DEV Community: Ivan Smokrović

My first year of freelancing

Ivan Smokrović — Tue, 02 Feb 2021 09:22:07 +0000

Although I started working independently at the end of November 2019, 2020 marked my first freelancing year. A year we will all remember.
It took me almost a month to look back at last year's events and write this post with a positive attitude. Now I want to look back at the things I've accomplished and the things I've learned looking through UI freelance developers' perspective.

Design

In my first year, I used many graphic tools such as Adobe Photoshop, Sketch, and Zeplin, but of all the tools, Figma is my favorite. That is because it has a straightforward user interface, has the ability to collaborate with other designers, can make prototypes, and now and then throw out some new plugin that works well for me. I mostly used it to create logos, icons, and graphic elements to achieve visual elements on the web. It generates an excellent SVG code that, in most cases, does not need to be further modified. When required, I used a super SVG generation tool called SVGOMG.
2020 was the year when I met for the first time in my life making 2d and 3d animation. Although most people use Adobe Aftereffect, I opted for a simpler variant by trying Haiku Animator. I find it a great tool, especially for me as a beginner who encountered animation design for the first time. The thing that attracted me to it is that it can export in .json format which can later be used in Lottie. For the 3d animation, I used Spline, a phenomenal tool that resembles Figma a lot with its user interface and functions. The great thing about this program is that it can export web code that can be easily implemented in HTML .
You will soon be able to see the animation works on my redesigned portfolio web.

Developing

Last year, I did mostly static pages that I would revive via Netlify. Although I save most of my work on Github and for some it would be logical to use Github pages for that, I opted for Netlify. There are many reasons for this, such as custom domains with HTTPS, deploy previews, prerendering, and others. But that is a completely different topic now. If you want to see all the differences, you can do it here.
I did a few more projects on WordPress. Although I think it is losing popularity, I believe it is necessary to have a basic knowledge. I used the Local by Flywheel tool to start WP. It saves a lot of time when setting up the database, and it also has a live preview link. I mostly worked on maintaining or redesigning existing custom WP themes. It prompted me to learn how to make my own WP theme. I chose the Underscore base theme for the initial one, which I later elaborated into a fully customized theme.
In addition to all of the above, I have enhanced experiences in technologies I knew before. I switched from CSS to SCSS, learned the BEM writing method, improved my Javascript knowledge, and started learning the Greensock GSAP animation tool. Oh, that was a gamechanger! I didn't know until then that elements within a website could be animated with such ease.

Clients

As a self-employed developer, I had a chance to meet and work aside with some of the most talented people across the globe.
My clients were mostly startups or small and mid-sized companies, where I was being challenged to do the right tasks for the right people.
Most of the work I did came through the Upwork platform. Within half a year of creating the profile, I got a rising talent badge. My job success score is still 100%, and I am now in the program to become a "top-rated" freelancer.

Conclusion

Given that this is my first freelance year and that the Covid pandemic has hit the economy, I am pleased to have pushed through the year. I still have a lot to learn. I hope that I will succeed in becoming a web developer. I hope this year will lead to more successful engagements, happy clients, and awesome projects.

If you have a similar beginner's story or you have decided to take a completely different path than me, I would like to hear it. Feel free to reach me.

SETUP

Ivan Smokrović — Thu, 12 Mar 2020 13:06:19 +0000

For my second article, I decided to make a list of everything I use from hardware, software, and extensions to be as productive as possible as a UI developer.

HARDWARE:

MacBook Pro 15"(2019) - never leaves the office

i7 2,66GHz 6C
16 GB DDR4
Radeon Pro 555X
256 GB SSD

MacBook Pro 13”(2015) - in a backpack that is always with me

i5 2,7GHz 2C
16 GB DDR3
Intel Iris Graphics 6100
256 GB SSD

LG 34UC99 UltraWide Curved monitor
Logitech MX Master 2S
SATECHI Compact Backlit Bluetooth keyboard
SATECHI Classic Monitor Stand
SATECHI Aluminium Laptop Stand
Herman Miller Mirra | Graphite

SOFTWARE:

VISUAL STUDIO CODE EXTENSIONS:

BROWSER EXTENSIONS:

Pursuit of happiness

Ivan Smokrović — Mon, 02 Mar 2020 13:01:26 +0000

In this article, I will explain to you how, at the age of thirty, I decided to change my profession and pursue my passion.
After high school where I was not very good at mathematics (but otherwise very good student) I decided to enroll in the Faculty of Electrical Engineering. After one semester I dropped out of college because I did not have good mathematical foundations and could not keep up with classes.

Not long after, I started working. At first, these were low-paying jobs, and I changed them every couple of months hoping to figure out what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.
I spent ten years at my last company. Surely you wonder how it could have been if it wasn't a dream job? I hadn't planned to stay that long, but my employer raised my paycheck every few months. I loved the money and all that it brings. I could start living on my own, I started traveling and buying things that I couldn't afford until now. And every time I got fed up with my current job and started planning for a career change, my employer promoted me to a new position.
So in the first five years of working as an ordinary controller, I came to a higher controller, then to a dispatcher, and eventually to the head of the technical department. A job I had done for the last five years
It was interesting at first, but through some years it became monotonous. I no longer had to master new skills, it all came down to monthly routines. Then I started to wonder how much longer I would endure in this job. I was dissatisfied, only possessed the skills for that particular type of work, but I still didn't know what I would like to do for the rest of my life.

At the time, I was coming to a friend, Silvester, who was involved with Web development, and it seemed interesting to me what he was doing. He introduced me to the world of frontend development. He suggested that I start learning the basics of frontend, such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. I was skeptical at first because I thought I would need excellent math skills. I soon got rid of all my doubts when I started adopting materials with w3schools, Udemy and Skillshare. So I decided to enroll in a frontend development school in my hometown to further my existing knowledge and learn something new. I liked the ability to further develop my knowledge, so I quickly started learning various frameworks like jquery, bootstrap, and so on. I know it is a drop of knowledge in the ocean of knowledge, but it is what pushes me further, the eternal pursuit of learning new things.
I look forward to mastering new technologies.

After graduation, I decided to quit my job, start my own company and work as a freelancer. Now I'm sitting in the office with the same friend and now mentor who showed me the first lines of HTML code three years ago. I feel privileged to have the opportunity to work with a friend who has 10 years of experience in the field, and I hope that the student will one day become as good as a teacher.

And finally, for all of you reading this, take my advice, follow your dreams, be passionate about what you do, and get out of your comfort zone every once in a while.