How I learned HTML/CSS

About me

My name is Timothy Ashby. I am a freelance coder. I primarily work with React js and Ruby on Rails. I work with those two because I love their vast documentation and passionate communities. I never feel lost searching for resources because there is so much support for these technologies.

Why I wanted to learn HTML/CSS

I learned HTML and CSS very early on; in 6th grade. I had a great computer teacher who allowed us to create blogs; learn flash, and some basic HTML and CSS through notepad. I took those skills home; and started tinkering. Eventually I learned that the world of code was vast; and that it powered alot of my favorite things in life, such as videogames and the internet.

How I approached learning HTML/CSS

I was self taught through HTML and CSS. As I entered college; Coding bootcamps became a big thing. They were still in the early stages; but looked very intriguing. I joined one and began to learn Javascript and Ruby. At the time I also picked up some basic Java through my college courses.

I was assigned a mentor through my coding bootcamp; who helped guide me through HOW to approach learning code. Not just what to learn.

Challenges I faced

The biggest challenge I faced was accepting that I do not have to learn everything about a technology before I could implement it. I had to accept the fact that all projects I pushed out would not be perfect; and that as my skillset grows I can improve past and future projects. It is a constant learning cycle.

Key takeaways

The biggest takeaway has been to just push forward and not worry about where your skill level is. As long as you are passionate and always improving you can make strides in coding. There is ALWAYS something new to learn or improve on.

Tips and advice

Just start learning. HTML and CSS are the most basic things to learn when it comes to code; but to truly master these 2 basics is a never ending journey. I constantly pick up new techniques to use with HTML and CSS. And just when I think these two basics can't surprise me; they do.

You can always strive to write cleaner and more advanced HTML and CSS.

Final thoughts and next steps

This process has been great; and my next step is to pick up some new javascript frameworks. I want to bring that same learning method I have with HTML and CSS to some newer JS frameworks. The fundamentals are always key; and will help you build powerful and creative things.