Escaping Tutorial Purgatory as a Software Developer

The Learning Curve of Software Development

One problem that plagues many programmers who are just starting out is the over reliance on tutorials. Tutorials are a great way to begin learning a new technology but over reliance on them can be detrimental to the growth of an aspiring developer. Some programmers when they are just starting out may feel like they aren’t ready to start working on their own projects. My goal with this article is to teach readers how to utilize tutorials to their full potential by isolating key concepts, expanding beyond the scope of the tutorial, and how to use tutorials as a resource rather than as a guide.

Typically when we are new to a language and following a tutorial, if we haven’t already established an understanding of the foundations of the language we are using, a lot of the key concepts will end up being lost on us. The basics of the language such as variables, control flow, and error handling might be picked up right away, but a lot of the best practices of the language may be interpreted as inconsequential personal preference. One of the most important things new programmers should do when following along with tutorials, is take periodic breaks from the tutorial itself to really focus on the code you are writing. If we get lost in just repeating the code used in the tutorial, then we aren’t really doing ourselves any favors. Take the time to read the…