How I learned multiple technologies and developed side projects in my spare time

This article mainly shares with you some experiences on how the author learns multiple technologies and develops amateur projects in his spare time. It is divided into several parts: original intention, hard skills, soft skills, maximum productivity, environment, and time. It takes about 10 minutes to read.

Regarding some of my previous side projects, an answer I gave on Zhihu can probably summarize it:

My learning method

Before I start introducing my experience in developing amateur projects, let me share with you my learning method. However, I think learning varies from person to person, and everyone has a learning method that suits them, so this is just a reference. I hope everyone can find a learning method that suits them first.

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When I learn a technology, I usually go straight into practice. I have tried to read various basic grammars or some slightly in-depth books on design patterns first, but I found that this method is inefficient for me.

For example, when learning Objective-C, I bought several books and studied it for half a year, but I still had only a partial understanding of it. Of course, another key point is that you need to study it continuously. If you only read a few pages a day, it will also be an important reason for your inefficiency, because the syntax of the program is relatively awkward, and it is difficult to remember all the knowledge points by rote memorization.

So later, after I quit my job, I took an iOS outsourcing job directly. At that time, I had never even written iOS code on Xcode. I forced myself to spend a month to master it and make an app.

During this month, I invested a lot of time in learning iOS development, and tried to take an efficient learning path. I didn’t have time to understand all the basic OC syntax, so I went directly to read articles about iOS programming (Apple officially has a lot of practical introductory documents).

Then practice directly, type code on Xcode to make layout, and then run to see the effect. For functions that you don’t understand how to implement, just go to Google to search for articles, quickly check other people’s methods, and then practice.

Of course, this is a shortcut but problematic way of learning. During this month, I stayed up all night several times just to solve a problem with some details. I kept checking articles and experimenting, and when it didn't work, I checked again, and repeated this process. In fact, my efficiency was not necessarily high.

However, the biggest benefit of combining learning with practice is that you can grasp the knowledge points more solidly and concretely. However, after this month, I still have only a limited understanding of iOS development. It was only after continuous training through other less urgent projects that I was able to officially get started.

Later you will find that grammar is really the most basic thing in a development skill. Familiarity with grammar is only the first step into development. There is still a lot of knowledge that needs to be constantly summarized in practice.

When I first learned node development, I also started directly from practice, because the syntax was actually no problem. At that time, I thought that I needed to make a website and practice some basic node development or database design, deployment, server operation and maintenance knowledge through the different functional modules of the website.

My first idea at that time was to use node to implement the WordPress blog I built, so I just did it. Later, I found that the blog was still too simple, so I wanted to turn my blog into a community.

Everyone can come here to post blogs, or ask questions, and there are also functions such as forum posting. The structure of the entire website has become complicated, and the requirements for program structure design and database design have become prominent. Through the continuous iteration of this website, my understanding of nodejs has become more and more in-depth.

My main skill is still front-end development, which is my job. I basically learn and practice other development skills in my spare time, including other soft skills such as design, product, and operation.

The method is nothing more than what I mentioned above, so what I will talk about next is my feelings about the amateur development projects. In fact, the ultimate original intention of these projects is not only creation, but also a very important point, which is the practice I use to learn technology. No matter whether your product succeeds or fails, at least my technology has improved.

So, don’t do things that don’t require any technical skills in your spare time, such as outsourcing some image cutting work or things that you are already familiar with. Give yourself more things that challenge yourself.

The original intention of the amateur development project

In general, in my opinion, the domestic environment is actually very unfriendly to amateur developers. However, as a developer, complaining blindly will not bring about much change. What you can do is to keep your original intention in mind, try more and accumulate more.

I have also had in-depth discussions on similar topics with some friends before, such as classmates who asked me to talk about related topics on "Zaixing". I actually encourage everyone to be brave and become freelancers or amateur developers, although the environment is indeed not very friendly.

But it’s always a good idea to try more when you are young. After all, we still have the capital to explore more possibilities, and I believe that every developer actually wants to use his or her power to change people’s lifestyles.

However, what we usually do is always to be a screw in a big project. Over time, we lose the original meaning of innovation. At this time, we are getting further and further away from being a creator. We will naturally feel panic in our hearts. Where did my original passion go?

Although these major projects are indeed constantly changing our lives, my original intention is to be able to lead a change, even if it may only change a small lifestyle of a small group of people.

I have always felt that programmer is a very magical profession. It is not that the profession itself is magical, but the power that code gives us is magical. We can create a virtual world out of thin air, make the rules of this virtual world, and make this world operate according to our ideas.

But this world will also ask you to change yourself in return, because a properly functioning virtual world requires strict rules, which requires you to have the ability to design products, design reasonable rules, and design a closed loop of operations.

This is also the ability model of amateur developers that we want to emphasize. You can't just have the ability to code, and you can't just create. Instead, you have to create reasonably, explore new needs of the crowd, and create truly useful products.

In fact, this is one of the important topics to be discussed today: How can amateur developers make a real product?

Hard Skills

This is not as simple as it seems. First of all, in terms of technology, you need to master enough technology to complete all aspects of this product. Now, let's take my previous app Bedtime Stories as an example. What technical accumulation do I need to complete this product?

Client development, iOS, Android, of course, if you choose to support only one platform, you can only master one of them, of course, you can also use some cross-platform technologies, but in addition to language and programming mode, programming framework, it is far from enough, platform differences, platform characteristics, version compatibility, adaptation, and the most troublesome part, how to publish your app to the corresponding platform after the successful development? How to set up in-app purchases, etc.? Especially for iOS, the cost of publishing an app is much higher than you think. In addition, there are basic data statistics, message push, sharing integration, etc. related to the terminal, which can be done well in the first version, and this requires you to understand the integrated development of these functions.

Front-end development, there is a backend for uploading stories, which is of course very simple. After the story is shared from the app, there is an H5 page, which can directly play the audio, and there are some instructions for downloading the app. So front-end development skills are also necessary. There are also some promotional pages that are usually used.

On the server side, all stories are stored in the background, which requires a database, and the server application provides data distribution and some data statistics.

Data recording and analysis: I need to record the user's actions and other useful information to the server during the user's use, and then use this data to analyze user behavior in order to decide which stories are the best and who will be popular with them. I can then do targeted push or paid services.

Design ability is a core requirement. Without basic design ability, it is difficult to make an app that will impress or at least look good, especially since mainstream apps on the market now have a relatively high experience threshold. It is difficult for a crudely made app to attract users. In this regard, we also need to do some deliberate cultivation. Although we may not have received professional training, we can learn from others' design styles and slowly cultivate aesthetic taste. Of course, the most important thing is to master the design tools.

In addition to technology, you also need some other non-technical abilities. These abilities may be an important watershed that distinguishes you from other programmers. It determines whether you can create products, rather than what specific technologies you have mastered.

Soft skills

Let's talk briefly about:

Demand analysis, product planning. What kind of product to make is not because of what technology I have mastered or what kind of code I can write. Technology is just a tool. To realize its value, it must have original needs and basic product forms. So to start developing an application independently, the first thing to do may not be to master many kinds of technology, but to think clearly about what kind of product you want to make. For example, when I wanted to make an app for bedtime stories, I did master the above technologies, but these are not decisive. If I didn’t master them, I could learn them, but why did I make this app? It’s because I have resources (my wife, who is a good storyteller, she is a teacher, and there is a group of potential seed users around her), and an audience (strong demand, high stickiness), so I began to think about how to use these resources. I think the cost of a storytelling app should not be high, and it should be easy to promote and have high enough stickiness. Although there are many similar apps on the market, I can create my own characteristics. For example, I only have a teacher who tells stories, and the quality of the stories is very high (most storytelling apps on the market are perfunctory), and I have strong brand and label attributes. In addition, my design and development capabilities are outstanding, so I can make my app more sophisticated and easy to use than any other app.

Promotion and operation. Most amateur developers should be very worried about this. How can I expose the app I made with great difficulty to the audience? How can I get more people to install my app? How can I maintain the active retention rate of the app? In this regard, I recommend that you first try to explore more. In addition, pay more attention to everyone's usual methods in the company's work, learn more from colleagues in corresponding positions, and think more about yourself when you encounter similar problems in the workplace. If you are asked to promote an app, what methods do you have? You can also share here how to promote the app specifically. First of all, you must ensure that your app is excellent, otherwise you push the app to the user, and he is unwilling to download it, then no matter how you promote it, it will be ineffective. Then for promotion channels, you can find some free channels, some app recommendation websites, apps, public accounts, and find ways to contact their editors. Then ask them to recommend your app. If your app is good enough, they will be happy to help. There are still many such channels, such as the most beautiful app, minority, appsso, etc. Another channel is some vertical forums and social networking sites, even Zhihu. Then the so-called operation, the most basic thing is to have some interaction with users in the app, to maintain the user's enthusiasm for use, and even help you spread the app to friends, which can be in the form of some activities (effective means of operation). ***One more thing, when appropriate, you should be willing to spend money, but you should spend it on ideas, you can organize some gift-giving activities, or you can do some paid promotion to rush to the list.

Innovation is the ultimate productivity

Now that we know what basic skills are needed to build a product, how do we actually start making a product? What type of product should I make? What if others have already made the products I can think of? How can I compete with others if I don’t have enough manpower to carry out large-scale projects? What if my promotion and operation capabilities are limited and no one wants to use them?

Sometimes I get confused, especially when I make an app and then go through a lot of trouble to promote it. I either find that it is extremely difficult for an individual to promote an app, or I find that when I push the app to users, users are not very excited to accept your product. At this time, I will start to think about how to break through? Should I seek more exposure channels?

Or should I do some fancy and attractive operational activities? I feel that these things are not that simple for me, and the costs are also very high. The more I think about it, the more headache I get. The more I think about it, the more I feel that it is really not easy for me to accomplish something.

However, maybe I was thinking about the wrong direction of the breakthrough point. What is the core competitiveness of amateur developers? It is not your resources, not your flashy and sensational gameplay, but your innovation ability led by your personal will!

Users are very sensitive to innovative features (of course, they must be reasonable first). If your app provides an unprecedented way of use that can solve problems, this is the core competitiveness of your product. In the best case, you may not need any active promotion or operation. Users will spontaneously help you spread the word and maintain a high level of activity.

Of course, this kind of innovation does not refer to a specific technological implementation, nor does it refer to a fancy design. You need to understand and balance it yourself.

environment

Now that we know how to develop a product independently, let’s talk about other things, such as: Why do I say that the domestic environment is not very friendly to amateur developers? Why are there so few full-time amateur developers?

Economically speaking, it is actually no problem for an amateur developer to support himself, but the current domestic environment is that being able to support yourself is far from enough. First of all, you have to be able to support a family, then you have to maintain a house and a car, you have to repay the loan to the bank, you have to pay taxes to support the country, all these factors require you to either have a stable income or have strong enough economic conditions.

If you don't have a good financial foundation and a stable income, it will be a difficult thing for your family to accept.

Of course, this is the general environment, and you can completely break free from these constraints, but the general environment still has a huge impact on people. It is difficult for you to get rid of the normal lifestyle and state. All these suggest to you that engaging in freelance independent development with unstable income is not a good choice.

There are also other issues, such as social security, five insurances and one fund, household registration, visa, etc. If you don’t have a formal job, these things will become very troublesome.

In fact, I really want to be a freelancer, so there was a year when I didn’t have a job and tried it at home for a year. In addition to my own self-control problems, I also knew that I couldn’t maintain this “free” state for too long (unless I succeeded overnight, but at that time, I would not be “free” either).

Because as a normal person, I need to bear a lot of responsibilities that society requires me to bear but I may not be particularly happy about.

Of course, there is one more thing. I need to go back to the workplace to observe and learn how to be a "normal person" and how to create "large-scale products". Although this may not be my original intention, we are not geniuses and we need the assistance of the world to do anything, so we need to communicate well with the world.

In this environment, in addition to encouraging more people to participate in freelance and independent development teams, the best choice is to make partial compromises.

But don't forget your original intention. Use your spare time to pick up your passion for technology and products, and slowly polish an amateur product. Through this polishing process, accumulate experience (hard skills and soft skills) while maintaining creative activity.

time

The topic we will discuss next can cover several issues, such as how can a person master multiple related skills in a short period of time? How to maintain your passion for amateur development? What should I do if I feel that my skills have not improved?

In addition to 0.1% of understanding and 1% of methods, the biggest secret that enables you to do things that others cannot do is: time.

If you are really interested in something, then invest 100% of your passion and energy into it. For example, the time from 7 p.m. to 2 a.m. after get off work every day (of course staying up late is not encouraged) is 7 hours. You spend 7 hours more on work and study than others, which is 200 hours a month. Adding the weekend time, it is much longer than your formal working hours. These times are the key points that widen the gap between people.

For example, if you learn iOS development and learn one knowledge point a day (plus practice), I think you can cover most of the knowledge points in a month at most. Of course, this requires great enthusiasm. After all, not everyone is willing to invest a lot of their spare time in learning or doing projects.

When I was working on my previous personal forum and app, I was actually quite exhausted. I had to spend most of my spare time and stay up late every day. As I received more and more user feedback, I needed to constantly optimize my products, perfect my ideas, and realize them.

Although it is very tiring, the sense of accomplishment is still very strong. This sense of accomplishment will motivate me to continue to invest more time and form a positive cycle of my own growth.

However, there are always bottlenecks when doing things. When I encounter a bottleneck, I will deliberately slow down the pace, read other types of books, study other types of technologies, or simply relax.

Just Do it!

Having said so much, I don’t know if it will be helpful to you. In any case, the most important thing is to start executing. There will always be some ideas popping up in your mind, I wonder if they are reasonable?

Then just try it first, and slowly you will find out what is reasonable and what is unreasonable. Everyone goes through such a process.

Then I will observe more big and small problems in life. There are always problems that I can solve with technology within my ability, and this may be a good idea. In addition, I hope that friends who really love technology and creation can always keep their original intention.