Hello hello,

Welcome to the Top 3 in Tech newsletter, and merry Christmas! Today we're gonna reflect on the best way to learn programming, check out a cool JavaScript library for creative coding, and learn about Faust - the modern framework for headless Wordpress development.

Let's go:

1. How to learn programming

A few days ago I posted a tweet on which programming languages I think would be best suited to teach programming at universities:

Mads Brodt @madsbrodt I'm really confused why Python and JavaScript aren't the main programming languages used to teach programming at university level. Yes, they're higher level than Java or C# - but they're also the easiest way to inspire students by allowing them to create cool stuff. Just me? November 29th 2021 223 Retweets 1.935 Likes

The tweet blew up, with lots of interesting discussion from both sides. Some people agreeing with me that Python and JS should be taught first, because they're easier for beginners to understand and can help motivate new programmers by getting them productive quickly. Others explained how learning fundamentals like types and object-oriented programming with a more traditional language like Java creates more well-rounded software engineers.

I definitely see the arguments for both. When you study something like Computer Science at the university, you're not studying to become a front-end developer - so just focusing on web technologies isn't a good idea. You also need to learn about algorithms, lower level languages like C and how compilers work.

At the same time, I think starting with these very complicated topics is a surefire way to lose a lot of people that could become excellent developers if they'd had a more practical introduction to programming. I know at least for me, I was very close to giving up after my first year studying a bachelor's in Software Development. It felt like all I could do was create console/terminal based applications with Java. And that simply wasn't exciting for me.

It wasn't until I discovered JavaScript, and how easy it suddenly was to get cool stuff happening on the screen, that I discovered my love for programming. And I think this motivation is absolutely key to keep people interested in development long enough to get them hooked.

That said, I think every single developer (regardless if they've studied at university or are self taught) owe it to themselves to learn some computer science fundamentals. Operating systems, software architecture, networking, databases etc. are all insanely valuable topics that uncover the "magic" going on below the higher level languages like Python or JS. I'm not suggesting removing those topics at all. I just don't think they're the right place to start.

I definitely recommend reading through the above Twitter thread for some great arguments on both sides. And if you're one of the people who feel like you might be lacking some CS fundamentals (because you're self taught or just didn't understand it properly during your studies, like me), check out this free online curriculum called Teach Yourself CS​

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2. P5.js

Speaking of getting cool stuff happening on the screen, one of today's picks is a JavaScript library specifically designed to make creative coding more accessible to developers. It's called p5.js, and it's a JavaScript version of it's older sister called Processing for Java. Both tools are amazing for visual coding on a canvas, and they do that by exposing a ton of useful helpers and ways to draw shapes, interact with the mouse/keyboard and even work with 3D.

If that sounds interesting to you, there's 2 ways to get started. Either check out the official Getting Started documentation or check out an amazing Youtube series created by one of the people behind p5 (and one of the best teachers on the internet), Programming for Beginners with p5.js.

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3. Faust, the Framework for Headless Wordpress

The final pick of today is an interesting new take on Wordpress, more specifically headless Wordpress. Wordpress is one of the most popular CMS'es and platforms on the internet today, and for good reason. There's lots of things that make Wordpess great, but it's also traditionally had a lot of problems in terms of performance and security. That's why people started using Wordpress purely for it's data and admin capabilities, and then create a decoupled front-end using React, Angular or Vue.

Faust takes this a step further by being a framework on top of React, while still retaining all the things that make Wordpress great. It's a really cool idea, and the feature list is very impressive - so definitely check out the announcement blog post if you work with Wordpress!

​Read the full Faust announcement​

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Thanks for reading! I would really appreciate if you would share the newsletter with your friends on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, by email or copy/paste the link mads.fyi/top3 on other platforms. It really helps to keep me motivated and let the newsletter grow. See you next week ✌

Mads Brodt