[austincheney]

* If you want to get better with security study for the CISSP and read security literature. Right now I am learning how to produce certificates and trust authorities from openSSL and its a huge pain in the ass even just for localhost.

* If you want to get better at programming write an ambitious open source application. With enough experience you will realize that any given application is just some variable mix of instructions and data structures.

* If you want to be a technical expert in the real world get better at writing. Spending time writing original technical documentation, revise it, and then write some more. Writing ability is what identifies the adults in the room.

* Web development is a contentious subject. If you want to be employable learn a framework. Memorize the framework's API, become familiar with the tools and conventions, and tap into the framework's development community. You can fail at everything else.

If you want to be a strong web developer and make more money spend the minimal amount of time on a popular framework to be minimally employable. Spend the rest of your time focusing on code portability, performance, and accessibility using conventions directly gleamed from the standards. Know how to quickly build a web application with confidence without a framework.