Top 5 reasons that make it difficult for developers to write code (Software Developers In Nigeria)

Today the fastest growing in demand profession is computer science, with an increase rate of almost 15% between the year 2015 and 2021. It is estimated that the rise in demand will continue even till 2030.

Well, this is great news for young aspiring programmers out there who are looking to build a career in the field. I believe that, at least, any average programmer will most likely get a job that is rewarding, if they are determined and hardworking.

In this article, I will highlight the main reasons why so many programmers still don’t know how to write code, especially in Nigeria. Also, I will use this opportunity to give valuable insights about some of the best and easiest software languages and frameworks to learn and where to find these resources.

I believe that, understanding coding and its fundamentals, is a professional approach to ensure a higher probability of success for any web developer.

One of the main reasons why many programmers still find it extremely difficult to write code and create unique online contents is because of the total reliance on libraries and 3rd party dependency. A good amount of platforms in Nigeria are regurgitation, simply a repetition of previous published projects. This is the reason why you find almost all e-commerce website looking the same and almost serving the same purpose in an already saturated market.

I cannot say, that all programmers in Nigeria are lazy or that they are not smart enough. Although, I am quite sure that many are not aware of the major concepts of programming and the underlying purpose of a programmer which is to solve problems. Instead, many are just chasing quick and easy money. This has resulted, to the continuous loop of copy and paste coding, but not really analyzing the true purpose for building a software application.

When you rely so much on libraries it affects the performance level of your product and also limits your content to existing contents already in use. Due to the constant changes within the Google algorithm, it is getting a lot trickier and technical to win Google’s favor in terms of search engine optimization. The quality of pages and contents combined with your website page speed and mobile performance all affect your SERP when Google evaluates to give results based on user’s search input online.

To be a programmer and achieve success you will need genuine dedication of time and patience. Software engineers even in developed countries, such as the United States and China, still go through trial and error as this is still part of the engineering process to achieve success. What I mean is, do not condemn yourself because you write a block of code that doesn’t work the first time you run it or deployed it.

Learn to debug your code, ask smart questions, read more genuine written codes out there online but do not copy and paste codes, try to relate the structure or even the syntax and pointers of your code with what is out there and I am pretty sure, you will find what you are looking for. Be determined and equally be ready to accept failure that is all part of being a scientist.

Here is a personal story, I built a successful well structured e-commerce website based in Nigeria from scratch using PHP 7.3 and HTML5, CSS and JavaScript (Vanilla) without any reliance on external or third party libraries and within 1 year 5months the project was 100% complete. This decision I made gave me all the technical advantages and skills set that I have now and exposed me to topics and technical problems I may have not experienced, if I had not challenge myself to try something really complex and test my abilities back then.

The truth is, building a product from scratch gives you a domain that permits you to be creative and try unique versions of already existing problem solving software applications.

This helps you understand how to code much better as a programmer and gives you the fundamentals about writing protocols the correct and secured way. Later on in this article, I gave more details about some of the best and easy to learn software languages and frameworks online, these are the same resources that helped me gain valuable insights while I developed my coding skills.

Here is a link to my product so you can check it out yourself M I G the free e-commerce website to sell and buy products, upload video clips and Google Geo-tracking based in Abuja, Nigeria.

You will need to be smart when getting resources on the internet. Not everyone on the internet is there to offer genuine information and pass credible contents for readers. So, you will need to do more research and make sure you are getting the correct answers for your questions.

Start with the most trusted publishers online and then begin to relate the contents with other authors. You will definitely, find the correct and accurate answers if you can first understand the problem and fundamentals of your question or search topic.

Do not copy and paste code. The only way you can understand both simple or complex programming algorithms and data structures, is if you code it yourself. Read the published codes online, watch video clips and attend live webinars however, make sure you type the code yourself, do not forget to ask questions while you carry out these tasks.

If you write your code yourself, it not only improves your typing skills but helps you master the software language syntax. You will begin to find it so much easier to manipulate pointers and handle complex coding structures over time, if you always type your code.

It is ok to fail so long as you get back up and try again. But then, while you make these mistakes be aware and be alert to take note of the correct answers or instances when you finally do it the right way. Don’t just move on to the next obstacle or challenge without fully understanding the reasons why you were stocked in the very first instance.

Remember as a programmer, you are always bound to solve problems and will most likely come across the same issue as you progress in your project or career.

Practice, practice and practice again. The good news about programming is that, you only need to learn one core software language to really understand data structures or let’s just say complex coding structures in general. Because, if you can fully master one core language and be able to apply simple basic techniques using the software language, you pretty much can learn any other programming language with ease.

If you are always practicing believe me, you will become a coding guru. Take time out to always practice basic coding routines and always read codes written by other people these are two ways to get really good at coding.

Never close the opportunity to learn new ideas and concepts. Have the passion to always want to gain knowledge. Have an open mindset as well to all types of comments. For instance, when i first started having visitors to my e-commerce website, a lot of people did not like the software UI/UX design. This had to do with the color of choice and also making objects more fluid in motion.

The reason for this is because, I did not make use of any external styling libraries to help animate my Divs or Objects, this would have made it a lot easier for me but then, I just didn’t want something that is already out there for my product. I only used CSS3 to style objects and make the product mobile responsive.

This styling method is really tedious and time consuming because, you will have to write the code from scratch to animate objects and also create media queries for view ports to handle screen size ranges.

At the end, I had to go back research more and work harder. I began to spend significant time working on my front end design skills and techniques just so I can make sure I deliver the best product to my customers. I made changes to the colors I used previously on the product and added some really cool animation to make the product very attractive and compelling to users.

You have to be focus with what you want to do and stay committed to the problem that you want to solve. Engage with other programmers, find out what they know that you don’t. Be optimistic and also be realistic with yourself.

When trying something new be prepared to get rejections and disapproval is all normal. This is not a bad thing, like I said, you have to have an open mind. Investigate on already published ideas and analyze their product short comings. You can then apply all of these results and create an entirely unique product that will yield sufficient results compared to the previously published product.