It’s another potluck episode in which Wes and Scott answer your questions! This month - working with designers, criticisms of WordPress, avoiding burnout, time management, and more. Sentry - Sponsor If you want to know what’s happening with your errors, track them with Sentry. Sentry is open-source error tracking that helps developers monitor and fix crashes in real time. Cut your time on error resolution from five hours to five minutes. It works with any language and integrates with dozens of other services. Syntax listeners can get two months for free by visiting Sentry.io and using the coupon code “tastytreat”. .tech Domains - Sponsor Finding a great domain name is tough with so many names already taken. If you’re looking for a domain name for your startup, side project, or anything at all, check out .tech Domains. Syntax listeners can get 90% off both one-year and five-year registration by visiting go.tech/syntax and using the coupon code “syntax”. Show Notes 5:05 - How can you help a designer understand how styling works and how layouts work in the web? In other words: How do I explain my boundaries as a front-end developer to a designer? Work closely with the designer Allow the designer to push your limits You can help them understand by: Showing them poor performing websites Showing them things that usually are taxing on the GPU to paint - rotations, background images, drop shadows, etc. Don’t be afraid to let a tough design push your boundaries 13:23 - How do you manage your time for learning new things when you have children and a daily full-time job? Those who figure out how to make it a priority will win out Family first - talk to your spouse Ask your boss for time to learn and grow Find ways to get paid for learning 19:45 - How do you deal with burnout in this constantly evolving front end tech ecosystem? Make time for hobbies away from the computer Do projects just for fun Solve your own problems Syntax 035: Keeping Up with the Codeashians Syntax 041: Preventing and Dealing with Burnout in Web Development 25:00 - Do you code at night (past 9pm)? Start your wind-down time earlier Let your brain wok on problems while you sleep Get it out of your head Listen to podcasts, audiobooks, etc. 29:23 - How do you compress your videos/audio for your courses/tutorials? Handbrake Fast 1080 Use presets Output from video editor, rip from YouTube, or compress directly from video editor 33:10 - It seems like in the web dev community, a lot of people give WordPress crap. Any idea why? WordPress is dope - people just like to complain. WordPress is often one of the first things people learn and have bad memories of it It’s easy to write bad code with WordPress It can be slow It can attract a certain type of developer 33:10 - What are some of the biggest mistakes that people make when they are learning programming and what’s the best way to overcome them? Don’t focus on too many things Don’t worry about picking the right technology Focus on the fundamentals Let your curiosity and excitement drive you Celebrate wins 40:29 - What are your best tips for writing documentation? Start with basic API documentation, them move to more “article style” docs Use tools like CodeSandbox and Swagger Syntax 073: Reading Documentation 43:08 - What are some good questions or techniques to better understand a client’s requirements? How does your business work right now? What are people coming to the website for? Questionnaires are good - they get people thinking It’s your job to understand what a client want out of a website - what problems they have and need solved 45:38 - Do you guys have any tips for taking over maintenance and development of existing websites where the previous developer is no longer reachable? Take time to asses the codebase before writing anything Learn what’s there any and why Don’t start ripping out code without understanding what’s really going on Don’t leave it worse than you found it It depends on the stack, but it’s probably worth giving it an honest go before re-writing the whole thing ××× SIIIIICK ××× PIIIICKS ××× Scott 1: Drillbrush Bathroom Surfaces Tub, Shower, Tile and Grout All Purpose Power Scrubber Cleaning Kit Scott 2: iOttie Wes 1: Sabrent Wireless Charger Wes 2: CD Player Mount Shameless Plugs Scott’s Level Up Pro Subscription Wes’ Advanced React Course Tweet us your tasty treats! Scott’s Instagram LevelUpTutorials Instagram Wes’ Instagram Wes’ Twitter Wes’ Facebook Scott’s Twitter Make sure to include @SyntaxFM in your tweets