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Cover image for A Beginner's Journey: Part One
Mark E
Mark E

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A Beginner's Journey: Part One

Every journey requires preparation, you know your destination and plan your itinerary. You pack your bags and start on your journey. Being a developer is similar. There are many problems you will encounter as a beginner but preparation helps limit misery.
I bought my first computer for word processing. It was what I could afford at that time and it was sufficient for my needs as a researcher and freelance writer. The spec sheet was the worst, it was running on 2GB of RAM and used a 500GB HDD(hard disk drive).
I decided to pursue my passion of being developer during lockdown and installed Python and Node successfully, but I struggled as I began to install more packages.
I upgraded my RAM and switched to Ubuntu and it improved the performance of my computer but it still had its limitations. I learnt the hard way that there was a reason software providers had hardware requirements. My opinion, if you plan on being a developer, you need the best possible workstation. There should be no compromise on RAM - at least 16GB. A computer with a SSD (Solid State Drive) of a minimum of 256GB and a quad core processer.
The more you learn, the more your hardware needs increase. In addition to having the right hardware is ergonomics. You need a cozy environment to work, an enclosed space with minimal noise, a comfortable chair and desktop. A cozy room should also have some plants, space to walk and a sofa to rest sometimes. A TV and a gaming console is optional if it won't be a distraction.
In conclusion, get a good computer; from my experience, brand and Operating System is subjective. The next thing is where you code. It should be somewhere you are pleased with and can immerse yourself in debugging code.

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yasyaindra profile image
yasyaindra

yes, of course to be in competition in nowadays make sure you have a prepared weapon. but the most important thing is you have set goal, and dont be easily distarccted by the advance of the tools you use!. like you use high end computer just to play games etc. lol

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