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Things I would like every young web engineer to learn (Toot by Alex Russell)

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Alex Russell (@slightlyoff@toot.cafe)

Things I would like every young web engineer to learn:

  • anything you can do in CSS + HTML, you should do in CSS + HTML
  • framework du jour is not a platform, it's a high-interest loan against your future capacity. The platform is the platform
  • understanding the memory hierarchy always matters
  • client-side isn't easier than the server, and "generalists" usually suck at client-side. Mind the (packet) gap
  • managers who are not technical are not useful
  • put users first, always

Second-order things to learn:

  • the way browsers work isn't static, but it also isn't changing that fast. Learn as much as you can and update every few years; particularly about networking and the rendering loop.
  • JS is the slowest way to do anything on the web. Never let it become the way you do everything.
  • a11y isn't nice-to-have, it's the job
  • shipping fast almost never matters as much as quality, & there are simple heuristics you can use to understand the difference
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