As software developers, many of us agonize over which programming language we should learn next. I have a suggestion – don’t learn another programming language. Learn a creative design skill – graphics design, 3-D modelling or Game Development. Learn basic photo editing skills instead of F#. I know Jamie and Chip will agree with me ;).
I have a bit of a designer inside me. Not a lot. Just a bit. I was probably 15 when I learned how to do architectural perspective drawings. I created a few of the house renovation my dad was doing at the time. One of my dad’s friend asked me to create a drawing for the addition he was doing to his house. More recently, I have designed some logos (for my own use), as well as UI design of Windigo, a Windows Phone app I created a couple of years ago. These are some of the logos I have created :
The UI and UX design of apps is something that fascinates me and I can see myself indulging in that some more. I am one of those software developers who (think they) have some design chops. Although I have not asked her yet, but I am confident that my mother will completely agree with me on this. I think she is still saving some of the masterpieces from my kindergarten.
I am excited about the addition of Digital Tutors content in the Pluralsight library. I am drooling at the prospect of learning some new skills from there. I browsed the entire library to see if I can latch on to something. I started looking for a software in the library that I can afford. You will be lucky to find one that is less than a few grands. I am exaggerating, but only a little. I also noticed an interesting trend that some of this software is being offered for rent! Here is a list of four that I could start using a little or no cost and it is not a trial :
I think it is awesome that Pixar has made its RenderMan software available for free for non-commercial use. RenderMan has been used to create movies like Frozen, IronMan 3, The Dark Knight and Pacific Rim. Pluralsight has the RenderMan covered as well.
I will probably start with Unity first. I have already played around with it. I think it will be good to build on that. More on this later. Stay tuned.
Photo Credit : https://flic.kr/p/5FXV7r
Well I’ll have to disagree with your statement to not learn another programming language. There are some cases when you can’t avoid “not to learn”.
For example I started coding in php, but I kept run into client side problems and I had eventually to start learning javascript. Not only to make my code faster via ajax calls but also to improve the user side. This is just an examen, it’s always better to analyze your options and decide how it will improve your work if you are going to learn a new programming language.
baka
I disagree~~~:o
I think the point Tewari is trying to make is to not limit yourself to just the programming aspect of software design.
I really like this perspective, I think your point is a little “bait-y” but it’s a good one. As programmers we speak the language of systems well but being versed in a visual language I think empowers programmers more than they realize.
Paul Graham wrote an essay on this subject about hacking and painting. I think learning a musical instrument is equally powerful…
Disagree fully.