[LRUG] Beginner advice

Luke Morton lukemorton.dev at gmail.com
Wed Apr 11 06:25:54 PDT 2018 

As Lola said, I am happy to speak to those looking for a mentor and equally
for those looking to mentor others. I mainly deal in Ruby / Rails / Python
/ JavaScript / TDD. Requires commitment of 1 hour a week for a minimum of 6
weeks.

Made Tech also offers an Academy programme
<http://madetech.com/careers/academy> which is a full time (paid) job offer
which starts with 12 weeks of training. Ideal for those who already know a
programming language or two, whether you learned at university, a coding
bootcamp or by yourself. Next intake is January 2019 with applications
opening in July.

Get in touch if you're interested in Mentoring or the Made Tech Academy <3

Best,
Luke

Twitter <https://twitter.com/LukeMorton> GitHub
<https://github.com/lukemorton/> LinkedIn
<https://www.linkedin.com/in/luke-morton-495a53130/>


On Wed, 11 Apr 2018 at 10:34 damilola odelola <damzcodes at gmail.com> wrote:

> Hey Sam,
>
> There's been lots of good advice and useful advice, & I agree with pretty
> much all of it. I have two additional suggestions:
>
> 1. If you're working full-time or don't have the money to attend a
> bootcamp (either for tuition fees or living costs) I'd recommend getting a
> mentor. Luke Morton, who's on this list, runs a mentoring network (&
> happens to be my mentor) where he connects mentors and mentees, if you'd
> like me to put you in touch with him, I can do that. A mentor can help with
> the practical job of coding as well as help with career advice.
>
> 2. If you do have the capacity to forgo a few months salary, Maker's is a
> good option to check out & I'd also recommend 8th Light's Student
> Apprenticeship program <https://8thlight.com/apprenticeship/> which is
> free but also unpaid but the benefits of 8th Light is that you'll be
> learning in a professional environment at the 8th Light offices and once
> complete you'd be eligible to apply for the paid internship program & they
> have a pretty good retention rate.
>
> Kindly,
>
> On Wed, Apr 11, 2018 at 10:04 AM, Brandon Burton <
> brandon.anthony.burton at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Hi Sam,
>>
>> I was in your position about 2.5 years ago. I had no real coding
>> experience other than a few encounters with html/css exercises and I didn't
>> have any relevant education.
>>
>> What helped me was what Graham and Ali suggested, practicing. That was
>> either by reading books like The Well Grounded Rubyist or utilizing online
>> tutorials. I found structured online tutorials worked best for me so I paid
>> for a subscription to TeamTreehouse after looking at a few online MOOC's. I
>> told myself that if I enjoyed it and found myself continuing to do it then
>> I would start planning to change my career path.
>>
>> About a month or two in I decided to find a meetup and came across NWRUG
>> (the Manchester sister group to LRUG). I certainly felt apprehensive about
>> showing up, having little to no experience, but the reality was far
>> different. I was able to pair on coding challenges with knowledgable
>> developers, ask questions about topics in some of the talks where I didn't
>> initially grasp the concept, I received helpful advice on continuing my
>> journey to become a developer, and I was even lucky enough to have one of
>> the developers kindly spare their evenings to mentor me.
>>
>> When I first decided that I was going to try and switch careers to become
>> a developer I set out a goal; at the end of 1 year, I would have my first
>> job. Having this goal in the back of my mind helped me push through days
>> where I didn't feel like coding very much. Even on my laziest days I made
>> sure to code or read over blog posts for at least 30 mins.
>>
>> About 6 months after starting my journey I was encouraged to give a talk
>> on my experiences of trying to become a developer at our local meetup. It
>> was from that talk that I was introduced to my future (and current)
>> employer. A few weeks after that talk I was arriving at work for my first
>> day as a full stack dev.
>>
>> It's definitely possible, whether it happens in 6 or 24 months. If you
>> have the ability to join a bootcamp like Makers then I can recommend that,
>> you'll have a stronger understanding of the basics and better opportunities
>> for finding your first job -- two juniors I work with came from Makers and
>> both came in quite strong (and still are). If you can't afford a bootcamp
>> then there are still plenty of online resources to help you get where you
>> want to be.
>>
>> I'm still using online tutorials, reading blog posts, or reading books
>> now to help me learn new and difficult concepts. It's an important trait to
>> have when looking to become a developer. Employers really like to see that
>> you learn in your spare time, it means they can rely on you to continue to
>> become a better developer.
>>
>> I would definitely recommend you attend LRUG and chat with a few people
>> there about your goals and get some advice from them.
>>
>> Best of luck,
>> Brandon
>>
>> On Wed, Apr 11, 2018 at 12:40 AM, Najaf Ali <ali at happybearsoftware.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Hi Sam,
>>>
>>> *> I'm currently going through other basic tutorials(html, css etc) and
>>> was wondering what the next step would be after being comfortable with the
>>> basics.*
>>>
>>> I would strongly second what Graham said about getting as much practice
>>> as you can. If you don't have a specific project that you're focused on
>>> right now, there are plenty of exercises available online for you to work
>>> through. exercism.io gets a lot of good reviews, some other examples
>>> include project euler
>>> <https://links2.mixmaxusercontent.com/rSxCBSBNkaSyYEvDv/l/AHeGerJSe1ejiQ5oU?messageId=yAaWHPoia63A4r4b7&rn=gIwV3bydEIzJXZzVFI5JWdSBibvRmbvxkI&re=icmcv5yZ1JHbuMHdzlGbARXYoNmI&sc=false>,
>>> SQLBolt
>>> <https://links6.mixmaxusercontent.com/rSxCBSBNkaSyYEvDv/l/EA2X1Mg361mIib8gH?messageId=yAaWHPoia63A4r4b7&rn=gIwV3bydEIzJXZzVFI5JWdSBibvRmbvxkI&re=icmcv5yZ1JHbuMHdzlGbARXYoNmI&sc=false>
>>> , rosalind
>>> <https://links5.mixmaxusercontent.com/rSxCBSBNkaSyYEvDv/l/3uZPfphPKpLAite8l?messageId=yAaWHPoia63A4r4b7&rn=gIwV3bydEIzJXZzVFI5JWdSBibvRmbvxkI&re=icmcv5yZ1JHbuMHdzlGbARXYoNmI&sc=false>,
>>> and cryptopals
>>> <https://links8.mixmaxusercontent.com/rSxCBSBNkaSyYEvDv/l/tSwHjQp56F6R8P5NA?messageId=yAaWHPoia63A4r4b7&rn=gIwV3bydEIzJXZzVFI5JWdSBibvRmbvxkI&re=icmcv5yZ1JHbuMHdzlGbARXYoNmI&sc=false>.
>>> (If you manage to complete up to challenge 6 in cryptopals, or even attempt
>>> 6 and get stuck part way through, then it would probably be worth us
>>> discussing the potential for an apprenticeship as plenty of senior
>>> developers can't do that exercise).
>>>
>>> I particularly like this post about learning
>>> <https://links7.mixmaxusercontent.com/rSxCBSBNkaSyYEvDv/l/pUQ1EAGyzrojkODgp?messageId=yAaWHPoia63A4r4b7&rn=gIwV3bydEIzJXZzVFI5JWdSBibvRmbvxkI&re=icmcv5yZ1JHbuMHdzlGbARXYoNmI&sc=false>
>>> (and more specifically learning to program) about fluency vs. understanding
>>> and structure vs. imagination.
>>>
>>> However, in addition to building fluency, we also encourage apprentices
>>> to read books. For learning Ruby our standard text is The Well Grounded
>>> Rubyist
>>> <https://links10.mixmaxusercontent.com/rSxCBSBNkaSyYEvDv/l/dJXYviaJX4QfuOIHq?messageId=yAaWHPoia63A4r4b7&rn=gIwV3bydEIzJXZzVFI5JWdSBibvRmbvxkI&re=icmcv5yZ1JHbuMHdzlGbARXYoNmI&sc=false>
>>> by David A. Black. Other books on our apprentice reading list include High
>>> Performance Browser Networking
>>> <https://links8.mixmaxusercontent.com/rSxCBSBNkaSyYEvDv/l/6Eiu9QlZGg35El8Su?messageId=yAaWHPoia63A4r4b7&rn=gIwV3bydEIzJXZzVFI5JWdSBibvRmbvxkI&re=icmcv5yZ1JHbuMHdzlGbARXYoNmI&sc=false>
>>> by Ilya Grigorik (available online for free) and Designing Data
>>> Intensive Applications
>>> <https://links6.mixmaxusercontent.com/rSxCBSBNkaSyYEvDv/l/9KFV67uLpuJDyATcr?messageId=yAaWHPoia63A4r4b7&rn=gIwV3bydEIzJXZzVFI5JWdSBibvRmbvxkI&re=icmcv5yZ1JHbuMHdzlGbARXYoNmI&sc=false>
>>> by Martin Kleppmann. The former is ostensibly about performance and ends up
>>> being a sales pitch for HTTP2, but on the way there the author has to
>>> explain how the internet works. The latter is a book packed with a lot of
>>> knowledge and clear thinking about how to make good decisions with
>>> databases that I wish I'd had earlier in my career.
>>>
>>> *> It would also be nice to know what possible paths there are for
>>> becoming a fully fledged developer.*
>>>
>>> Having advised (and subsequently hired a few) graduates from code
>>> schools, career changers, and coding meetup attendees, without knowing more
>>> about your circumstances I would wager that from a standing start this is a
>>> project that will take you between 6 and 24 months, depending on your life
>>> circumstances, your prior experience, and connections.
>>>
>>> Here are some things you can do to help make your first job as a
>>> developer happen:
>>>
>>>    - *Start talking to people in the industry*. Go to the LRUG
>>>    <https://links10.mixmaxusercontent.com/rSxCBSBNkaSyYEvDv/l/6T4XqSs7Ut8I7Z3YZ?messageId=yAaWHPoia63A4r4b7&rn=gIwV3bydEIzJXZzVFI5JWdSBibvRmbvxkI&re=icmcv5yZ1JHbuMHdzlGbARXYoNmI&sc=false> meetups.
>>>    One of the most common concerns about attending that new programmers raise
>>>    with me is that the talks will be "at too high a level". They're not at too
>>>    high a level for you (sorry everyone!) and even if they are, isn't that the
>>>    point of you going? Try to stay for drinks afterwards if you feel
>>>    comfortable doing so and maybe introduce yourself to some people that have
>>>    also been to LRUG that evening. Maybe think about attending Brighton
>>>    Ruby
>>>    <https://links7.mixmaxusercontent.com/rSxCBSBNkaSyYEvDv/l/3JyKp8CSOjQKj4lQn?messageId=yAaWHPoia63A4r4b7&rn=gIwV3bydEIzJXZzVFI5JWdSBibvRmbvxkI&re=icmcv5yZ1JHbuMHdzlGbARXYoNmI&sc=false>
>>>    too, Andy knows how to put on a good show. In addition to this, if you
>>>    happen to be from a background that is underrepresented in tech then I
>>>    super double plus turbo recommend you attend codebar
>>>    <https://links1.mixmaxusercontent.com/rSxCBSBNkaSyYEvDv/l/ZlIh01s1kqTP4B4WQ?messageId=yAaWHPoia63A4r4b7&rn=gIwV3bydEIzJXZzVFI5JWdSBibvRmbvxkI&re=icmcv5yZ1JHbuMHdzlGbARXYoNmI&sc=false>.
>>>    It is the gold standard introduction to the industry. You will be in an
>>>    office where developers work, with other people learning to code, and a
>>>    handful of developers teaching you how to code, for free. If that doesn't
>>>    make the prospect of becoming a developer more real for you, I don't know
>>>    what will.
>>>    - *If you can afford to do so, attend Makers Academy
>>>    <https://links4.mixmaxusercontent.com/rSxCBSBNkaSyYEvDv/l/TUOwHD5lOlnXQ8jXl?messageId=yAaWHPoia63A4r4b7&rn=gIwV3bydEIzJXZzVFI5JWdSBibvRmbvxkI&re=icmcv5yZ1JHbuMHdzlGbARXYoNmI&sc=false>*.
>>>    I have no affiliation with Makers other than I know a lot of the students
>>>    and occasionally have lunch with Evgeny who is one of the founders. After
>>>    years of watching Makers launch cohort after cohort into the industry, I
>>>    don't have any hesitation in recommending them to you (though I suspect out
>>>    of all of these recommendations, this one will be the most controversial on
>>>    this list). They will definitely make it more likely that you get a job as
>>>    a developer more quickly than you would be able to do so on your own. They
>>>    also at this stage have an extensive alumni network, and a lot of good
>>>    connections with companies that are actively trying to hire people that are
>>>    new to the industry. This is a really good set of advantages to have at the
>>>    start of your developer career.
>>>    - *Start the campaign for your first developer job early. *Let's say
>>>    you have to make 100 applications for a developer job, 30 of which get a
>>>    reply, 9 of which lead to an interview which result in one or two offers
>>>    for a job. You still need to make those hundred applications to get those
>>>    one or two offers. As you improve your skills, make more connections, and
>>>    get more experience interviewing, your likelihood of getting an offer will
>>>    increase. So the earlier you start writing CVs/cover letters, making lists
>>>    of companies you'd like to work at, and reaching out to people hiring
>>>    junior/apprentice roles, the better.
>>>
>>> You'll get a lot of other good replies on this list and this is just one
>>> set of opinions to weigh against all the others, but I hope there are one
>>> or two things there you find useful. If there's anything I've said here
>>> that you would like to discuss further then feel free to get in touch on or
>>> off list.
>>>
>>> Best of luck!
>>>
>>> Najaf Ali - Founder at Happy Bear Software
>>> <https://links4.mixmaxusercontent.com/rSxCBSBNkaSyYEvDv/l/6Ruohd7dHMfHeT1a4?messageId=yAaWHPoia63A4r4b7&rn=gIwV3bydEIzJXZzVFI5JWdSBibvRmbvxkI&re=icmcv5yZ1JHbuMHdzlGbARXYoNmI&sc=false>
>>> Phone: 07590 073 977
>>> Skype: alinajaf85
>>> Timezone: London, UTC + 1
>>> <https://links7.mixmaxusercontent.com/rSxCBSBNkaSyYEvDv/l/g75wimnKBoVFEkEYG?messageId=yAaWHPoia63A4r4b7&rn=gIwV3bydEIzJXZzVFI5JWdSBibvRmbvxkI&re=icmcv5yZ1JHbuMHdzlGbARXYoNmI&sc=false>
>>> LinkedIn
>>> <https://links10.mixmaxusercontent.com/rSxCBSBNkaSyYEvDv/l/2bRAkTZhK9SbKJvE9?messageId=yAaWHPoia63A4r4b7&rn=gIwV3bydEIzJXZzVFI5JWdSBibvRmbvxkI&re=icmcv5yZ1JHbuMHdzlGbARXYoNmI&sc=false>
>>>  | Twitter
>>> <https://links8.mixmaxusercontent.com/rSxCBSBNkaSyYEvDv/l/CQJxZdkCqrufc1yud?messageId=yAaWHPoia63A4r4b7&rn=gIwV3bydEIzJXZzVFI5JWdSBibvRmbvxkI&re=icmcv5yZ1JHbuMHdzlGbARXYoNmI&sc=false>
>>>  | Medium
>>> <https://links7.mixmaxusercontent.com/rSxCBSBNkaSyYEvDv/l/Bd5gegp8mSMQn5WVT?messageId=yAaWHPoia63A4r4b7&rn=gIwV3bydEIzJXZzVFI5JWdSBibvRmbvxkI&re=icmcv5yZ1JHbuMHdzlGbARXYoNmI&sc=false>
>>>  | GitHub
>>> <https://links7.mixmaxusercontent.com/rSxCBSBNkaSyYEvDv/l/szeRW7CJlUBsueml6?messageId=yAaWHPoia63A4r4b7&rn=gIwV3bydEIzJXZzVFI5JWdSBibvRmbvxkI&re=icmcv5yZ1JHbuMHdzlGbARXYoNmI&sc=false>
>>>
>>> I run a technical consultancy specialising in Ruby on Rails. Have a look
>>> at this one-page info sheet
>>> <https://links4.mixmaxusercontent.com/rSxCBSBNkaSyYEvDv/l/BZtwTzqL1Oa0x1zOv?messageId=yAaWHPoia63A4r4b7&rn=gIwV3bydEIzJXZzVFI5JWdSBibvRmbvxkI&re=icmcv5yZ1JHbuMHdzlGbARXYoNmI&sc=false> for
>>> a summary of the services we provide. We're always happy to meet people
>>> building software, so if you think of anyone appropriate for us we would
>>> appreciate being put in touch :-)
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> On Tue, Apr 10, 2018 7:48 PM, samuel brown
>>> samuelbrown201195 at hotmail.co.uk wrote:
>>>
>>>> Hi all
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> I have started getting into programming(initial through basic ruby
>>>> tutorials and onto hartl's rails tutorial). I'm currently going through
>>>> other basic tutorials(html, css etc)  and was wondering what the next step
>>>> would be after being comfortable with the basics.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> It would also be nice to know what possible paths there are for
>>>> becoming a fully fledged developer.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Any comments would be much appreciated
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Regards
>>>>
>>>> Sam
>>>>
>>>
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>
>
> --
> Lola Odelola
>
> blackgirl.tech | @blackgirltech <http://www.twitter.com/blackgirltech>
> www.damilolaodelola.com | @lolaodelola
> <http://www.twitter.com/lolaodelola>
>
>
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