If You‘re a Developer Who‘s Obsessed With Learning, Check Out These Resources

As a software developer, one of the most important things you can do for your career is to always be learning. The technology industry moves at a breakneck pace, with new programming languages, frameworks, and tools emerging all the time. What was cutting-edge a few years ago may be nearly obsolete today.

To stay relevant and competitive in this field, developers need to cultivate a mindset of continuous learning. Luckily, we live in an age where high-quality educational resources are more accessible than ever before. From online courses to books to podcasts, there‘s a nearly endless supply of content to help you level up your skills.

In this post, we‘ll explore some of the best resources available for developers who are serious about expanding their knowledge. Whether you‘re a new programmer just starting out or a seasoned veteran looking to branch into a new specialty, there‘s something here for you. Let‘s dive in!

Online Courses and Tutorials

One of the best ways to pick up a new programming language or framework is through an online course. Platforms like Udemy, Coursera, edX, and Pluralsight offer a huge variety of video-based courses on every conceivable software development topic. Many of these allow you to learn at your own pace and include hands-on coding exercises to reinforce your understanding.

Some standout courses and tutorials include:

• React – The Complete Guide on Udemy for learning the popular JavaScript framework
• Algorithms Specialization on Coursera for brushing up on computer science fundamentals
• Introduction to Linux on edX for getting comfortable with the command line
• Getting Started with Python on Pluralsight for picking up this versatile language

In addition to courses, interactive tutorial sites are another great resource, especially when you‘re first getting started with coding. freeCodeCamp and Codecademy offer guided, hands-on introductions to web development, programming languages, and more.

Books

While online courses are great for learning new technologies, sometimes you need to go deeper into a topic. That‘s where books come in. A well-written programming book can provide comprehensive coverage of a language or framework, diving into the details in a way that‘s not possible in a short online tutorial.

Some classics that have stood the test of time include:

• Clean Code by Robert C. Martin – A guide to writing maintainable, readable code
• The Pragmatic Programmer by Andrew Hunt and David Thomas – Filled with practical advice on becoming a better programmer
• Introduction to Algorithms by Thomas H. Cormen et al. – The definitive guide to algorithms and data structures

You don‘t need to limit yourself to just coding books either. Titles on soft skills, like Soft Skills by John Sonmez, can help you become a more well-rounded developer. And books on the history of computing, like The Innovators by Walter Isaacson, can give you a deeper appreciation for how far our field has come.

Blogs and Newsletters

Blogs are one of the best ways to keep your finger on the pulse of the software development industry. Many individual developers, as well as companies, maintain blogs where they share their experiences and insights on the latest technologies.

For a curated sampling of the best developer blog content, check out weekly newsletters like Better Developer, Pointer.io, or Software Lead Weekly. These collect interesting posts from around the web on topics like JavaScript, Python, DevOps, and more.

It‘s also worth following the engineering blogs of major tech companies to see how they‘re tackling challenges at scale. Some good ones include Netflix, Uber, Facebook, and GitHub. You can learn a lot by seeing how the big players in our industry approach software design and development.

freeCodeCamp has also compiled a helpful list of some of the most informative newsletters for developers, ranging from daily digests to monthly round-ups.

Podcasts

If you want to make the most of your time spent commuting or working out, try listening to a software development podcast. You can gain a lot of insight from the conversations and interviews featured on these shows.

Some of my favorites include:

• Software Engineering Daily – In-depth daily interviews on technical topics
• JavaScript Jabber – A weekly discussion amongst JavaScript developers
• CodePen Radio – The inside story from the team building the popular social development platform
• Real Talk JavaScript – A podcast that dives deep into JavaScript and front-end web development
• Software Engineering Radio – Targeted at professional software developers and covers a broad range of topics

Try sampling a few different shows to find the ones that resonate with you. Many podcasts also have back catalogs available, so you can dig through and find episodes on specific topics that interest you.

Open Source Projects

One of the best ways to learn is by reading other people‘s code. And with open source software, you have access to the source code for countless projects, ranging from small libraries to massive frameworks and tools.

When you‘re learning a new language or technology, try searching for open source projects in that area. Look through the code to see how experienced developers structure their programs. You can learn a lot about best practices and design patterns by seeing them applied in the wild.

In addition to reading code, you can also sharpen your skills by contributing to open source projects. Many projects have "beginner-friendly" issues tagged that are specifically designed for new contributors. By working on one of these issues, you can get experience collaborating with other developers and working with a real codebase.

Some open source communities that are particularly welcoming to new contributors include:

• First Timers Only – A collection of issues for people new to open source
• Up For Grabs – A site aggregating beginner-friendly issues across projects
• Awesome for Beginners – A list of projects that have good starter issues
• CodeTriage – A site that helps you find open issues to work on

Contributing to open source can be intimidating at first, but don‘t let that stop you. Everyone was a beginner once, and most projects are happy to help new contributors get up to speed.

Conferences and Meetups

Conferences are a great way to learn from experts in the field, network with other developers, and get inspired about the future of our industry. Some of the biggest software conferences include OSCON (Open Source Software Conference), DevOps Enterprise Summit, REWORK events on AI and machine learning, and language-specific conferences like PyCon and Velocity.

Many conferences post their talk videos online for free after the event, so even if you can‘t attend in person, you can still learn from the presentations. Some conferences to check out for recordings include:

• Strange Loop – Covers topics like distributed systems, programming languages, and more
• Web Camps – Web development topics
• PyVideo – Talks from Python conferences around the world

If you can‘t travel to a conference, local meetups are a great alternative. Most cities have meetups focused on specific programming languages or technologies. These are typically much more affordable than conferences (often free) and provide an opportunity to connect with developers in your area. Check sites like Meetup or search for "[Your City] tech meetups" to find events near you.

Social Media and Online Communities

Finally, don‘t underestimate the value of social media and online communities for learning. Twitter, in particular, has a thriving developer community. Following experts in your field can expose you to new ideas and resources you might not find otherwise.

Some developers who are especially active and insightful on Twitter include:

• Dan Abramov – Co-author of Redux and Create React App
• Addy Osmani – Engineering manager at Google working on Chrome
• Sarah Drasner – VP of Developer Experience at Netlify
• JavaScript Daily – A curated feed of the best JavaScript news and articles

Reddit also has some great communities for developers. r/programming is a general-purpose subreddit for discussing anything code-related, while r/learnprogramming is geared towards those who are just getting started with coding. There are also subreddits devoted to specific languages and technologies, like r/Python, r/reactjs, and r/kubernetes.

For getting answers to specific programming questions, it‘s hard to beat Stack Overflow. With a massive user base and an extensive archive of questions and answers, you can almost always find help with whatever coding issue you‘re struggling with.

Finally, many developers congregate in Slack communities to chat, share news, and help each other out. Some popular ones include Reactiflux for React developers, Python Developers, and Front End Developers. You can find a more comprehensive list of communities in this GitHub repo.

Conclusion

We‘ve covered a lot of ground in this post, but remember, this is just the tip of the iceberg. There are countless resources out there for developers who want to continue learning and growing.

The key is to make learning a habit. Set aside time each week (or even each day) to read an article, work through a tutorial, or contribute to an open source project. Over time, these small investments can really add up.

Also, don‘t feel like you need to learn everything at once. Pick one or two resources that seem most interesting to you and start there. You can always branch out later as your interests evolve.

Finally, remember that learning is a journey, not a destination. Technology is always changing, so the learning never really stops. Embrace that reality, and try to enjoy the process of continuously expanding your skillset. It‘s one of the things that makes being a developer so exciting.

I hope this post has given you some new ideas for where to focus your learning efforts. If you have other resources you‘d like to share, please let me know! I‘m always looking to add to my list.

Happy learning!