Ask HN: What to focus on for proving I am a competent programmer?

Re:Ask HN: What to focus on for proving I am a competent pro... by stefanos82 on Sunday May 29, 2022 @07:15PM (#31553808)

OK, let me try help as much as I can here.

> I've been programming in general for 6 years, most of the time in python with a few incursions into other languages.

Can you be more specific here please, if possible?

How do you use Python, exactly?

  * web development, like Flask or Django?
  * Machine Learning / Deep Learning?
  * CLI applications or web services?
  * GUI framework such as wxPython, Tkinter, PyGTK, PyQt, Kivy?

> I also have the experience to be a Linux sysadmin, but I'd prefer something more dev-focused.

It's quite useful to know how to use one-liners in Python; lots of tasks can be automated as cron jobs, especially for DevOps this is very convenient.

> I have a bunch of partially finished projects; most would take a bit to finish, but a few would be doable.

It would be useful to finish as many as possible, so you can use them as part of your portfolio.

> I've setup a blog, https://holdnack.net, a week ago.

Good! Try to find a topic you are interested in to specialize on, so you can make your name synonymous to that niche.

For instance, Chris Wellons' website [1] is a must-read by those who are interested in C's deep and interesting corners.

He covers other topics as well, but most of the times in C he goes as low as possible; mind-blowing to say the least!

> So I guess I'm wondering is it better to have a few solid projects, one bigger project, a well-written blog or something else entirely?

80% on one bigger project, 20% on various smaller projects, and whenever possible write down your adventurous journey.

This way you will build your audience...but don't write for the sake of writing; have something to share with your like-minded friends and acquaintances.

For example, follow blogs with well-written material.

I already shared Chris' website; another blog to follow in case you are in web development, is Lea Verou [2].

> Oh, and this is focused on just getting an interview; I am generally confident on my interviewing skills, depending on how leet it is.

Then you have nothing to worry about; you are good to go!

Good luck!

  [1] https://nullprogram.com/
  [2] https://lea.verou.me/

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Re:Ask HN: What to focus on for proving I am a competent pro... by h0ldnack on Sunday May 29, 2022 @10:07PM (#31554842)

Thank you for the detailed reply!

As for what I actually did with Python, it was a mixture of cli apps, apis in Flask and a fair amount of personal libraries, like an async couchdb client library and a wrapper around termux-api commands.

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