TALK CODE SERIES
Talk Code
That day when you learn how to use tech terms in your day-to-day conversations.
Talking like a “real software engineer” is not a native ability.
If you feel like you are the only one in the room that can not talk code, stop! The smart and quiet developer next to you also doesn’t talk code.
That’s why he’s just nodding away silently.
In my experience, 7 out of 10 applicants for a Front End developer position at Fiverr do not talk code. They understand the concepts but do not use the terms. Interviewing the other 30% is like listening to a beautiful code poem.
So what can I do to get more code talkers? I will guide you to talk code!
Talk Code Guide - Part 1
This first guide is a collection of sentences and transcripts from talks that we have on a daily basis at Fiverr. The recap for each sentence is aimed to help you see the complete picture and boost your confidence. Some of my own views on the current state of technologies are in there — I do like to get to the roots of things in order to understand them better.
The most obvious terms are most likely to be forgotten and almost aren’t used by developers which is a shame. You’d be able to use this guide better if you know Javascript, HTML5, CSS3, NPM modules, MVC and React.
Comments in the same sunny and ironic spirit are welcome.
Let’s get started…
This code should be isomorphic!
This a perfect example of how sometimes we just chase our own tail.
Not that long ago servers returned your HTML files, all nice and ready to the client where javascript revived it into a UI.
When single page applications emerged, HTML creation became javascript responsibility. Javascript then generated the HTML on the client side, which caused slower page loads.
Javascript had to adapt. It had to run first on the server side to generate and serve the view, just like it was done not so long ago (a self-conflicted ironic smirk). Then the same javascript code runs again on the client side reviving the view.
When a single javascript code runs both on the server and client, it’s called isomorphic javascript. Thank you Charlie Robbins!!!
React is not SEO compatible.
When the HTML view is rendered on the client side, Google bots can not crawl and index the page properly. This will result in poor Google search results and your web app will be as good as dead to the world.
So you better make your script isomorphic and render your views on the server.
Google’s 2015 announcement about Google bot can crawl and index your JavaScript files, was misunderstood, They can do it only partially.
If you want to know whether your frameworks work well with SEO, you should check out the latest experiment by Bartosz Góralewicz and his ‘It was wrong’ follow-up article.
The project’s dev dependencies are not the same as the production dependencies.
In order to build a web project we use NPM packages listed in our package.json file. The project is dependent on them, but most packages differ between environments. For example, the testing and eslinting packages are required only in the dev environment.
A short guide to types of dependencies is right here. Also please, extend your understanding of the NPM dependency model.
This is lexical scoping!
I love and recommend this wonderful post by Nick Balestra. He explains the lexical scope, hoisting, and closures in an easy and simple matter. Sometimes it’s all about finding the right post!
Please repeat each sentence five times, aloud to the mirror, like the kick-ass developer you are!
If it sounds like another tutorial to you, then for now you’re probably right.
You should wait for the next guide which is in the works right now.
On the other hand, if you are that kick-ass developer, go to work today and do what I did — write down the sentences with the cool tech terms your coworkers say, Google it, and filter results for the past year.
Go over the tuts and the guides to find that perfect one.
LMK how that goes!
