For many people, software development is some inexplicable thing relegated to the über smart who’ve spent years studying computer science in an IVY league school.
That’s not the case.
Anyone can become a developer as long as you’re willing to put in the time to learn a language and apply yourself. But even before you choose a language to focus on, there are certain key things you need to understand about programming that apply no matter what language you use or what you’re developing for.
Think about it this way. If you decide you want to become a chef, you need to understand the fundamentals of cooking before you attempt to learn the finer points of working for a Michelin-star restaurant. Skip those fundamentals, and you’re going to struggle.
But what are those fundamentals? As I set about learning Python, I realized I would have been better off had I understood these things before jumping in head first.
Here they are.
Comments and Documentation
We’ll start off with something that’s fairly self-explanatory. When you write code, you should be adding comments and documentation. Why? Because there may come a time when you either have to revisit older code (and can’t remember what you did) or maybe someone else has to take over. If you don’t comment and document your code, it’s going to be a challenge to figure out what’s going on. Make sure you understand how to add comments and documentation to the language that you choose (for example, some languages use # for comments, and some use /).
Conditionals
Conditionals are fairly straightforward. The simplest way to explain them is that if a condition is True, one block of code is run, whereas if the condition is false, a different block of code is run. A simple example in Python would be:
The condition above is if name == “Jack”:. If that’s true, the first print statement is run. If the condition is false, the second statement is run. Conditionals are a very important part of programming and make it possible to create more complex code.
Creativity
You may wonder why I’m including creativity on this list. The truth is creativity is absolutely essential to software development. At some point, you’re going to run into a problem, and the usual solutions won’t solve it. When that happens, you’re going to need to get creative. There’s not just one path to success in software development, and sometimes the best path may not be obvious. A creative mind will always be able to see multiple solutions for a problem and can apply any one of them to see which is the best solution. Do not hesitate to employ your creativity.
Data Types
Every programming language uses data types because you can’t just throw a piece of data into a program and expect it to work without helping the language understand what the type means. There are some universal data types that are used in every language, such as integers, floats, booleans, and strings. It’s absolutely crucial that you not only understand the data types available to your chosen language but also how they work and what they do.
Flow Control
Flow control informs how the execution of code happens. There are three basic types of flow control:
- Sequential – code is executed line by line.
- Selection – code is executed based on conditionals.
- Iteration (loops) – statements can be repeated repeatedly until a condition is satisfied.
Functions
A function is a unit of code) that is designed to perform a specific task. Functions contain a set of instructions for the task and can be used repeatedly within a program or even reused in other programs. Functions are defined by name and then called by name throughout the program. Functions are modular, allow programmers to abstract the details of an operation, are reusable, easily understood, and help simplify testing and debugging.
Libraries and Frameworks
Libraries and frameworks make it easy to extend the feature set of a programming language and allow you to write even more complex software without having to reinvent the wheel every time. Libraries and frameworks are different, though. A library is a collection of pre-written modules that include reusable functions, classes, and data structures to perform specific tasks. A framework, on the other hand, contain a set of libraries that include specific functions. Both of these tools make programming more efficient, flexible, scalable, and reliable.
Loops
A loop allows you to run a block of code repeatedly based on a specific condition. There are several types of loops, such as entry-controlled loops (where a condition is checked before the main body of the loop), exit-controlled loops (where the condition is evaluated at the end of the loop), for loops (iterates over a sequence of elements), while loops (entry-controlled flow structure that executes a block of code repeatedly as long as a condition is true), do-while loops (exit-controlled structure that executes a block of code a minimum of one time and then repeats the loop as long as a condition remains true), and nested loops (where one loop is placed inside another).
Variables and Syntax
Instead of “hard coding” every value into your program, you would use variables, which serve as containers for storing data values. By using variables, you make writing code considerably easier. On top of that, you can also make changes to those variables more easily if needed. For example, if you set name = “Jack” at the top of your program and use the name variable throughout, should you need to change “Jack” to “Olivia,” you wouldn’t have to go through the entire program to make the change, you would only need to change the variable once.
Related to variables is syntax, which defines the structure of a language. Given that most programming languages use their own syntax, it’s important to understand that you must follow those rules otherwise your program will not work. For example, you have to know how to define an integer in your language. For example, the Python syntax for specifying data types (also known as “casting”) looks like this:
In C++, that would be:
Version Control
Although you probably won’t need to use version control (such as Git) early on, eventually, it will become essential (especially when working with a team). Version control allows you to track and manage changes to your code. When working with a team, version control allows the team to manage changes to code over time. Every modification made to code housed in a version control system (such as Git) is tracked in a specialized database, such that if a mistake is introduced into the code, it can be rolled back. Version control can be your best friend as a software developer.
There you go… a few fundamentals you need to understand before making your journey into the world of programming. I only scratched the surface of these concepts, so you’ll want to continue your education with each and, while you’re at it, start learning the intricacies and eccentricities of the programming language you’ve chosen to work with.
The post The Key Fundamentals of Programming You Should Know appeared first on The New Stack.
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