Ask HN: What should I learn as a 42 year old designer looking to build web apps?

[adamselene]

I’m a designer who’s long been interested in the dev side, so this year I’ve decided to build a web app from scratch. Problem is, there’s so many different languages and frameworks it’s hard to know what I should focus on first.

What would be your recommendation for something that’s powerful, fairly easy to get started with and hopefully useful career-wise too.

I’m fluent in html/css and know a bit of Python and JavaScript, if that helps.

[ilaksh]

Call me crazy but why can't you use Python and JavaScript to build web applications?

Especially if you are building for your own clients or web applications, no one is forcing you to use a framework.

I have been building with just basic Express.js and plain JavaScript on the front end for many years. Generally speaking my clients and users could not care less that it's not React or whatever language/framework some developers may think is better.

[rcarr]

Personally, given your existing skillset, I would master javascript. Start off trying to build a blog using a simple static site generator like either 11ty or Astro and then take it from there. You might find this site useful:

https://roadmap.sh/

[ravagat]

Invest into a course and/or SaaS boilerplate. One course I recommend and have taken is https://www.founderhacker.com. Your background is in design and a lot of things behind design is fundamentally transferrable to tech, the course is guided by practicality which plays into design and I think you may find it valuable.

I recommend a SaaS boilerplate because it aligns entirely with what you've asked which is "powerful, easy to get started and useful career-wise". You're already fluent in html, css and a bit of Python and JS so you're already one step in. You could check out https://www.saasforge.dev since there's a free version you could play around with. From there you could reverse-engineer to learn how it works and was built from scratch.

Good luck!

[adamselene]

Oh cool, that looks great, thanks.

[ilt]

I hope this post gets more traction and suggestions/resources/references because I am on the same side as you and have just started on bootstrap's pre-made templates to get my first foot into webdesign. I am trying to figure them out and tweak them using dreamweaver in sync with what I want as a Design/UX person. Bootstrap has extensive documentation available online which has been quite helpful as well.

[moomoo11]

Try using sveltekit. Hit me up if you have questions.

All you need to know is a bit of JS and you can write html + css. You control what shows up on a page easily without needing to learn a million complex things.

If you need persistence that is also simple to set up without having to learn SQL and Go or whatever.

[adamselene]

Thanks! I’ve just read the overview and it looks really interesting. Will give it a go.

[thedevindevops]

No one has yet mentioned Django? A python framework for web applications. Or Flask.

[saluki]

You should checkout Laravel or Rails.

Laravel probably has the better community and would probably be easier to get started.

You can check out laracasts.com.

https://laracasts.com/series/laravel-8-from-scratch

Laravel is getting more and more popular.

I've used to to build apps for NFL Teams, Fortune 500 companies and I'm currently building a funded startup with it.

There are lots of 6 figure Laravel development jobs out there.

And Laravel is a joy to work with I actually look forward to working.

Good luck.

[schwartzworld]

Depends what kind of apps you want to build. For some kinds of apps that don't require a backend, or rely on an external API, you already have the tools you need in html css and js. Systems like React are tools you can add into your workflow eventually, but you can get very far without them.

If you want to build full stack, Python or JS are both cromulent choices, but there are others. Personally I would suggest Ruby on Rails to most new devs.

[philonoist]

I might be able to show you the direction.

Since you are looking in those 3 factors, please study the following findings of the Surveys.

https://insights.stackoverflow.com/survey/

https://www.hackerrank.com/blog/category/industry-insights/

https://www.jetbrains.com/lp/devecosystem-2021/

https://www.jetbrains.com/lp/devecosystem-2022/

https://redmonk.com/sogrady/2022/03/28/language-rankings-1-2...

https://redmonk.com/sogrady/2022/10/20/language-rankings-6-2...

You could tinker the above links to get your choice of month/year.

Now, don't be tempted to lock down your decision because there is rarely any good resource to learn( or get help when you are stuck) online in that choice you made.

Simply pause yourself on that and start with learning SQL + Python + FastAPI + JavaScript (or SQL + Go + JavaScript). Garnish with Tailwind CSS and you are ready!

This is the easiest way to transition your learning further into your choice of stack. In the long run, you will learn Typescript + React for sure. It is as if the right of passage into the market, haha!

A couple more links that you can search on hn.algolia.com

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=34530052 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=34551770

[ackatz]

* Python (FastAPI or Flask)

* SQLite (with Litestream)

* Docker

* GitHub Actions

* Deploy out to AWS or Fly.io

[Moziee]

Understanding database management is important when building web apps for sure. Having an organized system to store your data will keep you sane. Of course a huge importance for security and reliability as well.

[ninethirty]

I get the impression React is the most bankable. I learned it on Udemy for $10 (they were running a sale that day)

[adamselene]

Bargain!

[Apofis]

https://freecodecamp.com/

[mattl]

Laravel and in particular laracasts.com has been good for me getting back into it after an extended break.

[reducesuffering]

Next.js, React, TailwindCSS. I’m very confident these are the right choices for you.

[adamselene]

Thanks! I know tailwind pretty well, but I’ve always felt a bit daunted by React. Will have to give it another go.

[hnarayanan]

What sort of webapp would you like to make? :)

[anon223345]

Flutter!!!