h3>Popular and simple to learn<\/h3>\n<p><u>Stackoverflow.com<\/u> 2022 survey ranks JavaScript as the most commonly used coding language for the tenth year in a row. This popularity is partly due to javascript providing a unified web application development with numerous frameworks and libraries. Javascript\u2019s popularity means that the coding language is well maintained, and there are thousands of learning materials you can use that are regularly updated by the community.<\/p>\n<h3>Great career opportunities<\/h3>\n<p>JavaScript offers great career opportunities owing to its large range of usage. As tech companies embrace full-time developer positions, they tend to offer higher wages to outcompete remote freelancing options. You also don&#8217;t need to have long-term experience. Being proficient in JavaScript is enough to land you an entry-level developer position in most tech companies.<\/p>\n<h3>Community support<\/h3>\n<p>A large part of learning a coding language is getting help from other experienced developers. JavaScript has the largest community, making it easy to get quick and detailed solutions to any problems you might face. With community support, you can get ready-to-use technical solutions for all levels of complexity when learning and using JavaScript language.<\/p>\n<p>You can get community support on StackOverflow and Hashnode to fix bugs in your code or learn better solutions and smarter ways to use specific features.<\/p>\n<h3>\u00a0Rich, dynamic, and lively pages<\/h3>\n<p>JavaScript uses event-based programming so that you can create prototypes on the go and organize related data on websites, making them more responsive. The language includes useful commands like \u2018onHover\u2019 and \u2018onClick\u2019, which track user interaction on a web page and execute predetermined code segments. You can also use javascript to generate dynamic content, such as outputting HTML tags based on the user\u2019s input while also improving the interactive interfaces on web applications.<\/p>\n<p>With javascript, you can spruce up a website with additional functionality, such as elements that visitors can interact with, which include modal windows, drop-down menus, and contact forms. You can also use the coding language to create interactive maps, video players, and animations.<\/p>\n<h3>Easy to set up<\/h3>\n<p>Javascript works in the browser eliminating the need to set up any environments, compilers, or development tools. JavaScript only requires a web browser with text editing capabilities to write code. This is the exact opposite of other programming languages, such as Python, Ruby, or Java, which require special development environments to run and test code. Javascript also does not require the server to run additional processes which use up computing resources. With Javascript, the code gets wrapped so that most web browsers can interpret complex commands on the go.<\/p>\n<p>Javascript is a higher-level coding language that eliminates the need to deal with hardware-level and input\/output code which gets handled by the machine with the user\u2019s browser instead of the coding you are writing.<\/p>\n<h3>You can use Node.Js to extend JavaScript\u2019s backend functionality<\/h3>\n<p>While JavaScript\u2019s power lies in designing front-end user interfaces, you can also use it to build server-side code. The most popular javascript server environments are Node.js, Express, and Nest.js, which developers use to build backend server code. This makes JavaScript a full-stack development language, as you don&#8217;t require learning other languages to build your web applications&#8217; front-end and server-side parts.<\/p>\n<p>With Node.js, you can write code that collects form data and adds it to your database while also generating dynamic page content and creating, editing, and deleting files on the server.\u00a0 Using Node.js files makes scheduling tasks that need to be executed after certain events much easier.<\/p>\n<h3>High performance<\/h3>\n<p>JavaScript is highly optimized to rescue its impact on download performance, maint thread, battery usage, and CPU usage. In order to avoid UI unresponsiveness or cases where the web app feels janky, you can reduce the amount of JavaScript code needed by removing unused code. JavaScript also allows you to boost its performance by splitting the code into either critical or non-critical using module bundlers such as Webpack.<\/p>\n<p>JavaScript can also achieve high performance by optimizing small files using the Minification tool, which reduces the number of characters in the HTML file, or Gzipping tool, which compresses the files for faster downloads onto the end user&#8217;s browser.<\/p>\n<h2>What is javascript used for?<\/h2>\n<h3>Frontend and backend web development<\/h3>\n<p>Web developers use JavaScript for both front-end and back-end development when building web applications. To achieve this, they use JavaScript libraries and frameworks that help them build web interfaces, including Angular.js, Vue.js, and React.js.<\/p>\n<p>Using javascript for both backend and frontend development eliminates learning a different language for server-side programming tasks. A common solution that full-stack JavaScript developers use involves writing code in\u00a0 Express, Nest.js, and Node.js to build server-side code.<\/p>\n<h3>Big data development<\/h3>\n<p>Cloud and big data developers use JavaScript object notation (JSON) for data interchange and storing records in databases. In most cases, the code required to connect custom applications with big data storages is written using javascript, making the coding language the best for cloud applications.<\/p>\n<p>JavaScript supports multi-threading, making it possible to process big data in parallel sets that run simultaneously. Developers often use Napa.js to optimize multi-threaded javascript runtime.<\/p>\n<h3>Mobile application development<\/h3>\n<p>With the rise of smartphones, Android and iOS operating systems have become the largest platforms on which to develop mobile applications. Over the years, React Native has been adopted by developers as the primary JavaScript framework to write code for mobile apps. It combines React and JavaScript libraries to build responsive user interfaces.<\/p>\n<p>With React Native, you can create a standard codebase and avoid having to write code for each platform as the shared components and coon technology gets automatically adapted for other platforms saving up on developer time and resource usage.<\/p>\n<h3>Automation<\/h3>\n<p>With JavaScript, you can automate your workflow by creating simple programs that automate repetitive tasks. You can also use JavaScript and Selenium WebDriver to set up automation testing, letting you test web products on multiple operating systems and browsers, ensuring that the product\u2019s user interface is compatible and flawless on the end users&#8217; devices.<\/p>\n<h2>Prerequisites for learning javascript<\/h2>\n<p>While there are no specific prerequisites for learning javascript, you will need to develop basic programming knowledge along the way. If you intend to venture into web development using javascript, you will need to learn HTML and CSS.<\/p>\n<p>Having a basic grasp of object-oriented programming (OOP) will make it much easier to learn JavaScript. You may need to install a TextPad or notepad program on your operating system, which you will use to write code. You can also install an integrated development environment (IDE) with dedicated code editors such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jetbrains.com\/webstorm\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><u>WebStorm<\/u><\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sublimetext.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><u>Sublime<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2>Free javascript courses<\/h2>\n<h3><a href=\"https:\/\/www.udemy.com\/topic\/javascript\/free\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><u>Udemy<\/u><\/a><\/h3>\n<p>Udemy offers several free basic JavaScript courses that introduce learners to javascript fundamentals. You can choose from the several available online courses, with some specializing in various javascript libraries. The javascript course will also introduce you to how JS functions and the basic APIs needed to develop basic programs.<\/p>\n<h3><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theodinproject.com\/paths\/full-stack-javascript\/courses\/javascript\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><u>Odin project<\/u><\/a><\/h3>\n<p>The Odin project provides learners with full-stack JavaScript programming learning resources. Currently, the program offers a free and accessible curriculum to all learners and guided projects to help entry-level developers to build a portfolio on GitHub. Odin project has over 814.870 learners and over 5000 contributors since its foundation in 2013.<\/p>\n<h2>Conclusion<\/h2>\n<p>When it comes to programming languages, JavaScript is not only the most popular, but it also accounts for the largest number of coding jobs in the tech industry. Learning javascript is easy thanks to the numerous free online courses, coding guides, and JavaScript coding bootcamps. While you can learn javascript on your own, a more hands-on approach from a bootcamp or online javascript course is more recommendable, although they may not be free.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>JavaScript is the most popular programming language, with an active community of over 20 million software programmers, making it easy to learn JavaScript. Java Script has added over 5 million new developers over the last five years owing to its popularity in web and mobile application development. JavaScript\u2019s developer population now stands at an estimated [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bootcamps.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/335"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bootcamps.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bootcamps.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bootcamps.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bootcamps.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=335"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/bootcamps.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/335\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":340,"href":"https:\/\/bootcamps.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/335\/revisions\/340"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bootcamps.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=335"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bootcamps.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=335"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bootcamps.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=335"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}