Author Archives: Zadriuna Bridges

Project Analysis… Lord be a fence

I was finally able to make my website.

This is one of the hardest things I have even done, and I even got help from classmates and Professor Greg. I felt much anxiety with the pressure of this website, but that comes along with much more. While taking this class with 7 others, a lot of things started to run together and I had a very hard time with the amount of task at hand, but that is besides the point.

I received a lot of help from my classmates and that is honestly how I was able to complete the site. In all honesty, I had no idea where to begin, but I believe this is because I genuinely had a lot going on all at once. I knew exactly what I wanted to do, but had no clue how to begin this process. It is really hard for me to ask for help and I think that I can do everything on my own, but really sometimes we need to stop and ask for help. One thing is that I really wish that our professor was more accessible on campus with office hours, but this situation was very different.

The customizations on my site are pretty cool, especially the to do list. Although I had a lot to add to my site, the process I was at seemed very well for what was going on at the time. I learned a lot and eventually began to be able to do things on my own or by following general steps. I think because I am such a hands-on person, it was very hard for me to begin, but once a learned the steps it was doable.

My site needs a lot of work, but I am glad a lot of it is done. Making it live is a very difficult process and that is what I am dealing with right now, but by the end it will all be together.

Moving Forward….

This class was……

Challenging for me personally. I thought this would have been a very fun, interesting, creative class, but it moved way too fast for myself. I am a hands-on learner and I know I need to go step by step to understand things. I would love to continue to get the hang of coding and web development, but this class was actually very difficult for me, but I also had a number of other complications in the semester. I think if this class was twice a week and we began to work on our projects earlier, it would have been a little less stressful for me in the end of the semester. The idea of coding and web development is great, but when I originally signed up for the class, I realized that it was not what I expected. I did not know what I was expecting, but it was not the experience I received.

Although, with the struggles of this class, I did enjoy it. I would love to see how I could build on these skills maybe if I take my time, and actually study the skills, I would grow to find passion for this skill.

Enjoyed the midterm, and the fact that we got to speak to a developer and see what they do and they work. Also, being a journalism major, I enjoyed the writing aspect.

Moving Forward……..

I enjoyed this class, and I learned a lot throughout the semester.

Final Pitch

What/why: As I sat, and thought about what I truly wanted to do as my project, all I could think about was me. I wanted to do something that I knew I would be proud of and have fun making. I have been pushing to start a blog called “It’s not such a Different World after all,” but I have yet to put that plan in action. I think that this would give me a perfect opportunity to start my blog and allow me to create something I am proud of and can call my own. The blog would consist of my home page, abut page, experience at Howard, and other posts I have always wanted to write. I think that this will be a challenge, but I would love to grow the skill.

Audience:

Passion Found

Toren Desuly is an web developer from Washington, D.C. who works for Seaberry, a development and design company in Washington, D.C.. Desuly began his journey with web development in 2007 when his first job was to be in charge of web presence of the company. Along with that job, he had to gain a knowledge of web development, so he enrolled in classes at George Mason University and began to learn basic HTML and JavaScript. After completing his time at George Mason, he began to take classes around the D.C. area from companies that provided extra training. Desuly has been an developer for 10 years now and has yet to look back. Desuly states that his intentions were not to become a web developer but, because it was presented to him, he took the opportunity.

Desuly holds the position as the lead web developer at Seaberry. His main structure of development is using the WordPress system. He stated that WordPress is used in many big businesses and, in his opinion, it is the best on the market. It’s also more accessible when discussing price. All of his work is done through WordPress, but he also oversees content management with all clients sites because content is important. “There’s no reason why you should have a great site with no real content,” he said. Desuly takes pride in his work and applies the principles taught to him while in school.

When asked what his favorite project was, he told me it was the D.C. Chambers website, www.dcchambers.org. This website was conducted for D.C. Chambers, a company that reflects on the diversity of Washington, D.C. and the business and tech aspect of the city. The website was developed with PHP. PHP is a scripting language, generally inscribed inside HTML. PHP hides underlying code from the client side. When you look at the site that was developed, you see a lot of movement, and a lot of content. A lot of information is given on the site. The site personally grabs my attention because of the colors and movement presented in the site. Another one of his favorites was the D.C. National Environmental Site, https://www.neefusa.org, which was also done in PHP. He states that these to sites were fun to work with due to the different graphics, colors and content

Desuly has never used his talent to freelance. He has always worked for companies. In his opinion, he believes that the freelance time is not worth the little money it brings due to smaller clients, where as his company brings bigger clients.  The resources provided by his company were also a factor of not freelancing his work. With freelancing, you only have what you can afford and what you know, but with other resources and others around you that you can lean on, he believes you can accomplish way more. His favorite languages to work with are PHP and HTML. He states that you can do so much with them and they are the basics, so you can’t go wrong with them. He first learned HTML and then began to grow from there.

When I discussed that I was studying development, he asked me how I felt about it and how I felt everything was coming along. I stated that this is my first time doing anything related to coding and, in this experience, I am currently learning something new every day. He was very excited that I was interested in development and that I wanted to continue to learn more. He continued by giving me some tips that he felt was important for me to know. He first told me to get as much training in school as possible because that is the best way to learn it, with guided help. He also told me there are never enough classes you can take. There are always new language classes that you can take, or events where other developers get together to teach each other things that they learn. He also stated that development and design are two different things, but if you can do both, that makes you more competitive than someone who just knows one. Content management and design classes are very vital and you can never perfect your craft too well. He also told me that having knowledge with the Adobe Suite also sets you apart because development and design are evolving everyday. I mentioned to him my minor is graphic design and I am very fluent with the suite. He also emphasized networking and getting to know others, and to me that is very important and something they teach us at Howard University constantly. Desuly says that he will continue to develop until he finds a new passion, but this seems to be his for the time being.

 

JavaScript is…

JavaScript is a the coding language that allows detail to your HTML, similar to CSS but more details. JavaScript is the mostly used language and makes up a huge section of web development. When working with JavaScript, I knew it would become very complex and very out of my box, being that I am a beginner. I did become frustrated with it, being that it has so much detail, but once I continued to stick with it, it became easier. I never thought that I would actually learning how to code, although this is still a new concept to me. I really wonder if I will continue with this or just learn the basics. I would love to keep up with this skill, but I am also asking if this is truly for me and something that I want to be apart of my life. It is still early and I think I have time to discover this. But I do see how all of the languages are coming together to work together.

Something New

Learning the CSS format and how it actually works was very unique. Although, I did more of the topics that were needed, I still learned a lot. As I said last week, I was still on the edge of understanding web development and how it all truly worked out. Learning this format was also way more complex than learning basic HTML.

CSS focuses on the style of the web page. I felt I was actually learning much more in these exercises. Along with more detail came more confusion. This did introduce a new world to me, but with new things come new thoughts. I kept wondering how all of these codes were memorized by coders. Do they do it so much that it becomes as a second language? Or is there some form of a code cheat sheet going around with all the common languages and tips to help? I know I personally had a difficult time remembering things, especially while things were being added on. Maybe I should make myself a sheet with the code meanings and tips to help me memorize the codes.

CSS is interesting, to say the least. I think this is the part I truly enjoy of this web development series. As I said before, I never thought of web development as a career choice. If I can truly gain a liking for this and find enjoyment, I would truly go into this field. Using this class to explore this option is also exciting. I never thought I would be able to do this. I know I am no where near expert level, but I do find enjoyment in this even if it means I have to find extra training after school. If this is something I truly enjoy, I would not mind finding that extra help and push.

Who ever thought…

Who would have thought that I would have interest in a Web Development class? I have no experience in web development and coding and it is all very new to me. Learning about HTML and the rest of the coding systems gives me insight into the world of code. Using Codecademy and jumping straight into HTML gave me a little worry, but as soon as they continued to go through the steps and explain them, I began to worry less. Once I began understand the pattern of the HTML layout, it became easier as it went on. We were also introduced to GitHub and that also threw me a curve. Although both concepts were foreign, the reading and tutorials both were very helpful and informative.

Learning new codes is introducing me to a new world and I new skill that I never had prior access to. As an African-American women, I believe that we do not know much about this industry let alone, dominating in it. I believe that this is a skill that will help one stand out and if possible, able to excel at the skill. I hope to be able to gain the basic skills when this class is over and be able to increase in my knowledge.