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Java

Best way to get better in Java

Hi folks,

I have a question about how to become a better java programmer and start to deal with android. I am on the Java course right now. I rewatched more then 70% of the java track and to be honest ... I don´t regret it at all. BUT !!!

I love the course challenges and it´s great to participate in the forum and help peaple and learn through it. My problem is that I do not code my own ideas and do only try to solve the challenges to learn how java works.

If I try to write a little programm, I get the feeling that I neglect the Java course and start watching the videos again ...

Can someone give me an advice how to combine both great habits ?

I can learn/code only 1 h a day :(

Grigorij

Good luck!!

2 Answers

You are in what we call "tutorial paralysis". I admit I have it too, though I decided to look into the Rails courses on here only to discover that they are outdated and have tons of conflicts with the newer versions. As a result, even though I am still being semi-guided, I have to go into the documentation to learn how to problem solve when things don't work correctly. As a result, it is sticking better than what the courses teach. On the side, I am also doing small Ruby projects. I am finding that making mistakes is helping me learn. The only problem is that it takes a lot of time.

Maybe that is what you have to do. Instead of always looking at the videos, let your code fail until you fix it. It takes a long time but I think you will learn better that way when you work on simple programs.

Greg Kitchin
Greg Kitchin
31,522 Points

Personally, I'd suggest doing both. Take time for your own projects. I found writing my own code helped me understand concepts i was taught. For example, to understand maps, I wrote a tarot card reader (basically i paired off a key with a value, the major arcana, then the program randomally generated 3 numbers, and printed out the corresponding value pair).

Treat the videos as learning how to do something, and your own projects, as doing that something.

Thank you all !!!

Will try to overcome this paralysis ::::