iOS Development: Leave the Tutorials Behind
After dipping my toes in the world of iOS development for a little over a week now, I’ve learned that this world is much more vast than I originally expected. I spent the first weekend grinding through the basic tutorials, feeling like I could conquer the world.
I made a card dealing app, a dice roller, a picture slideshow app, even a sudo food delivery app.
I felt like I could build anything.
But…I quickly came off that high after I spent 30 minutes trying to make my first app away from the tutorials.
As many of you know, development is all fun and games until you take off the training wheels and jump in the deep-end by yourself. No tutorial or solution code to catch you when you fall.
You’re all on your own and it’s a scary world out there. The dark abyss of your dark theme Xcode filling your screen as the cursor blinks slowly…as if to say
“Come on ‘Mr. Code Man’, lets see what you can do!”
And that’s the point where your mind just goes blank and all of a sudden you realize you know nothing.
We’ve all been there, some more than others. I’ll be the first to admit I sat at my computer for an hour in a complete stage of confusion trying to remember all the simple things I thought I had mastered just two days before. Struggling to even put an image on my home screen.
I just sat there…wondering if this whole iOS dev thing was even for me. Maybe I wasn’t cut out for it… If I can’t remember the simple things, why should I expect that I’ll be able to build and publish an app on my own.
But then after you look at that blinking cursor for just a little longer (and maybe after a couple trips to Google or the snack drawer) you begin to start typing away.
As you pick up the pace you start to get in a rhythm, you’re head is bobbing a little bit from the music playing and you’re feeling good. You keep typing away, adding images, text, a nav bar and loading your previews.
Blowing any “compile errors” away like dust on a shelf.
Nothing can stop you.
As you round the corner finishing up the last of your content view. You’ve got the end in sight. You’re about to complete the first view of your app, all you’ve got left is the last bracket.
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And then boom…just like that — you’re like a race-horse crossing the finish line. All you’ve got left to do is test your work. You cross your fingers, hoping that it will work out because it’s 3am and you really need some sleep…
CMD + R
As you sit there silently…heart pounding…music playing softly in the background…empty cup of coffee next to you…you wait…
The progress bar is moving steadily across the top, so far so good, no errors.
Then the moment you’ve been waiting for…
You’ve never been so happy to see that little hammer in your life. You’ve made it to the big leagues. You took the training wheels off and rode that bike all the way home.
As the simulator loads up you see your creation in all it’s light. It’s glorious, and to think it all came from your fingertips. Congratulations! You just created your first app all on your own.
Now comes the tricky part…take a breather, get some sleep, drink some coffee, or go workout…and then come back to your keyboard. You’re just getting started on your journey. This success was just a small stepping stone in the bigger picture.
Remember that feeling you have right here, right now. How good it feels to see all your work come together.
Take that feeling with you in every project and debugging expedition you travel through. It’s what we live for as developers and what you should strive for every day.
I am in the beginning of my iOS Development journey and am always willing to speak with readers and join in on projects. I am by no means an expert within this field and I am always striving to learn more. Connect with me on social media and let me know what you want me to write about next!
