Some developers love learning through blog posts, articles, or just any form of written content. Others prefer finding videos, whether on Youtube or online courses, to learn about different programming topics.
Which is your preference when learning something new? It can also be a combination of both!
P.S: Look out for details about our latest release of Medusa this week 👀
Top comments (56)
I much prefer written content. A few reasons:
I do occasionally prefer a video for introducing me to a brand new concept, or for high-level abstract topics. The WET Codebase talk from Dan Abramov is a good example of something I would not take in as well in writing.
As an aside, I imagine DEV members will on average prefer written content, given that's what it's a platform for?
I was gonna mention if a video has a transcript would it be similar to a blog post experience, but then noticed that the video you included has a transcript so I guess that could answer my question!
Haha, Yes, that transcript is a really nice accessibility addition but it’s not as nice to read as a formatted article.
In theory, you could write a nicely formatted transcription, but at that point you’re creating two pieces of content and that’s a lot of work.
I think there are tools that automate it but you most probably would still need to proof it, especially if it contains code blocks.
I do agree with you guys. Reading is good when we already have some basic concepts but video is better when new concept. Actually, I also prefer reading because it quicker too for me.
The written format is the one I usually prefer
I find it easier since I can copy and test code, tinker around with it and scroll to the parts of the tutorial I need, without the hassle of going through the whole article
True, written content is definitely the best for copy-pasting
Written. As long as it is well written. I like being able to go at my own pace and try out code before going on to the next section of the article. I find I get far more from written then I do video. That being said video is nice occasionally to re-enforce complicated topics or to get a brief overview of a new topic.
I prefer written because written saves time at-least for me, lets suppose someone made a video of 10 min explain some topics then to understand that you need to waste your 10 minutes when i can consume the same thing with 2 minutes of reading thats my way of thinking and what i do.
That makes sense! Would it apply the same way if you were totally new to a topic?
90% of the time written works for me, but I also agree that sometimes learning with visuals can help you understand more with new topics, I also believe its the matter of your skill stage.
Completelly agree. Moreover you can check the documentation much faster this way than if it was a video 😅
+1 on the written format here.
Both..
If I want to learn new things and dont know where to start, e.g: "I want to learn NodeJS", then I prefer video.
But..
If I want to search spesific usecase, e.g. "how to connect NodeJS to Redis", then I prefer article.
That seems to be the general approach for everyone!
I prefer reading. But when I want to use new skills right away, I watch youtube videos. Like, when I got an assignment from the interview, I had to use 'react-query' that I didn't know and had to wrote test code, so, I watched videos about that and I could use them following their styles that were on the videos.
That's interesting! Did the interview go well btw? 😄
Yes, It went well, and I'm working there now :)
I like both, when I am learning something from scrash videos is a good option but whenI want to review a library or extension of something that I know I prefer read and article also when I am following a guide to complete a setup.
I generally prefer videos, if I'm honest. The format typically allows for quick little asides that more fully explain why a given thing is being done. Articles tend to have a lot of this information stripped out in the editing process.
That’s true in some cases, it probably depends on the type of article or its purpose
It depends on the situation. If I don't have a know how about the technology, first I watch a short video. Then, I start to read documentations and articles. Articles and documentations much more useful to find what you wonder or learn.
Written resources, of course. The documentation should be friend for the programmer.
Some official websites of the subjects provide nice written tutorials for getting started or quick start such as React Native that learners can immediately play around to get motivation.
Videos are for listening to what experienced people tell, like Patrick Syu aka Techlead (ex-google, ex-facebook, millionaire, youtuber) tells, for fun.
Originally it was videos but articles save so much time. The more you read, the easier it is to skim past the repetitive content.
Also it's easier to tell which articles are click bait or copy/paste compared to videos.
That’s a good point!
When it comes to software I prefer written cause it's the medium I'm more used to and it's less concerning for evil bosses who look at my screen (I'm looking at my dog right now!!). But if it's something I'm 100% a noob on, then video it is.
But, at the same time I love watching videos on science, history, art, gossip, etc. on my lunch time. I try to have other interests than software so, I don't actively look for software stuff in my downtime. c:
Why choose? If content is great, I consume anything. Videos are something I prepare for (get the headset, reserve some time), while articles and documentation is something I use more often and more casually and/or in spots
No need to choose! Just getting a general idea of what developers prefer 😊
I prefer videos.
It is much easier for me to get an idea of the process as a whole.
It also allows me to see stuff like how to handle styles or folder structure that's implicitly given with videos.
Makes sense. What I'm mostly curious about with learning through videos if you're following a tutorial with code snippets. How easy/difficult it is to follow along?