This week, it was fun to learn PHP. I was not fully understanding everything that we went over in class last week when we started going over PHP and WordPress.org, but the exercises this week allowed me to really understand these concepts. It was cool to see how the all these languages work together and the similarities within them.
I have a love/hate relationship with Codecademy, and this week I really missed it. PHP is very similar to JavaScript (which isn’t my strong suit), so it would’ve been helpful to have Codecademy to provide me with extra examples. The PHP website doesn’t give you hints when you make a mistake on your code like Codecademy, so I was never sure what to fix in my initial code. I didn’t start struggling in the PHP lessons until I had to make a function that returned every number squared. It was helpful to see the screenshots and read the explanations of each task, but at times I struggled with using critical thinking skills to figure out which skill set to carry out.
After reviewing the WordPress site in class, I was shocked at how many websites are built with it. When looking at their themes, I noticed the templates looked familiar to websites I’ve used before. WordPress reminds me of Weebly because they provide templates you can follow to create the website for your needs. It differs because you get more creative freedom by being able to code behind the scenes. Seeing all the different themes got me excited to create my website and I’m curious as to how it will turn out.
Its crazy to think in the last 7 weeks I’ve learned HTML, CSS, JavaScript, jQuery, and now PHP. It’s interesting to see how the different coding languages interact with each other to create just basic visuals and output. This week I played my favorite game “Snake” on this random website. If I wasn’t in this class, I wouldn’t have realized the game was created in JavaScript. The creator even uploaded a link to his code that led me to his GitHub account. I was amazed that I actually understood some of his coding.
In case you feel like playing here’s the link 😉
What/why: I’ve tried to think of ideas for the final project since the beginning of the semester. I don’t have a business or a niche hobby that could benefit from my new skill set. So I thought, do what you do best and that’s talk (write). For my final project, I would like to create a site that’s an extension of myself. A blog where I flesh out my thoughts, conspiracy theories, latest hashtags and news of the day. Basically, my finsta in website form entitled, What Is Kyra Even Talking About?, something people around me say on a daily basis. I think this will be a cool way to create a form of content that’s new to me.
Audience:
What: For my final project I am building a website for my mother’s event planning business. It’s funny because when we talked about the final project on the first day of class, this idea immediately popped into my head. I remember thinking I might change my mind as we move further into the semester, but my answer has stayed the same. She recently bought the domain, so now all she needs is a website.
Planned Modifications: The website will include a (1) photo gallery of photos from events that she’s done, (2) a contact page, (3) links to her event planning social media pages, (4) blog posts, (5) a mood board for the current season, (6) a section that features her services, (7) an e-mail button that links to her event e-mail, (8) a header image, (9) her logo, and (10) an about page.
Why: I want to build this website for my mother because I fully support her dreams. She is currently stuck in a job that she is not passionate about. Having to listen to her vent about how unhappy she is has been hard. I’ve been pushing her to step out on faith and just start. She had a logo made, got business cards, and was actually in D.C. this past weekend for an event planning certification workshop. This website will be like my way of encouraging her to move full speed ahead.
Audience: This website will be for my mother’s potential customers located in the tri-state (New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania) area. People interested in event planning and/or decorating will also be targeted.
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:
What/why: In high school, I was in the television production program. During that time, I managed to create quite a bit of content: promo reels, documentaries, commercials, and graphic art. I’ve chosen to create a portfolio website to highlight my best work. I made one over the summer before senior year on Weebly, but it looks very amateur. Weebly doesn’t allow much creativity besides following a template. I’ve also learned a lot between now and then, and creating a portfolio site is the perfect place to showcase my new work. My film teacher always expressed to me the importance of having a portfolio to sell yourself as a prospective candidate.
Who: The audience I hope to attract with my site is potential employers. By seeing my work, I expect opportunities to open up once employers can see my media and observe that I made the website as well. I also want to attract other creators, so I can build a network to collaborate with others and improve my craft.
What/Why: After really spending the effort to come up with something clever or different, I figured that it was in my best interest to develop a personal portfolio with my new skills. It is unoriginal (suggested, actually, I believe), but it is an opportunity to put all the hard work I’ve done in my undergraduate career into one place. I have made portfolios before, but this one will be the one I use moving forward that will have all the cool gadgets. I plan to include my resume, a generic cover letter, and example of my work ranging from academic papers to news articles and even a little bit of photography I do on the side. I also plan on linking my social media and contact information on the site. The plan is for this to show my best work as well as show off the ability to create a functioning portfolio on my own. Just in an effort to show my versatility in all facets of content media, and even those things that happen behind the scene.
Who:Â This will be for future employers, as well as friends and family who are curious to see what it is I am up to these days. Those who may see me on LinkedIn or other various websites can go to this page to see if I fit their criteria for an employee.
We’re at the halfway point (or near it, at least). Just when I thought things were going great and I was excited to put what I learned into action, it all blew up in my face. I thought I had a pretty good grasp on jQuery but this week, it slipped through my clutches.
Here are a couple things I learned:
If you couldn’t tell, this week was challenging. This video helped me a little, but I still couldn’t quite get it and I still don’t know exactly what it is that I don’t know.
Here are a couple specific questions I had:
Anyhoo, jQuery will not take me out without a fight. I’m coming to class with my pencil ready, and my mind clear.
Here’s a sneak peek of what you can expect for my midterm:
Diana O. Eromosele is a software developer at Newsela. She is also the founder/developer of categorizedtweets.com, a tool that sorts politicians’ tweets out by issue so constituents can easily take a quick look at what they care about. When she’s not busy coding, Diana also teaches web development languages. She has a journalism background. Look out for my profile to find out how/why she made the switch!
This past week we had to apply the concepts we learned about jQuery and create a photo gallery. We created an outline of the steps during class, which was really helpful. The thought of having to figure out making the gallery on my own is overwhelming. As we worked through it during class I realized, I am picking up on the vocabulary and concepts. JavaScript alone was challenging, but jQuery helped make it a little more bearable. Writing code is really about understanding how different parts relate to one another.
The highlight of this week was being able to interview a black female web developer. This class has really opened me up to the industry and hearing her perspective really impacted me. Though the field isn’t as diverse as it could be, she stressed the importance of showing up. Karen had a totally different career before transitioning into web development and design. Hearing about her career path also reassured me that it’s OK to jump around in your career. Interests change and that is perfectly normal. As a senior with no current job offers, this was a helpful message.
I’m not exactly sure where my career is going but I’m so glad I am in the School of Communications at Howard University. Our journalism scheme forces us to have knowledge and skills in a variety of different mediums. I never would have thought I’d be learning how to code, but here I am. I can only hope that my diverse skill set will allow me to stand out as a potential candidate for jobs.
This week was dedicated to finishing our midterm assignment, which turned out to be a bit of week off. Coming off of last week, where most of my classmates and I were confused, it was nice to research on something a little different. For me, I was able to focus on a project that combined my love of law, and the very intriguing things I am learning in this class. It was quite enjoyable to see these things mix. Along with seeing this, it sparked my interest to see if I could find different law schools that had similar design teams in their schools. It was one of the best aspects that came from the project that has opened my eyes to more things available. This school year has started to pick up and I am already feeling the pressure. While this class is a bit difficult, it is a change of pace compared to my other classes. While it has to deal with aspects of journalism, that is not its complete focus. It is an opportunity to engage in something new — almost foreign — and it helps end my weeks. The challenge is also something to look forward too, since I am not hearing the same jargon like in the rest of my classes. Having to find my own solutions to issues rather than just explaining it or convincing someone of an argument is something I enjoy about the class. The middle of the semester is almost here, time to buckle down and finish the semester off strong.