Programming Tips

It is impossible to master everything there is when it comes to web programming, but there are programmers who are better than the others in this field. Learning something new to help you program better is important because this is what makes you a skilled programmer. Fortunately, there are so many tips, tricks and hacks on the web today that can benefit programmers, and help them by making their work easier and in the creation of better designs.

Here are some of those tips that you can use in order to boost your programming skills:

1. Always know what is trending in web programming

what is trending
Clients will always look for a programmer that will give them something exciting, modern and stylish, that is why you need to know what is current in the web industry and what is old. You need to tame your skills in such a manner that you can design antique and stylish designs, as well as traditional and special ones depending on what the client is looking for.

2. Keep an eye on the finer details

keep an eye on small things
In most cases, those particulars that seem irrelevant are the ones that are significant in the way your design will look like in the end, which is why everything should be important to you as you develop your website. Always work towards achieving a great outcome.

3. Use a team tracker

uses team tracker
This is important for programmers who work with a team. Sometimes tracking progress through projects can be hard and time wasting. There are so many software out there that one can use for project management, especially those that have feature or bug tracking.

4. Give your websites a perfect navigation

Website navigations
Website navigation is very important to the end users, which is why you need to keep it simple and frank. Keep all your pages just a few clicks away from the main page. Your layout should also be great looking as this is what will encourage your users to click on.

5. Keep your apps up to date

keep update regularly
Just like any other software, websites and applications should be kept up to date. There are modern developments every day, which affect the way people access and view the web. That is why you need to familiarize yourself with the latest features, techniques as well as modern safeties so as to develop websites that will be useful to the modern way user.

6. Save time by automating unit tests

run unit tests
It will take up a lot of your time if you deploy or manually run unit tests. In most cases, programmers are working on deadlines, you need to save as much time as you can and this is one sure way to achieve that.

7. Active phone numbers

provide active phone numbers
Nowadays, a lot of people prefer to surf the web while on the move, and most of the mobile devices people are using have the ability to make calls. Take advantage of this and include active phone numbers on your website.

8. Choose colors carefully

choose colors
Anything that you use on your websites will be significant and this works with colors as well. The colors you choose should always replicate the products, appearance as well as the market that you are targeting.

9. Utilize shortcuts

shortcuts and tricks
There are all kinds of shortcuts that can speed up your work and even help you program better. You can for instance turn your backgrounds, buttons and icons into sprites in order to speed up page downloads.

10. Give content your best shot

why content is king
The most important thing on your website will be the content. This is what your visitors will rely on in order to understand what the website is all about. Ensure that your website content is appealing as well as tempting, for your users to read on to the end.

11. Make good use of SEO methods

SEO methods
Programmers should learn, understand and know how to apply SEO methods and practices in order to ensure that all their web pages will attract traffic and get a good ranking in the search engines. A good ranking will make it easy for its intended audience to see the website with ease when they search for it.

12. Always use perfect pictures

use perfect picture
You should never get it wrong with the quality and type of pictures you use on your website. There are tools you can use for instance Pixel Perfect, just so you will ensure that your pictures are in perfect quality and resolution.

13. Don’t be quick to launch your projects

before launch
Once the website is created, take time to look for any mess there could be before you launch it so that it will not be an eye sore to anyone that will come cross it. Fine tune your websites until they give you the kind of results you had in mind.

14. Secure your websites

Secure your websites
This should also happen before you go live with your website. You can run your site through sites like ASafaWeb.Com in order to determine just how safe it is. They can offer advice on what you can do in case any of your projects fails any of the tests.

15. Get Git

Get Git
You need a strong versioning system if you are working on big projects, and GitHub has won the hearts of many developers. This will not work though if your project is private because on GitHub’s servers, it will be publicly available. You can use GitLab though, as it is completely open source and one can set up his own servers.

16. Do one thing at a time

to do list
One principle that programmers should stick to is the single responsibility principle, whereby every object in the code must only have one function. Mixing up everything gets complicated in case something breaks and it becomes hard for you to trace back to where the problem started in order to fix it.

17. Always comment on your code

Comment your code
If you are working in a team, it is obvious that other people will see your projects. They need to understand your code; therefore you have to be a little organized. Comment on your code, name your layers and keep your FLAs and PSDs organized.

18. Photoshop actions

Photoshop action
These are meant to ease your work.

19. Outsource your app’s mailing function

Mailing Functions
Managing your app’s mailing function might end up being a full time job. You can save yourself the trouble by outsourcing it.

20. Use more white space

Use more white space
Decreasing white space is one of the things that can reduce your page’s load times.

There is a lot you can achieve if you are able to learn something new every day. There are so many more tips out there that will help you become a better programmer in no time.