Code, Compile, Repeat: My Dev Diary

        Everything started back in Grade 11. I had no idea that a single school subject would change the direction of my life. It was the first time I encountered Java programming, and at first, it felt like trying to read a secret language. But something about it clicked — the logic, the structure, the challenge. I was instantly hooked.

The Curiosity That Became Obsession

        After discovering programming, I didn’t just settle for what was taught in class. I found myself staying up late at night, diving into online documentation, watching tutorials, and reading anything I could get my hands on. Every small success — even just printing "Hello, World!" — felt like unlocking a new level of power.

        And I didn’t stop at reading. To make sure I truly understood what I was learning, I started creating self-projects. They were simple at first — calculators, to-do apps, basic user interfaces — but each project taught me something new. It wasn’t always smooth. I remember one time I stayed up until 3 AM debugging a project, only to realize I had just misspelled a variable name. It was frustrating, but I lived for that challenge.

New Languages, New Battles

        As time passed, I began encountering new technologies and programming languages: VB.NET, SQL, HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and more. Each one had its own learning curve. I’ll never forget the time I tried integrating a login system using PHP and SQL for the first time — it broke everything. For days. But solving it taught me more than any tutorial ever could.

        Then came Grade 12, a milestone year. For our Practical Research and Entrepreneurship subjects, I developed a system called the “Teachers Evaluation System.” I built the application using VB.NET and managed the database with SQL. It was my first real-world system, and it wasn’t just a project — it was proof that I could turn my knowledge into something useful.

After Graduation: Deeper Into Java

        After high school, I continued learning Java — but this time, on a deeper level. I studied the 4 pillars of Object-Oriented Programming:

        Inheritance, Polymorphism, Abstraction, and Encapsulation. These concepts opened my eyes to how powerful structured code can be.

        I also explored connecting Java with databases using JDBC, and even started building Windows-based applications using AWT and Swing. It was like putting together everything I’d learned into more complex, more rewarding projects.

College and a New Challenge: C Language

        College came with new surprises. I thought I had seen most of what programming could offer — but then came the C language.

        Learning C was like learning how to drive a manual car after using automatic for years. Dynamic memory, pointer variables, and pointer arithmetic were difficult concepts at first. There were times I’d spend hours just trying to understand why a pointer wasn’t working — only to realize I hadn’t properly allocated memory. But mastering these topics sharpened my programming logic more than anything before.

What's Next?

    Now, with the vacation coming up, I’m planning to take on another challenge: learning Python for our upcoming OOP subject. I’m excited not just about Python’s simplicity, but about the new possibilities it opens — especially in automation, data science, and AI.

    And I won’t stop there. I’m also planning to revisit SQL, deepen my understanding of Java, and explore other programming languages to broaden my skill set.

Before You Go...

    This is just the beginning of my journey. Every challenge, error, and breakthrough has pushed me to become a better developer — and I’m still learning, every single day.

If you’ve read this far, thank you! I’d love to know:
- What kind of topics or programming content would YOU like to see next?
- Would you be interested in reading more blogs like this one?

Let me know in the comments — your suggestions might be the topic of my next post!