Issue 2

Today’s Issue: Are coding bootcamps worth it, wtf is tree shaking, and I’m turning 29…yikes

Welcome to #2.

First Up

If you didn’t know, a coding bootcamp is a class-like structured course, either online or in-person, that teaches you how to code. Some other things that are also taught (if it’s a good bootcamp) are how to structure your resume, how to interview, what to study and look over to prepare for your interviews, how to set up a portfolio, and anything else you’d need to know and do to land that developer position and get your foot in the door in the beautiful world of tech!

Now you might be thinking, “This sounds great, but how much does it cost?”…well I’m not going to lie to you, they aren’t cheap. Typically the costs will usually range from $13,000 to upwards of $25,000 for a 4-6 month full-time experience or $8,000 to upwards of $15,000 for a 6-8 month part-time experience.

Now I know this may sound like a lot of money (IT IS!), but software developers usually start out ranging from $63,000 to $106,000 annually across the US. So if you think about the ROI (return on investment) this is actually not too bad.

I myself went to a coding bootcamp in Houston back in 2018, and this is where I got my start in the tech world. It cost me $13,000 so I went into it with the mindset of “I will have a job before I graduate” because that was a whole bunch of money that I didn’t have! I can honestly say though that this was the best decision I have ever made in my life. Right before graduation, I got a job offer for $50,000! A year later, my salary was bumped up to $60,000 and then I switched jobs and got a bump to $80,000. Just a year after that I got a raise and finally hit that sweet six-figure mark. It only took me 3 full years of being a developer before getting into the six-figures!

None of this was easy, but it is definitely doable for anyone willing to put the work in. If you’d like to read more about coding bootcamps, I wrote up an article about it.

What is Tree Shaking?

If you remember the last newsletter I sent out, I talked about require() vs import. Well, tree shaking is what you get when you use ES6’s import and export way of working with modules. Basically it’s an essential optimization technique that helps reduce the size of your JavaScript bundles by eliminating unused code. Think of shaking a tree and dead leaves falling down. This is what bundlers are doing with your code before sending it to the browser. Anything not being used will be taken out and not included to help optimize performance.

This all only works if you are using ES6 modules, which unless you’re working on a legacy application you most likely will be. Also, modern bundlers like Webpack and Rollup automatically implement tree shaking so you don’t even have to worry about it!

Talk about an easy developer experience 😀 

29…What Happened?

My birthday is coming up on Tuesday and I’ll be 29. Where did the time go…I feel like it was just yesterday and I was purchasing my first MacBook to learn to code on. Time truly does fly by so remember to make the most out of each day! No matter what you're doing, do it with intention and do your best work. If you do this, things will fall into place!

Interesting Plugs

• Dev.to started a new coding challenge that goes until September 1st. I’m thinking about taking part in it since there’s a cash prize for the winner and it will give me an opportunity to check out some new software 🤑…That’s a win-win if you ask me!

• I also am pretty active on X as of late so if anyone would like to connect with me on there don’t be a stranger!

That’s all I have for you this week, if you need anything between now and the next post, just shoot me a message, my inbox is always open!

Have a great weekend and as always, happy coding!