What can I do if I don't like web development?
Schools in Italy are a disaster, they use bad practices -- I am obsessed with best practices -- and languages that I don't like PHP (widely used in Italy), for the language design, crap salary and less jobs. So in my free time I try to learn to be a full stack developer (they -- the school -- learn you to become this) and the most part I hate is the front-end one, nothing wrong with HTML, CSS is easy but hard to master with it; and I lose interest in the back-end part, web frameworks, React, Ember, Vue [...], I know they made the work more easier, it's not for me. What I like? I like developing, working with Software, Deep Learning / ML, AI, Game Dev, Low Level Things, I use Linux, I like do things with Computers, Reverse engineering, break things and understand why, fix it; Cybersecurity, Ethical Hacking, working with servers, network, sysadmin, use enterprise equipment and software (Java is popular on this), embedded, Simulation / modeling (I have difficult in math), really interesting stuff. I'm asking some keyword in what can I start to learn at what I like and have a good life balance with money.
TL:DR: I can't do university and I don't like web development, instead I like working with computers, software, low level things.
FAQ:
So what’s stopping you from doing what you rather be doing? If you’re not in university, then you’re pretty much free to learn whatever is that you want to do.
Resource limitations. I have a Computer that has a Intel Celereon J4105, Integrated Graphics with 8GB Ram DDR4, so Major of things I like, I can't do them. As far I know, be a Game Dev sucks since (what I read) is a underpaid job, also gaming lately follow a single business model, and I don't like it. I am planning in a new PC but is suspended cause there is a lack of funds. So doing deep learning, Machine Learning, things that require (I THINK) newer hardware I can't do them.
Try Cybersecurity/Ethical hacking, your knowledge of Linux gives you a bit of a head start. Cybersecurity / Ethical hacking always interested me, I also bought Hacking, 2nd Edition, The Art of Exploitation and do something with that, but I stop thinking, "I am losing time?" or whatever. That's why I started to learn a full stuck developer, but now, I don't like it. Should I continue?
10 comments
[ 2.8 ms ] story [ 34.1 ms ] threadyou say you live in Italy, wouldn't it be possible for you to work part time as a waiter or something to gather funds while you learn in the other part?
you can find any book for free on the internet if you dig enough.
you seem to be caught up on wanting to get a job that offers the most money. salaries depend on the location of the person. if you live in silicon valley your salary is going to be higher than someone living in italy.
you say you've bought security books in hopes of bug bounty hunting but then felt like you're losing time?. it seems like you want to learn something fast to start making money. people won't hire you if you don't know shit about the things you're supposed to know. so taking the time to learn isn't a negative thing at all.
and then you say because of that you jumped into full stack development. but now you don't like it and you're asking us if you should continue. only you can answer these types of questions. people come from different background here in HN. some are db admins, soft devs , swes...etc nobody can answer your question.
my advice for you would be to try to figure out what you like the most, then try to build things with it. for example build a full stack application using any tech. anything to get your foot going to get a feel about the job. i also find it hard that you can't find a job for a tech other than php in italy?. i would assume so in a third world country but not in italy. also ever heard of remote work? freelancing?... etc. i feel like you just get too caught up on job opportunities salary and stuff that you don't get to focus on actually learning and improving. a lot of great people in web dev got there after doing shitty jobs getting garbage salaries. you have to do it because you like it not how many $ you gain.
Yeah, I should start to build something and don't think my limitations but to how much I can.
I can do a part time job sure, but I have a limited time, starting from school from 8:00 AM until 1 - 2 PM, then I need to study in a very limited time, go to part time job, finish very late.
Yeah I know there is free books, I always start from them.
I'm still studying and I am at the end of the school year, and as I said, I don't like what they teach me, basically what I hate. So when I finish school I wanna do a job that I like in the things I like.
I read that cybersecurity / Ethical Hacking books are useless cause they are outdated and useless, I tried with tryhackme, but how much far I can go with the free path?
No, I don't need something to learn fast, I wanna learn something that I like and I can do.
I will follow your advice to try to figure out and build something. Italy is really a 3rd world, and school in Italy don't have good IT teachers enough, that's why I am afraid one day I will decide to go outside (that's what I wanna do) there's less job request with PHP, but in anyway, I don't wanna work with PHP.
i totally get what you're saying about the uni stuff being stone age. i also was taught using php and the content of the course was too basic to be used in a real world scenario. plus in development using laravel is a savior, so don't worry about php too much.
Sounds like you are not swayed by the hype. Good! Most of the websites using these frameworks do have no actual need for them. Most even render merely statically renderable content without actually interactive widgets. However, it would probably be difficult to find frontend jobs without parading any of the hyped frameworks on the CV.
Fortunately there are many other things for a software developer to do in non-frontend jobs.
I still have to try frameworks like Svelte, but I surely have had enough of my share of React or React based frameworks.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Embedded_software
You can get microcontrollers and electronic components for pretty cheap - and it's definitely low level, in a different universe than full-stack web development.
* game dev (not everyone uses Unity or Unreal),
* mobile dev. Android Studio is a ram hogger these days. When I was on 8GB, the trick was to not use chrome and go with Firefox instead. Or something with smaller footprint. Also I was using Arch just so that I can trim the OS itself down to around 300 MB of Ram usage.
* CLI programming with scripting languages. I had a few odd jobs doing this.
* Embedded programming. Nothing much required there.
* Desktop programming. You can leverage your knowledge in HTML, CSS by learning Electron.
But just one advice. Companies don't really care what you like or not. They will give you money only if you have the skills to show for it.
Living in a real 3rd world country (Haiti), I learned Android dev with a similar configuration (have to run the app on my phone, as the emulator consumed too much RAM). Then switched to React Native. That landed me my first online gig. Then I went from there, building my skills up and selling it, so I can buy proper tools and invest in myself. Now I'm working with a US Company, doing React and Java stuff and exploring what I'm interested in on my personal time.
Jobs can be interesting by themselves, but stuff cost money and if you need the latter, you gotta do what you can get paid for. Then with the money, you invest in proper resources to learn what interests you and hopefully switch to it afterwards.