Thoughts on Javascript from somewhat of a newbie
06 Sep 2019
Initial thoughts on Javascript?
Coming from someone who started off with Java as their first programming language, I was completely expecting Javascript to be basically the same with a couple features that are different between the two. If not that, I was even thinking that Javascript was built off of Java just like how C++ was built off of C. I think this would be expected because they share the same word, “Java”.
Prior experiences with Javascript?
This summer of 2019, I was fortunate enough to have been a part of an internship program at the college I’m attending, University of Hawaii at Manoa, and they were working on a project that required me to somewhat work with Javascript and using the React library. Although that makes it sound like I should be well-versed with Javascript or somewhat knowledgeable on it, I actually had a hard time trying to learn javascript because it felt completely different from Java. After a while, I did start to make sense of the language and I am now currently taking a class called ICS 314, which teaches Javascript, and it is helping me learn more about the language.
Final thoughts on Javascript … for now
I think overall, Javascript is a pretty fun language to learn about because it is different from what I am used to and I find that interesting. For example, in C++ or Java, to have an argument in a function, you first would need to specify what type the argument is, whether that be string or an integer. In Javascript however, it does not care for the type of the argument and will take any type you throw at it which makes it convenient in a way because you won’t need to change the type if you find out that you’re going to be using a float instead of an int. This also makes it somewhat confusing too because you need to remember and know what type you want the argument to be.
Athletic Software Engineering? What is that?
Athletic Software Engineering is a term used in my ICS 314 class because ICS 314 happens to be a Software Engineering class. The word “Athletic” is added in there because of the method that the class uses which involves working on solving a programming problem with time-constraints on them. This makes the class somewhat stressful and intense.
Thoughts on Athletic Software Engineering
I personally think that this way of teaching is fun but stressful. This is because although it’s fun to see how long you can solve a problem, it also adds in stress because not solving the problem in time results in a zero as a grade for that problem. This means that you are forced to actually practice at home and refine your Javascript skills because if you do not, then that means you may not solve the problems, but this adds stress because you’re required to do more work on top of the work from other classes that you are taking.