It takes as much energy to wish as it does to plan. — Eleanor Roosevelt
For some reason, I’ve lately been thinking a lot about what it takes to break into the web design industry and learn CSS. I reckon it has something to do with Keith Grant’s post earlier this month on a CSS mental model where he talks about a “common core for CSS”:
… Read articleWe need common core tricks like this for CSS. Not “tricks” in the old sense (like how to fake a gradient border), but mental patterns: ways to frame the
The difference between a CSS good experience and a long frustrating one is oftentimes a matter of a few small details. CSS is indeed nuanced. One of the most common areas where I see struggles is layout. Personally, I like to study patterns. I notice that I tend to use a small group of patterns to solve the majority of my layout problems. This article is about those CSS patterns I use to get myself through layout challenges. It is … Read article
Outside of my extreme envy of the SEO they are going to get out of this, Rachel is spot on here. Learning CSS has some pillars, like language syntax, selectors, layout, and flow that, once learned, unlock your CSS merit badge.
What I would add is that if you really want to learn CSS, give yourself a project that has real-world stakes (like a personal website), so what you are doing with CSS feels important and gives you the incentive … Read article
From mediatemple.net
I share my own thoughts on how you might go about educating someone you just built a site for. But it turns out I had a lot of fun putting together a ton of other people's thoughts as well. I tweeted about it and got a flood of responses, so this article is an amalgamation of all that. … Read article
The path to becoming a front-end developer, as looked back upon by anyone who self-identifies that way, is likely a very windy one full of thorn bushes and band websites. Still, documenting a path, even if it's straighter and far cleaner than reality, is an interesting exercise and might just be valuable. Three different writer/developers have taken a crack at it this year and their results have been extraordinarily popular. Let's take a look.… Read article
From keithjgrant.com
Keith J. Grant:
I want to look at three key characteristics of CSS that set it apart from conventional programming languages: it’s resilient; it’s declarative; and it’s contextual. Understanding these aspects of the language, I think, is key to becoming proficient in CSS.
From bradfrost.com
Brad Frost's "Just" article from a few years ago has struck a fresh nerve with folks. It's a simple word that can slip out easily, that might be invoked to keep text casual-feeling, but the result can be damaging. Brad:
… Read articleThe amount of available knowledge in our field (or any field really) is growing larger, more complex, and more segmented all the time. That everyone has downloaded the same fundamental knowledge on any topic is becoming less and less probable.
I was talking with a pal the other day and moaning about flexbox for the millionth time because I had momentarily forgotten the difference between the justify-content and align-items properties.
"How do I center an element horizontally with flex again?” I wondered. Well, that was when she gave me what I think is the best shorthand way of remembering how the two work together.… Read article
Howdy. I'm taking this week's "Sponsored Post" to give a shout out to some apps, courses, and services that I personally like. These things also have affiliate programs, meaning if you buy the thing, we earn a portion of that sale, which supports this site. That money goes to pay people to write the things we publish. That said, everything on this list is something that I'm happy going on the record endorsing. … Read article
Raise your hand if this sounds like you:
You’ve been in the tech industry for a number of years, you know HTML and CSS inside-and-out, and you make a good living. But, you have a little voice in the back of your head that keeps whispering, "It’s time for something new, for the next step in your career. You need to learn programming."
Yep, same here.… Read article
From hackernoon.com
Jose Aguinaga pinched a community nerve:
The JavaScript community is insane if it thinks anyone can keep up with this.
I heard a lot of Hilarious! So true! reactions. I heard a lot of Nope. This isn't what it's like. reactions, sprinkled with You don't have to use/start with every tool. and Both of these people (in this fake conversation) are kinda jerks.
Some Baby Bear reactions include Tim Kadlec and Addy Osmani. Sacha Greif wrote to me to … Read article