My Flutter Mobile Development Journey (Part 1)

Anthony Bekoe Bankah — Sat, 23 Aug 2025 14:19:11 +0000

I came across a Flutter Mobile Development Training on LinkedIn, and what really caught my attention was the statement:

“No use of AI for generating solutions, but AI can assist you.”

That sparked my interest because it meant I had to think first, code first, and then use AI as a guide - not a crutch. So, I decided to follow the steps, applied, and got in.

What I’ve Learned So Far

Here’s a snapshot of my progress:

Dart: Basics (variables, operators, functions, OOP, control flow) + problem solving.
Flutter: Project structure, hot reload, and why it’s powerful for cross-platform apps.
Widgets: Stateless vs Stateful, plus core widgets like Text, Container, Row, Column.
Layouts: Combining Column, Row, Expanded, Align, Padding for responsive designs.
Routing: Push/pop navigation, named routes, and passing/returning data.
State Management: Understanding ephemeral state (setState) vs app state (Provider).
Dialogs: Creating dialogs with headers, dropdowns, and buttons.

Challenges Along the Way

It hasn’t been smooth all the way.

Overflow issues: Especially when using layout widgets without specifying dimensions - that was a headache at first.
State management: App state (Provider) felt overwhelming until I decided to sit down, slow things down, and approach it step by step.

But those challenges have been key to my growth.

How I Handle Errors & Issues

I’ve learned that debugging is an art. Here’s my process when I hit a wall:

First, I try my own ideas.
I seek help from friends.
If it’s new or tricky, I Google extensively and Gemini (AI) really helps with suggestions and reference links.
If I’m still stuck, I turn to ChatGPT for clearer explanations.
And of course, the official Dart/Flutter documentation is my ultimate reference.

This layered approach keeps me from depending too much on AI while still leveraging its guidance when needed.

Where I Stand Now

Right now, I can confidently:

Build multi-screen apps with navigation
Manage both local and global state
Create interactive, responsive UIs with layouts and dialogs

It’s still early in my Flutter journey, but I already feel the foundation getting stronger.

App Screens Showcase

Splash Screen	OnBoard Screen	Home Screen (with Dialog)	Categories Screen

💡 “Everything in Flutter is a widget. Before you start coding, plan, sketch, and write down the necessary details. Code what you’ve already envisioned - this gives clarity, structure, and purpose to your app.”

🚀 I Built "Journal Companion" – A Dev Journal with Collaboration & other Cool Features

Anthony Bekoe Bankah — Mon, 09 Jun 2025 10:57:07 +0000

Hey DEV community 👋,

I’m excited to share something I’ve been working on:

🧠 Journal Companion

A journaling tool for developers, indie hackers, and creators to reflect, share progress, and collaborate — with a little help from AI.

💡 Why I Built It

As a developer, I often lose track of what I’ve built, fixed, or learned throughout the week. I wanted a simple, beautiful place to document progress — for myself and optionally with others. And thus, Journal Companion was born.

⚙️ What It Does

✍️ Create Projects, Milestones, and Entries
🤖 AI-powered assistant to help you write better updates
🤝 Public or private journals for collaborative documentation
🖼️ Supports Markdown for rich formatting
📘 Shareable journal links like this one

🛠️ Built With

Frontend: React, TailwindCSS, React Router, Framer Motion
Backend: Express, Node.js, MongoDB, Firebase
Authentication: Google OAuth, JWT
Other tools: Vite, Axios, React Markdown

⚔️ Challenges

Some frontend challenges included routing, state management, structuring nested data, brainstorming UI/UX, and content to train the AI chatbot.

Backend challenges included package version mismatches, database integration, Firebase limitations, and merging frontend + backend flows smoothly.

🙌 Accomplishments

Fully working AI journaling app with Markdown support
Collaboration-friendly public projects
Clean and intuitive UI
🎥 A full video demo ready!

📹 Demo & Links

🎥 YouTube Demo: Watch here
🌐 Live App: https://journalcompanion.netlify.app
📘 Public Project: https://journalcompanion.netlify.app/world/68460291853910d0c610272d

🧪 Try It & Share Feedback!

If you're a developer, content creator, or someone who likes to reflect and document, I'd love for you to try it out and let me know what you think!

💬 Drop your thoughts in the comments or DM me on any platform.

Let’s build better habits around reflection and learning — together.

Thanks for reading! 🙏

DEV Community: Anthony Bekoe Bankah