Hello, fellow devr's!

I'd like to introduce you to my recently launched blog My Web Development Odyssey where I’m writing about my personal experience learning to become a self-taught web developer.

I’m Marvin. I began learning web development about three months ago, in a few spurts, though now I have a plan and am sticking to it. Mostly, so far. This site is about my reflections and my processes of learning web development within a few very important contexts.

Though I have a science degree, it’s not computer science. No formal coding education here. Knowing that, it may be no surprise that I’m seeking information as a career-changer. I’m also entering the arena as a mid forty-something. And as a person who’s dealt with major depression the majority of my life. The most recent dip which led me to being “disabled” and not working for several years. Even though most wouldn’t notice, I am also high functioning on the autism spectrum. Though this has caused some complications it also has many advantages.

So, the cards seem to be stacked really high against me. Does this worry me? Yes. Is it impossible for me to see a favorable employment outlook? Not at all! You can find out more about me here.

What I’ll be blogging about

I’ll be talking about many things full stack web development. What I plan on learning. How I’ll go about doing that, and how it has worked or is working. I’ll be posting about things I understand, and things I don’t. I’ll be sharing thoughts on general learning techniques, and how they may be helping me.

Other topics I’ll include will be career related. Things to keep in mind as my projected date of employability nears. At this point, my tentative date of employability as a junior web developer is Dec 31, 2019. Just under 10 months to go! Of course, that is subject to change as life has a funny way of interfering with even the best laid plans.

I’ll be writing about the methods I use to learn, such as paid and free courses, tutorials, coding challenges and projects, books, and other resources, such as blogs. And more. We’ll be looking into software and apps I utilize and those I think would be beneficial.

Why am I doing this?

I want to share this process as it is happening. Raw and mostly unfiltered. Most importantly, I’ll be sharing this in those contexts in which I mentioned earlier. There are so many of you on similar paths and I hope I can help in any way possible. Even just one of you is worth it. Not only is my aim to assist and possibly enlighten readers, but it’s also a win for me. Getting thoughts onto a page helps us consolidate, compartmentalize, and solidify the knowledge we have. A deeper level of understanding can help us utilize it more effectively.

Final thoughts

My Web Development Odyssey is a work in progress. It will change along the way. When I say change, I’m referring to both the process of learning and the website itself. Especially in the beginning I’ll be adding more resources, pages, and links.

I’ve had a few small blogs before, but nothing at the scale of what I think this site has the potential to become. With time, both quality and usefulness will increase.

I hope there is something here that is useful to you. Since I intend to learn a few back end programming languages I hope this site appeals to both those of you interested in web development and those interested in programming in general but not necessarily web development.

As I create new posts I'll be sure to add them here, as well.

Be sure to leave any thoughts in the comments section below. I welcome and value what you have to say. Lets Learn together!