What’s Next?
Congratulations, you’ve reached the end of Intro to Creative Web Development!
You’ve learned a ton in the past few weeks. You learned GitHub, GitHub Pages, how to work with code files, HTML tags, CSS selectors, CSS rules, flexbox, JavaScript, DOM manipulation, variables, event callbacks, animation, if statements, for loops, arrays, libraries, p5.js, and Bootstrap.
Take a second to pat yourself on the back. That’s a lot!
Takeaways
One of my favorite things about web development, and coding in general, is that it gives you a new way to express yourself, to build something meaningful to you, and to be creative. Hopefully you got a taste of that in this class!
More logistically, code is everywhere: from social media, to the phone in your pocket, to algorithms making decisions about what information you have access to. Hopefully this class demystified some of that: code isn’t magic, it’s the same process you’ve used yourself in this class.
Without getting too philosophical, I also think there’s value to being able to build what you want on your own terms. In a world made up of the walled gardens of huge tech companies, writing your own HTML is an act of subversive defiance.
That might be a little melodramatic, but if nothing else, I hope this is your takeaway: even if you never write another line of code again, you now know that code is a tool that works for you, not the other way around.
Keep Learning
If you want to keep learning, coding, and building after this class, here are a few ideas to get you started:
- Create your own personal webpage with links to your social media sites, your resume, etc.
- Want to showcase your art, photography, or hobby projects without relying on big tech companies? Build a portfolio page with pictures and descriptions of what you’re working on.
- Want to automate something for work? Learn about Google App Script or shell scripting.
- Did you enjoy playing with p5.js? Take a deeper dive with the p5.js tutorials!
- Use GitHub Pages and Jekyll to create your own blog.
Keep in Touch
I’d love to keep in touch after class! Feel free to reach out on Twitter, LinkedIn, or the Happy Coding Forum.
Thanks for an awesome semester!