Developer, what is one anyway?

In essence, website developers are programmers who use their knowledge of coding (eg. JavaScript, PHP, and CSS) to create functional websites or web applications. These tech-savvy folks are an incredibly diverse bunch, not solely Hot Pocket-eating code-crackers as the ‘computer nerd’ Rat embodies in The Core. That said, a website developer needs to understand the language specific to computers to highlight potential weaknesses to protect their clients from security breaches.

To be able to reveal vulnerabilities takes a web developer one step closer to fixing the problem. As with many creative vocations, we each hone our skills based upon our background and experiences, which tends to shape our focus, but our love of code and technical jargon does not a stereotype make.

A day in the life

The assumption of many is that website developers are isolated beings, rising late and working well into the small hours of the night. This may well work for some but, whilst my schedule can certainly be flexible, I do still have deadlines to meet as well as being available during my client’s working hours. An average working day for me includes:

• Communicating with my clients so that any website build remains on schedule.
• Being available during a typical working day to handle any queries.
• Problem-solving, such as helping clients with security issues and website updates.
• Talking to potential new clients about their vision for a future project.
• Checking relevant literature, Magento community discussions, and online resources.
• Staying abreast of changes and updates, such as PHP, HTML, CSS, JavaScript, security, browser updates/compatibility, new devices, and design methods. It is imperative that I am aware of any changes in the industry, or with systems that I use, so that I can provide the best possible service for my clients. For more examples of what you need to understand to work with websites, here’s a great example.
• Not forgetting the all-important task of training my apprentice, Bailey (aka ‘walking the dog’).

Attention to detail

My attention to detail and focus on continued personal development ensures that I create clean and technically sound websites, such as a recent Magento ecommerce web build with UNIQUE21. I worked with two designers as their project lead / lead developer.

Their original site was incredibly fragile and repeatedly went offline. Now they have this wonderful new site which they found to be faster to load than the original, as well as being much easier for them to manage. Amending inventory, adding or editing content, and running reports are incredibly simple which made it much less stressful for them to work with. Read all about the UNIQUE21 project in more detail.

To see more projects I’ve worked on, you can view my portfolio.