Programming Languages On My List/ What I Plan On Learning In The Future
My first real introduction to programming was in college with Java, but that didn’t go so well. It was hard to find time to code and focus on other classes at the same time. HTML and CSS was fun, but we don’t call those programming languages right? I currently attend Holberton School and now I can confidently say I know C programming and Python, but there’s definitely a lot of room to improve upon. Eventually we’ll get into Javascript, but there are a few languages on my list that I would like to learn during my free time.
I got an app idea I’ve been wanting to build since December of 2016 and a dope web app to go along with it. My interest in AR/VR is another thing on my list I want to get into as well with a little machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) sprinkled in there somewhere. My mind is filled with ideas and projects I just want to get started on. Learning the tools to make them is the first step to getting there. The best thing about going into these languages is the endless opportunities that are presented to you. That can be said for anything related to software.
Here are a few languages I got on my list and what other skills I’m looking to add to my arsenal.
Why do I want to learn swift?
- I want #1 app on the app store
- From idea to palm of your hand
- AR glasses 2020? 👀
- I’m currently working on an app
These are the ones I can think of off the top of my head. The app I’m currently working on is a newer version of the same app I previously shipped with the same name. Won’t go into what it is exactly, but it’s different from the original idea I had. That project was outsourced, but I’m hoping to build the next one myself.
No longer on the App Store and Google Play Store.
Of course, I’m hoping this can get me the number spot on the App Store. Why do I want it? Because why not. The magic of just having an idea go from your head to the palm of your hands is just everything to me. The thing I love about software is that it’s easy and cheaper to distribute than building something that’s physical. Everyone has a phone, tablet, or computer and software is an awesome way to reach a new audience. I just want to be able to build something and have others use it. To go and say “I built that” excites the hell out of me.
I’ve been coming across people saying that progressive web apps will be replacing the App Store and Google Play Store in the future. Hard to say, but I doubt it. The popularity of writing apps cross platform with one language sounds appealing also, but I’ve been seeing a lot of advantages to building apps natively versus using tools like Flutter or React.
AR/VR is the next big platform after mobile phones. I stand by that. It’ll also enrich the mobile experience even further. I’m a little conflicted on which will be the first to take off, AR or VR, but I’m gonna bet it’s augmented reality that will be the first to be popular. With that being said, I’ve been doing some googling and it’s rumored that Apple is developing AR glasses and to be released as early as 2020. Now I’m not 100% convinced on this. They acquired a company called Akonia Holographics a while back that makes AR lenses and tech and Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst who is notoriously know for predicting apple product launches correctly, says we could see them by early 2020. Now AR and VR are on on my list for sure for things I want to get into, but best believe developers will be able to develop for those glasses and guess what language they’ll most likely be using 😏. I already plan on diving into their ARkit and there’s no doubt Apple will look to grow in this market. Just recently I decided to pickup a little Objective-C during my first year at Holberton.
“iOS is honestly my fav developer experience and most fulfilling for me because I’m touching everything from memory/CPU/system resources/networking to UI.” — Kiren Srinivasan
Now what about the companies already setting the bar high like HTC Vive and Oculus. Well I gotta get my hands on this experience too because virtual reality is going to change how we interact with computers. The ability to create worlds and invite others into them is an amazing way to have people interact in a more engaging way. Next generation consoles like Xbox and Playstation will no doubt come up with their own VR headsets for thier gaming platforms. Sony already has with their Playstation VR headset.
So is being a AR/VR developer a lucrative career move? Absolutely not and of course today you wouldn’t think to ask this question, but I would never have thought we would be this early in augmented reality and virtual reality being this popular and commercially assessable. Now it’s still expensive to own a VR headset and as technology gets better we’ll see them get cheaper and hopefully handle a lot of the computing and process on the headset itself. One thing that killed it for me from owning a Oculus was also coming up with the money to get a pimped out pc.
Now I’ll be learning C# on my own time whenever I get the chance, but Holberton School offers a specialization track specifically for this. The reason I want to get into learning C# is also to learn Unity and start developing for Oculus or HTC Vive. I plan on doing the Full-Stack Web Development track for year 2 at Holberton. After completing the program though, all specialization tracks are open to students to go into. Best believe AR/VR and machine learning are tracks I plan on enrolling in.
So many things to learn and not enough time. I want to know them all. For me what it really comes down to is web, mobile, and VR/AR. Machine learning is definitely another thing I want to get into, but math is my number one enemy. Calculus being the my arch-nemesis, but I’ll get the math down eventually and at some point get into that as well. I got a thing for UI/UX design and I’m always messing around in Sketch or Adobe XD to visually design the experience I want my users having. I can see where this can be applied to in AR and VR, but I definitely use these skills when developing mobile apps.
Learning never stops in this field
Some of the languages mentioned on the left I’m already familiar with, but still want to get better at. Definitely want to work with other tools like Unreal Engine and Blender. Javascript and Python being my top ones. Others not listed like Dart and Kotlin are ones I’m looking into for android development (yes I want to know all of it 🧠 ‼️).
So is it a software engineer or a software developer I want to become? I hear these two titles get juggled back and forth, but I guess they’re basically the same. I would say it’s a creator or inventor that I want to become with code. I want to use these technologies and skills to create tools, platforms, and worlds for people to use. I want to use technology and software to allow people to interact in a more engaging way. This year, 2019, will be a busy year for me, but it feels good to know exactly what I want to do. It feels great to know exactly where I want to go.
