Salesforce coding lessons for the 99%Finally, Apex tutorials for point-and-click admins! Written by a self-taught Google engineer.
Salesforce coding lessons for the 99%
Hi David,
I have been trying to learn to code for a while now, and I have followed your chapters several times, yet something is just not clicking. I can’t seem to get past the wall which is blocking me from opening my mind to the concept of developing.
For instance, I can follow your tutorials and understand each and every line of the code that I read, but give me a blank screen and tell me to write a trigger and ill just look at you with confused eyes until one of us ends up crying!
What did you do to actually code, compared to learning to code i.e that very first time you ever sat down with a clean sheet of paper, and started to write code, how? what was the process and your mindset?
Thanks a lot,
Seriously Missing Something.
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Dear Seriously Missing Something,
I actually know exactly how you feel.
I don’t think I wrote a line of code until 300+ pages into Head First Java. And by then, I was wayyyy over my head.
Like you, I remember totally understanding all the concepts and being able to account for each line of code I read. I even did all the trivia questions and practically had the answers memorized. But when it came down to building something from scratch, I was like a fish out of water.
I got back on track by coding and starting very small. Embarrassingly small. It was a quick transition though, because once I had a few small snippets under my belt, the rest came easier. I think there’s just a hump you gotta get through in the beginning.
The hardest part honestly is finding the motivation to actually code. It’s so much easier to read code than to code code. Tell yourself to write just 10 lines of working code a day and move up from there. At some point you’ll finding yourself having so much fun with your proficiency that you’ll code more just for fun. Then you’re off to the races!
Best of luck!
David
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my coding literally started from struggling. I did my diploma in computer engineering.Athe that time I’m able to understand the code but couldn’t write. We used to draw ears, nose and eyes to # in c language header. I joined my bachelor’s in my aunts colege. And I’m the only one who knows coding before. At that time my classmates used to push me to write code for them.Here I got prestige issue as a niece to college chairman and the only person who knows about coding already. Struggle started .one week I didn’t sleep, eat properly.Result is i was the best programmer among the class , I used to write my logic even before my lecturers.this was my coding success story. Now I’m preparing SFDC, I want to be a developer.it has been 11 years since I code. Wish me luck.
Another success story coming from you soon – good luck Satya!
I’m now working through Head First Java and something I’ve started doing is to take a working piece of code and comment every line of it before copying and pasting to a simple text editor. Once I have that text file I remove all the code leaving only the comments and see if I can come back to it a day or so later and rewrite the code. I remember the jist of it so that I don’t feel completely lost but am still forced to think about it from scratch in some ways.
Great tip Paul!!
Great advice, David. And Jenna too. I’ll definitely use Apex design patterns tip. What I also found helpful was to look for a meetup in my area that covered a comparable topic. (I was lucky as there was an Intro to Java meetup 2 weeks ago.) Just being able to speak to other people about my challenges, “dumb questions”, etc. was immensely helpful. And it’s always a great way to network!
Hey Brandi, on second thought, the reading for Apex design patterns might be for programmers who are more advanced…I highly recommend taking a beginner Java class bc that forces you to code (for hw) with support of teacher and classmates and teaches those essential object-oriented concepts like constructors, encapsulation, recursion, etc. In Java class, they taught me how to break down requirements step-by-step by writing algorithms so I’ve always done that (e.g., step 1 create a list of all Case.AccountId’s, step 2 write a query that gets all the Accounts and Account Ids and put in a Map, Step 3 using Map, get a field from an Account record and assign that value to a different field).
Def break into small steps and code from there. Also if you get stuck (inevitable!), try to ask someone for help. Its a totally different way of thinking that is more linear and logical.
Great tip Brandi!!
Can’t wait for my next user group meeting too!
Just getting into this now , very late in life, but it’s fun despite the struggles.
“It’s fun despite the struggles.”
QUOTE OF THE DAY!!
I too have been struggling to learn to code. I also trying to read Head First Java and its still a bit over my head. I am probably not studying as hard as I should but trying and struggling.
The struggle is a very real part of the journey! Everyone will struggle don’t worry, it’s not just you!
For me personally, when I sit down and write code from scratch, I start by analyzing and breaking down the requirements and writing the algorithm. Once I have the algorithm ready, it gives me guidance and coding from scratch is much easier. Also always remember to use object-oriented best practices such as making code reusable. Consider studying Apex design patterns; those usually contain common algorithms that apply to various scenarios.
Dang Jenna you’ve come a long way!