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Cover image for Get Started on Dev.to! A Beginner's Guide to Engage with the Community! 💡

Get Started on Dev.to! A Beginner's Guide to Engage with the Community! 💡

FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ on March 20, 2026

All Images are own by the Pokemon Company! Important Information: This post is an Unofficial Dev.to Guide and it is not a "get popular fast" appr...
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Anmol Baranwal

so cool to see that someone is still checking out "12 things you didn't know you could do with DEV". wrote it a year ago when I was still new to this community

From what I have seen, just add personal touch and don't write using AI, I'm sure people will check out your posts..

if you learn something new, write about it (in a way you want to learn)
if you hacked something over the weekend, write about it (in a way others can do it)

welcome to the community, hope you like it here :)

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ • Edited

Great points! I believe it was the right choice for me to mention your post about things we do not know about Dev.to. I could write it out here, but the goal is to make it short and sweet and it feels wrong to write it when someone already has it lol.

I do agree. Having the more human element in your writing than using AI to write everything makes one stand out. I don't use AI in my writing since I want to learn to improve my writing and speaking skills.

Appreciate the welcome! Hope you are well :)

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Andrew Bone

Poliwhirl waving hello

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Image

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Ilias Vlachos

I am new to DEV.to, really new a few days only. I have commented a few times in posts that I truly admire, cause there is really good material in here.

I am new to programming, I want to become a Data Analyst, either freelancing or employed, and I need some Python get going on, so I try to learn.

What I think is a bit hard for me - is to find within DEV.to, commenting or posting material that is understandable for people that are just starting, like me.

To be honest, I do not have a clue what MCP is, what Notion is, and many many other things are almost unknown to me, I may have read a name or heard a name of those, but I don't have a clue.

This post was a lovely one. Thank you.

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EmberNoGlow

You made me Google it. Seriously, even I didn't know about MCP and Notion because I've never needed to use them.

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

That's great to hear Ilias! Looks like you are having a great start on Dev.to!

Terminology will come and no need to know everything. If you don't know what Notion is, that's ok! This community is helpful and non-judgemental and I hope you are feeling that way here as well.

Nevertheless, hope your journey continues to do well! Thanks for reading!!

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theycallmeswift profile image
Swift

Woah. This is really helpful! I got a few great ideas myself out of reading, thanks for sharing! 🙏

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Hey hey Swift, the CEO of MLH! Thanks for reading and appreciate the comment!! Glad you got great ideas from this. Hope you are doing well! :D

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Aryan Choudhary

Great work putting this together Francis! Really helps out the new members here. Keep it up!!!

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Thanks Aryan. Been a bit! :D

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Deekshitha Kalla • Edited

Hi, I am Deekshitha. I am new to dev. and it become complex for me to understand this platform and then I found your profile you are replying to everyone without any hesitate. so, I like to text you. I don't know whom to ask my doubts. literally I have many questions. I think you will help me by reaching me when you are free. Thank you.

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Daniel Nwaneri

This is solid Francis. The consistency point is the one most people skip over. Everyone wants to know the posting schedule. Nobody wants to hear "just show up."
The thing I'd add and I learned this the hard way on dev.to — commenting came before everything for me. My first post barely got 200 reads. But the comments I left on other people's work are what started real conversations. The follows, the reads, the job leads that came later — they traced back to someone noticing a comment I left, not a post I wrote.
Dev.to rewards genuine curiosity more than output volume. That's rarer than it sounds.
Good work putting this together. Needed for the people just landing here.

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Thanks Daniel! :D

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Ana Carolina Fonseca Barreto

Isso é conteudo de qualidade!!!

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Muito obrigado! Espero que você esteja bem :D

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Filipe Lunfuankenda

Welcome!

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Nare Meliksetyan

Hi,I'm new at programming,and i'll be thankful if someone can reply my questions😊

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Hey Nare. Feel free to ask :)

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Grace Chiamaka

Very helpful, thanks I’ll use this guideline for my profile 😃

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Thanks Grace :D

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Travis Drake

I am new here, this was a great read. Thank you.

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Thanks Travis! :)

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Nikita

Thank you for the beginner’s guide. I was looking for online community/group for developers, since it is difficult to start out in a new area alone. I am glad I found the community.

TBH, initially I thought the conversations and posts will be too tangled with technical jargon for me to understand, but there is a little bit of everything for everyone at different points in their journey. So, thank you for the space!

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Thanks Nikita! Hope you are well! Dev.to is great since there is something here for everyone (even the small stuff)! Usually conversations aren't too technical in my experience since it is more about if the post resonated with you and things you want to add on. If it something about Java and their post is about how they like the syntax, you could mention that you also liked the syntax and add anything you want to mention that they have not!

Hope this helps and good luck on your journey here :D

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Sylwia Laskowska

Thank you so much for the mention! 😊
I genuinely love the discussions on DEV, especially when a post actually makes people stop and think.
When I publish more technical articles, the comment section often turns into a full-on conference Q&A session, which honestly feels like the best kind of warm-up 😄

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Hey no problem! Your posts are a great example of how posts are structured along with the discussions! It does take the time and think critically about what we learn and things we want to add on!

For me, I am an all-around poster. I post either technical/non-technical stuff. I am glad people are finding my post interesting!

Hope your journey continues to go well for you!! :D

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EmberNoGlow

Great article, but why are there so many Pokemon 🤯

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Thanks Ember! I like Pokemon, so there are so many Pokemon here lol. Thought it would be relaxing in a way to showcasing it here :D

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NorthernDev

Great post!

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Thanks @the_nortern_dev! Much appreciated :D

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Shaurya Dwivedi

Thanks a lot for this post, I made my account a month back with aim of blogging my learnings on weekly basis but gave up on it due to just thinking what if I don't write well? Your post just motivated me to write my first post here! I'll surely start with weekly blogging, Thanks a lot again <3

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Hey Shaurya! Glad to hear and welcome to Dev.to! Just followed you to witness your journey :D

No one here is perfect (even me!). Just remember to not do too much or you'll be burnt out. Also comment on other people's post if you learn something (like you did here) and I think you will do great! Thanks Shaurva :D

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Harsh

This is such a refreshing take on getting started with Dev.to. I love that you mentioned there's no correct posting schedule and that consistency and healthy interaction matter more. The reminder to stay open to different perspectives in comments is a great one it's what makes this community special. Saving this for reference!

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

I am Glad Harsh! There is no correct posting schedule. It's important since you can measure yourself and know if you will get a burnt out from it or if it is doable. I appreciate the comment and hope this helped you!

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Yosua M. Wowor

Great post man! Definitely reading it later
Im still new here so this post really help me alot.
Appreciate it! xD

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

no problem @yor! Hope this will help you on your journey on Dev.to :D

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Herrmer

Thanks for writing this

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Thanks Herrmer! :D

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Varsha Ojha

Thank you so much! It was really helpful!

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Thanks Varsha! Glad it is helpful!!

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Real Actioner

Thanks for your effort. I really enjoyed it! :)

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Thanks @realactioner! Hope it helped you as well :D

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Nikisha

Thanks for this mate , much needed !

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Great to hear Nikisha! Hope this helps :D

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southy404

This is super helpful, thank you!

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Glad it was helpful! Thanks @southy404!

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Julien Avezou • Edited

Love this! Some good pointers on how to get started.
A tip I would add to this guide is to check out ongoing challenges regularly as they provide a way to engage and get inspired + structure to write posts around a certain theme or project built. Also they are fun to participate in and you can win nice prizes!

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Hey Julien! Great idea (forgot to add that lol). Will add it in a bit! Thanks! :D

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

It is now added @javz! Thanks again! Let me know if anything else I am missing!

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Benjamin Nguyen

Well said! Thank you to provide a guidance for the new dev. members. It will give them some positive message.

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Thanks Benjamin! Especially would be useful to share in the Welcome Thread as well, so others can have a great start on their journey on dev.to! :D

Appreciate it!!

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Benjamin Nguyen

Thank you :).

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Amara Graham

I love a good unofficial guide!

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Indeed Amara! Gotta add a disclaimer there so other would not think I am a dev.to staff lol. I appreciate the comment and thanks for reading!!

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Daft

Thank you! I greatly appreciate the information! 🙏 🤲

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Thanks Daft! :D

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SO JS

Great post ! very helpful !

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FrancisTRᴅᴇᴠ (っ◔◡◔)っ

Thanks! Appreciate it :D