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Because that would suck. I don't like the waste bin. It smells funny.
Did I misunderstand something, or does this article just list all the reasons it's a bad idea to be a JavaScript developer? (apart from the 99 reasons that is JavaScript itself) basically: you use a language that is the envy of noone, to work with things like web browsers, the DOM and CSS. Anyone would want good money to do that...
I do pretty much what the article describes and you echo the sentiment I get from dev friends who hate working with CSS and the DOM! I enjoy it though. There's a lot of art to it. I have absorbed a decade's worth of trivia that lets me usually do the right thing first time or find the solution quickly. And I generally get to be the interface to other teams (like designers, content people) which I like too.
He mentions using (1) vi or emacs instead of (2) Textmate or notepad. I wasn't aware that one could use (2) in place of (1). How is that done? Does one need to SFTP a text file from the server to a client GUI OS, modify it, and then SFTP it back?
Though I still recommend using something like git, because at some point you will do something stupid and you probably won't find that backup :(
One thing I have learned in my years of experience... Stay away from any job posting that asks for ninjas, rock stars or bad asses.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I do pretty much what the article describes and you echo the sentiment I get from dev friends who hate working with CSS and the DOM! I enjoy it though. There's a lot of art to it. I have absorbed a decade's worth of trivia that lets me usually do the right thing first time or find the solution quickly. And I generally get to be the interface to other teams (like designers, content people) which I like too.
Yep, the way I see it is that both backend and frontend development have their bad parts: you either faff around with broken config files, or faff around with broken stylesheets. (Obviously both have their good sides too). It comes down to which you find easiest to tolerate. E.g., I don't enjoy fixing CSS quirks in IE6, but I find it a lot less painful than trying to figure out why my fastcgi daemon keeps crashing.
What if I am a JavaScript wizard who is also a backend wizard, and I know a lot about CSS/HTML and browser quirks, but I couldn't design my way out of a wet and ripped paper bag? Can I be awesome too? Or am I designated to the waste bin? Because that would suck. I don't like the waste bin. It smells funny.
What if I am a JavaScript wizard who is also a backend wizard, and I know a lot about CSS/HTML and browser quirks, but I couldn't design my way out of a wet and ripped paper bag? Can I be awesome too? Or am I designated to the waste bin? Because that would suck. I don't like the waste bin. It smells funny.
If you were a full stack JavaScript wizard AND you had solid design skills, you would be a unicorn with hooves made of diamond and a jet engine strapped on its ass.
I think this makes me more of a pony with an ice cream cone duct taped to its forehead.
I've been pushing for node.js and MongoDB for over three years now, and finally seeing them gain a lot of traction. Right now I'm pulling for docker.io and CoreOS to gain the same kinds of traction (and learning go).
I don't think what the author is asking for is impossible.. but I would be more interested in either stronger core development skills or stronger design skills, you won't likely get both. I started off doing more design and that was over a decade and a half ago. Today, I reach for balsamiq if I want to mock something up, and tend to go very basic and neutral for UI to start with. You can add more later, especially if you have an artist at your disposal.. Beyond this, clean design is finally gaining ground anyhow, though I am getting tired of very bootstrap like sites.
I've seen the good and bad, to very bad.. you deal with the issues you have come across personally, and likely won't know how to fix a specific issue you haven't come across... today, I'd say a JavaScript developer should know at least one test framework, and one module framework. Should at least understand closures, and some of the ES5 extensions (especially to arrays), understand how currying techniques work... and experience with node.js and mongodb is really important.
Knowing another server-side framework is important, but dogma from a various server-side frameworks tend to cloud how development works in the JS mindset... There's a lot of changes happening in the past 2-3 years (a lot driven by node.js), and more to come... just being open minded and trying to understand some functional concepts is important a well.
Personally, I'm tired of some of the recruiter emails that I get.. generally a few a day, and mostly either distant locations I have little interest in and/or for salaries I wouldn't consider.
I think you're confusing Javascript Developer and Front End Web Developer. The two are mutually exclusive.