Explain like I’m five: Yer a developer, Harry!
I really, really love making websites.
It’s the best because you start out with a totally blank page and then you get to make stuff happen on it.
And when I am at work, I feel like this:
To this day, I still find the process magical: typing in the commands in all these strange languages that the processor then translates into an experience that’s available not just to me but to everyone.
Edward Snowden, Permanent Record
A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a blog post about learning to code. I promised I’d explain making websites as if you’re five years old. Because, despite there being loads of places all over the internet you can learn, sometimes they make some MASSIVE assumptions about what you already know. And so they can miss important bits out.
And you spend three hours trying to figure out which bit you’re missing 😐
After I wrote that blog post, I got really excited about writing more. I actually got up early on a Saturday and started writing a new one. But it’s still sitting in my drafts. Because it turns out that explaining stuff is hard. Where do I even start? What is safe to assume and what is not?
Does a five-year-old know what a browser is? Do YOU?
So then I stop writing and ate a rocket-shaped ice-lolly instead. (True story.)
Two weeks later, I’m still trying to figure out where to start, but I have an idea. Let’s start by learning some words.
And it turns out a five-year-old doesn’t know what a browser is. I had my sister ask her kid. (Who is actually six and a half, but whatevs.)
My sister: What’s a browser?
Her kid: It has two meanings: it means confused person, and also it’s another word for bra.
Lol.
The A̶-̶Z̶ B-T of web development
Browser
Where you go on your computer, tablet or phone to look at the internet.
Code
A word we use to describe all the languages a computer speaks. We write code to communicate with computers.
Code block
Several lines of code = a block of code.
CSS
One of the languages a computer speaks. Used for making a website look nice.
HTML
One of the languages a computer speaks. Used for adding words and pictures to a website.
JavaScript
One of the languages a computer speaks. Used for making things happen on a website, like when you click on a button.
Plain text
Words on a computer that don’t have any colours or fonts, so a computer can read them easily.
Text editor
The thing you open on your computer to write code in plain text.
Okay, that should probably do it for now.
Next time, I’ll use these words to explain how to make a website in three steps, and you can try and remember what they mean!
