— Just the beginning

Hello, there

As this is my first post on here, i thought i would make a little introduction about myself and what are my plans for this page.

In case we haven't crossed paths yet (which is likely), I'm Victoria, a 23-year-old, soon-to-be 24, computer science student at the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG). Alongside my love for code, I'm also a history buff (fun fact: I studied history for 5 semesters before making the switch to comp-sci – a tale for another time), a sports enthusiast, a somewhat subpar skater, and quite possibly the biggest Survivor fan you'll ever come across.

I'm currently starting my 2nd semester at uni, and as i'm sure some of you can relate — if not right now, then at some point in the past — i find myself constantly overwhelmed by all the different languages, APIs, stacks, IDEs (i'm positive that at least two of those mean the same thing, which is a pretty good indicative of how much of a beginner i am) and overall concepts that are a part of the tech field.

Given that my only classroom rendezvous with programming is the antiquated C language – yes, I'm aware even as a beginner that C is a bit outdated – and my most daring feat was conjuring up a hangman game, I'm acutely aware that my programming prowess could use some modern-day enhancement. I recognize the need to seek out other resources to refine my programming skills with contemporary stacks and captivating projects.

The thing is, where to start?

As I'm sure you all know, there is no shortage of courses seemingly offering you the "pathway to success" in the form of 10 hours of content that will turn you from a complete beginner to a senior developer in just 2 months!

However, it's safe to say we're all well-versed in the skepticism that such claims evoke. While high-quality content – a good chunk of it free – can indeed be found online, it's a bit like wandering through a maze without a map, attempting to discern where to begin. Is pretty hard to know which area to tackle first — web development, front-end, back-end, data science, devops —, and even harder to feel like you've made any progress when you finally decide to start looking into one and realize that in order to understand that you need to have a grasp on 50 different concepts you've never seen before.

Cutting to the chase (my master plan, if you will):

Amidst this uncertainty, I've come to realize that the most vital step is simply starting, regardless of whether it's the perfect choice. Even if you're unsure about your preferred domain, even if your programming exploits have been limited to crafting C-based calculators, even if "starting" translates to revisiting concepts you're somewhat familiar with in C, and securing a robust foundation in programming logic – just take that plunge.

And that's what this page is about. This is me just starting.

More importantly, this page is gonna be a way for me to document my journey starting from day 1 (or perhaps, if you want to be precise, day 180 – factoring in my first semester of college – though that doesn't have quite the same ring to it, you know?) as I tread the path of learning and evolving into a full-fledged programmer 🤓

Sharing my learning experiences in real-time feels like a two-fold win. Not only does articulating these concepts help solidify my grasp on them – after all, teaching is a formidable teacher – but it also allows me to track my progression, acting as a powerful motivator to keep pushing forward.

I really do look forward to sharing this journey with you guys, and hopefully help some people that are in a similar spot as me along the way.

PS: I'm gonna try to make these posts in English — mostly so I can practice my writing in the language — but also because I think it can reach (and hopefully help) more people this way.