Learning to code at 30

Is it worth the effort? I have 0 knowledge of computer sciences and I feel discouraged by those who started in highschool and are 15 years ahead of me in computer knowledge and the younger generations who are more open to technology and will have an easier and quicker time to learn more complex than a 90s boomer late bloomer

I would like to switch to a career in CS and possibly, some day, become hackerman.jpg

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I mean kind of, it doesn't sound like you had any passion for this until it became a meme job

Lots of people switch their careers to coding later in life. It's a challenge to learn to code and you'll never know EVERYTHING, probably will feel "imposter syndrome" at some point like all coders do.

As long as you're alive though, it's worth trying. Do you enjoy solving puzzles, are you math & logic oriented? You'll be a natural code then. If not, maybe consider being a web or UI designer.

Hopefully other coders can jump in.. I got into it to make video games, I also like math and science and found it easier to get into.

I just don't want to be poor anymore.

Haven't done math & science since highschool, it's safe to say I suck at them. But I'm good at recognizing patterns and improvising shit. Should I give up? I don't want to waste my time but I'm ready to put some effort into it (I could assign 3-4 hrs daily to studying it)

If I should continue, is codeacadamy alright for dumbasses like me? What programming language should I even choose?

Do you want to be a serious developer working on important systems? Then you need to have a degree that's relevant and have years of learning behind. Coding is far more than just typing out code, you need to understand all the abstract concepts and designs and so on.

Do you just want to be a lowly code monkey? Then do self learning and try to contribute to open source projects to get visibility.

I'll piggyback off this. I have the Army GI bill and don't know what to use it for. I would love to code my own games but I don't have any art skills.

If it helps, I know of a few professional tech gigs where about half of the techs have had zero tech XP. Some were business majors. Some had never even seen the inside of a case.

bump

Could everyone just stop hopping on the tech train. All these bootcamp "coders" are stealing jobs ( at lower salaries) and when they inevitably mess shit up, actual professionals have to come in and deal with all the shitty code.

Not good enough.

"I don't want to be poor" isn't going to carry you through the despair of staring at strange unintelligible symbols and abstract logical errors for the next 20 years.

I actually find this stuff interesting and yet the work is still very painful a lot of the time.

It is worth it to switch to coding at 30 and apply for coding jobs. I would advise you to start looking into web development courses since it is quite easier to build a portofolio and show it around. Then you have to market yourself and apply to junior positions obviously and be ready to get rejected a lot because you don't have a degree but there are companies out there that just want to see a portfolio. After your first job the doors will be open for new opportunities. You might not stop being poor, though this depends on where you live and how much money you make/spend right now.

I tried just to get into web design when I was 28 and I was terrible at it and it made me want to kill myself. To each their own though, guess I was never really bit by the computer bug.

If it's just that then become a meme blue collar worker like a plumber or aircraft mechanic or go to business school and learn to be a businessman. Like others have said, you really have to love what you're doing to carry yourself through the hurdles and obstacles.

Coding is fairly simple once you get down to it . It shouldn't be too hard to pick up atleast the basics you just need to use it frequently enough to stay fluent

The fundamental building blocks of a program are simple, but learning the nuances of data structures, algorithms, architectural patterns, new tech paradigms, etc. can take years. You'll still be learning new things constantly after being in the industry for decades.

This. Google is both your best friend and worst nightmare: don't waste your time reading a book when Google can answer your question in 5 seconds, but don't stunt your knowledge and understanding by not reading relevant books and texts.

What makes you think I'd be anymore likely to love plumbing? People without passion still have to earn an income to survive. I'm trying to find a career path that provides enough money for a single person to be able to work part-time from home and still have a decent standard of living. Searching for a passion is a waste of time as far as I'm concerned. If I had spent the last 10 years forcing myself to code instead of trying this or that and quitting jobs because I hated them, I wouldn't be pushing thirty living in a shitty apartment with no insurance and no savings. Fuck doing what you love.

i'm 28 and don't have a degree and i have been programming since i was 14 (from web stuff to emulators). i'm currently helping a coworker who is 36 go through a intro to python course, he has a computer science degree but doesn't know how to code. he is enjoying it very much so far.

you should give it a try.

>I just don't want to be poor anymore.


Well that's a perfectly fine to say

>I just don't want to be poor anymore as long as I don't have to go anywhere to work, and also I don't want to work full time only part time

If that's your only reason for wanting to learn to code, because you think it's something you can do for half the week while rolling around in bed in your underwear, you're setting yourself up for all sorts of disappointments. Computer Science and IT work is not some magical genie lamp.

Are you saying it's not possible? My friend is a programmer who works about six months per year on project-oriented jobs. Maybe that's not part-time to you but all I want to avoid is the 9-5, 5 day a week schedule. Right now I work at a fast food job part time and I am surviving. How could spending the same amount of time building websites not be more valuable?

The majority of good paying jobs are going to expect you to be in the office (see agile, scrum). If they were ok with remote workers, why should they choose you over Indians or Russians?

Learn to code. You might not pursue it as a career or you might; either way the little online code camps are fun.