Plugging those Knowledge Gaps

Programming languages. Frameworks. Databases. Development Methodologies. There's a lot of knowledge out there. Some of which you may have picked up, some of which you use often, much of which you have yet to even discover. One of the biggest mistakes a web developer - or any kind of software engineer, for that matter - can make, is to think that he knows enough. It is not enough. It is never enough. As a dev, you are not a finished product. You are a work in progress. Keep that in mind, and never let that go... because the moment you do, you are done. Finito.

Web technology is constantly in motion, and if you stay still, you will be left behind. That is not a warning. That is a fact.

And above all, don't ever make the mistake of thinking you're accomplished enough that basic knowledge is beneath you. I've encountered developers who thought they were hot shit, and turned their noses up at researching the basics. The end result is that they could write code that somewhat worked... but they pissed off their co-workers by leaving unhelpful comments in the code and writing code that was so ugly it hurt my eyes.

No dev is ever too good to revisit the basics, or improve.

Piecemeal Knowledge

Many experienced web developers don't learn their craft in school. We pick up stuff on the job, learning whatever needs to be learned and improving as we go along. That seems to be the optimal way because web technologies are widely varied, and it's hard to find two seasoned web devs with identical skillsets. Our knowledge tends to be piecemeal. There are too many things that need to be learned, and far too little time to master any one thing. We learn enough to achieve one task, then move on to the next. If - and only if - we have to execute the same task over and over, invariably we learn different ways of doing it, and a certain degree of mastery sets in.

That said, this is the very reason why there doesn't seem to be a standard set of skills any web dev should have. Sure, most if not all web devs know HTML, CSS and JavaScript. But to what extent? Many web devs would be proficient in at least one back-end scripting language, if not several. And probably worked with databases. How deep should that knowledge be? Most web devs would know enough HTML, CSS and JavaScript to build a web page. Not every dev has ever had to deal with shopping carts. Or Social Media widgets. Some have even managed to go through their entire careers without needing to call a single external API. Some will know just enough JavaScript to manipulate the DOM. Some will know just enough CSS to format text and change page backgrounds. Some will know just enough PHP (or Python, or C#, take your pick) to run a few automated tasks and make some calculations.

That is not impossible, or even wrong. It happens.

No one has an answer to exactly how much a web developer should know, other than a very general list of things... and if they do, that answer is invariably incomplete. That is because web technology is used in so many contexts that there is no one skillset that will cover everything, unless one learns everything. And common sense will tell you that it is impossible. Some people will consider you a total noob if you don't know how to BCNF a relational database. Or the difference between an associative array and a hash table. Or all seven layers of the OSI model. But really, practically, how often in a typical web development environment does a developer have to know these things? If you learn these things and don't use them often enough, how long before you forget them? For instance, I always have to look up how to write a simple Switch Case statement in any language - because I use these maybe once a year. Or less. But a Try-Catch or a For loop - now these are on the forefront. But are these examples true for you? Are they true for all devs?

Whack-a-Mole

There are knowledge gaps everywhere. They will always exist. Everyone has them. Plugging these knowledge gaps is like playing that Whack-a-Mole game - as soon as you bop one pesky mole on the head, another pops right up! Because the more you learn, the more stuff you discover that you've yet to learn.

It's an impossible task. It'll keep you busy for eternity. Does it mean that we shouldn't do it?

Fuck, no!

You see, plugging these knowledge gaps is what keeps devs like me going. The nice thing about web development is that there's always something new and fun to learn. The sucky thing about it is that there are only twenty-four hours a day to learn stuff with.

How to plug those knowledge gaps?

As a fellow professional of mine likes to say, "Google is your friend". Every time you come across a term you haven't heard before, look it up. Religiously. Your search may be satisfied right away, or it could lead you down an endless rabbit hole. Either way, this is a good thing.

Every time you make a discovery while tinkering away, confirm that discovery. Search for the countless other people who have undoubtedly trodden the same path. See what they have to say, and add what value you can. Because silence may be golden, but sharing is priceless.

The takeaway

Generally, you need to start having at least a vague idea of what you don't know. It's all right to be an idiot. Just don't be the kind of idiot who doesn't know he's an idiot.

The only thing you can do about knowledge gaps, is to keep on identifying and rectifying them. You can never eliminate all your knowledge gaps - but you can ensure that the knowledge gaps that you have today, aren't exactly the same ones you had last year. 

Keep plugging away,
T___T