Programmer's profession

It's no secret that today the profession of a programmer is among the most promising, highest-paid, and in-demand in the market. Therefore, it becomes interesting to hear first-hand what a typical day looks like for a person engaged in this profession, what challenges they face, and whether it's worth taking on this job? Or maybe it's not for everyone? The programmers of the uxas.com team are happy to share their experience and answer the questions asked.

So let's start from the beginning. It's interesting to know what prompted our interviewees to choose the path of a programmer.

Artjomas shares that computer technology has always fascinated him. He had a desire to do mental work, which often requires racking your brain in this field. Artjomas also reveals another advantage that prompted him to choose this path - like many others, flexibility in terms of location was a very important aspect for him, and all he needs is a computer at hand. Of course, firstly motivation arises from an inner desire and being interested in this area for your own pleasure. After all, the best professionals in the field are those for whom work is not just work but also a certain type of self-realization.

Obviously, the passion for learning is always greater when you are interested in what naturally attracts you. Most speakers have been consciously seeking to link their future work with their favourite and interesting activities for a long time, while others have pursued this direction for a change. For example, the CEO of uxas.com Žilvinas, says that he wanted to program since he was 13 years old. He started learning in 2000 when he received his first computer, a "Pentium I". "There were not many games to play, but there were enough to crack programs. We had a group of three activists, so we exchanged experiences with them. Later we started learning to program and hack systems," recalls Žilvinas.

Some speakers, like Žilvinas, have been in this field for years, so they have accumulated a lot of experience, while others are still in an intensive learning process. However, in fact, the learning process never ends here.

When it comes to education, two paths always stand out. Some people believe that university, college, or other courses are a very important foundation before embarking on independent problem-solving and acquiring this basic knowledge. However, there are also those who dare to learn by practicing. It's fortunate that in our team, we have both cases.

Gytis started learning programming three years ago. Although he worked in an area unrelated to computer technology before that, he felt that he would realize himself much more here. So, when favourable circumstances arose, he decided to take a risk and take on this, then poorly known, profession.

Having chosen the programming courses offered by BIT, Gytis got a serious introduction to programming. Although he had to pay for the courses himself, it became an incentive for him to try even harder. Of course, he also had to take care of his family and start working as soon as possible to stand on his own two feet. The first years of learning were not easy - as the interviewee remembers, he spent about 16 hours a day on it. Fortunately, his efforts paid off and he graduated with honours. However, that was not enough, so he continued to attend private lessons with one of the lecturers who taught the courses. And less than a year after the start of his studies, Gytis found his first official programming job.

Vladimiras, Artjomas, and Karolis took a slightly different path of learning. In fact, Vladimir and Artjomas were lucky to have experienced people nearby who were willing to share their knowledge and teach them, and they looked for additional information online - after all, there is so much to be found there!

As for Karolis, he was a self-taught student. He says that he bought a book on PHP programming language and started his first projects after reading it, and he found more information he needed for learning online (e.g., on YouTube). Of course, he mostly learned by applying his knowledge in practical situations.

It is important to understand that there is no one right or ideal way of learning. It should be adapted according to a person's abilities and qualities, and even opportunities. We all absorb information at different speeds and in different ways, so first of all, we should get to know ourselves and find the most suitable way of learning.

The challenges of the first job

Starting a new field, even after spending a lot of time studying, the first job is full of challenges and inevitable mistakes. How do our programmers remember their first jobs?

Igoris: "It wasn't difficult to find the first job, but the first projects and tasks took a lot of time and were hard. As time went by, everything became easier and easier."

Artjomas: "My first job was quite easy - I had to create a website using the PrestaShop platform, but I had to do it 5 times because there was an installation error. Finally, I had to manually correct the errors, which took a lot of time."

Karolis: "I found my first job quite easily because it was about 7-8 years ago when there weren't as many junior programmers, and now everyone who has finished academies is looking for work, which is not easy to do without any experience."

Vladimiras: "I consider my first job as the best work experience because I had to learn a lot in a short period of time."

The learning never ends

If you think that once you reach a certain level you no longer need to learn, you are mistaken. Even experienced programmers often have to search for solutions to problems on the internet or consult with other programmers, and there is nothing unusual about that. Speaking of everyday problems, Igoris says that they usually arise because there is not enough knowledge about how to work with a particular system, so a lot of time has to be spent on searching for information and delving into it. Karolis says that the most difficult thing is often to take over old or poorly programmed projects. The programmers at uxas.com  assure that each project is unique in its own way, so it requires different methods of application, and obstacles that initially appear easy to solve can take up hours spent browsing and figuring out where the problem lies. Žilvinas shares his experience: "Usually the problems are simple. Often it is some stupid logical or "mistype" error, which takes hours to find." However, he also adds that there are cases when problems arise when trying to change code that one is not familiar with, which is programmed very cleverly, in order to show off, and gives advice: "As one good friend of mine says, if you can't do a certain part in 20 minutes, it's better to leave it and come back in a few hours. This method is really effective."

Skills required for work

It is probably clear that a person engaged in programming must be curious and constantly willing to learn, dig deeper, and search for the roots of the problem. But what personal qualities does a person need to have or develop when taking up this profession? All respondents answered as one that it requires a lot of patience, focus, motivation, logical thinking, and discipline. Programming sounds like a very responsible, thorough, and quite difficult job. And it is. However, despite this, all speakers claim that they are happy to have chosen this path, as they work in one of the most promising fields, where work never gets boring, because there are always new innovations! Here they improve their thinking skills every day, discover and realize themselves.

Work is not just work

It is important not to forget that programmers help many people to realize their business ideas or even dreams and create added value for society. In the past, Artjomas used to wonder how he serves others by engaging in this activity? What is the benefit of it? But later he realized that his work is as useful as many others - he helps people create content or a website where others can find useful information or even learn something. This is another thing that motivates him in this job. Meanwhile, Žilvinas encourages not to underestimate the impact of one's work, as it can affect many people: "You have no idea how much you can influence people's lives with your work." This is another thing that motivates him in this job. And here Žilvinas reminds not to forget that even though the profession of a programmer is very interesting, at the end of the day, it is necessary to have a personal development plan and strive to implement it. Work is just a means, but not the ultimate goal in human life.

Programming Languages

When planning to become a programmer, one of the things that needs to be clarified is the programming language that you intend to learn. Our programmers tell us which programming languages they work with or have come across:

Žilvinas: "I mostly worked with website technologies, but I have tried a lot in my life: 'PHP', 'Java', 'JavaScript', 'C++', and 'C' programming languages. Now it seems like I'm already on another, some kind of "meta" level, where the choice of programming languages and solution methods depends on the problem."

Karolis: "The main language is 'PHP', but over the years, I have had to try various ones: 'Java', 'JavaScript', 'Python', 'Go'. Actually, if you know one programming language well enough, it is quite easy to adapt to others. I chose other languages out of curiosity; I wanted to try them out to have a general understanding of how they work."

Vladimiras: "I use 'CSS' and 'HTML' languages necessary for website development."

Artjomas: "I use 'CSS' and 'HTML' languages, but I work more with simpler tools needed for 'SEO' optimization."

Gytis: "I work with 'PHP', 'JavaScript', 'CSS', and 'HTML'. I also work with the corresponding frameworks. I chose 'PHP' as the main language due to its popularity and the ability to find a job."

Igoris: "I mostly work with 'PHP', 'JavaScript', and 'SQL', and I learned 'C++' and 'Python' programming languages in school and in my free time."

Artificial Intelligence and Prospects

Quite recently, we got to know and even had the opportunity to taste for the first time the fruits generated by artificial intelligence. These capabilities surprised the whole world and, of course, made us think, and perhaps even worry, about what human activities it could replace in the future. Already now, artificial intelligence helps to answer complex questions, solve tasks, or even create thematic video clips. What is the prevailing mood in this field? Although there are considerations that artificial intelligence could actually replace programmers, uxas.com  programmers are not rushing to fear that their jobs will disappear and say that the prospects in this field may even increase despite the innovations being introduced. Especially valuable are programmers who have gained a lot of experience, and their demand in the market is constantly growing. It may be that artificial intelligence will become an excellent work tool for programmers in the future and will make their everyday lives easier. Over the next few years, the entire programming process may become significantly simplified (this is already happening), and perhaps there will no longer be a need to know so much because artificial intelligence can write code quickly and with high quality. We live in a digital world, and over time, there will be a growing demand for labour capable of creating various systems or websites.

Perhaps our programmers are not afraid of artificial intelligence and innovations because they work in a field that not only promotes but also creates innovations. And the team at uxas.com  is innovative and inclined to control and adapt technologies to their needs, in order to create the greatest benefit for everyone around them.