Disappeared already? What a jo-oh there he is.

So posting on here has slowed a bit, JavaScript learning has as of late as well- but I'm certainly not down and out.

For a good week there I felt like I had hit a spot where my brain was full as referenced in the last post. I gave myself a bit of a rest, slowly dipping my toe back into it over the last few days. It's been quite refreshing, as I feel as though I'm again starting to grasp the concepts that were evading my memory in lieu of hammering down the syntax. I wouldn't say I'm ready to dive back into coding head first just yet. I've been busy elsewhere...

Projects, Project Goals, Long term learning:

What I have been doing is focusing more heavily on my project ideas, specifically the long term project, which we'll call Project E. Project E is going to have a lot of elements involved that I have not yet began to study. While I have already had in mind a few other projects, it is starting to seem more natural that each one should each have a piece leading up to and fitting in with Project E.  The goal is multi-factor.

• Each small project will require its own planning, roadmap, and code. The hope here is to enforce project planning and small project coding through repetition.
• Each project will be quite different. I hope to approach the coding aspect in different ways as well, working with JavaScript and eventually moving into Java or some form C.
• The differences are beyond the chosen languages. Each project has been thought out to attack a problem logically in a different way than the previous.
• In addition to the differences there, the functionality of each is different. Requiring different types and levels of user input, storing (or not) data in different ways, and displaying the results differently from project to project.
• Differences in mind, each project will have a 'theme.' A piece of the logical puzzle that will eventually and hopefully directly relate to Project E.

With all of the above factors and more in mind I am heavily focused on developing well rounded skills starting with several small pictures, and eventually a much larger one should begin to emerge. This is to avoid one-track-minded projects that would eventually fail to challenge.

Projects A through E:

So to lay out the bare basics here are the most rudimentary and simplistic means to describe each project goal:

Project A: (Rock Paper Scissors) Strictly controlled user input, UI/UX (HTML/CSS) refresher.
Project B: (Contact List) Data input / deletion. Data storage (Local and DB). Database considerations and practical application (SQL vs Oracle).
Project C:  (TBD) Hoping to dabble in data presentation (charts / graphs), best security practices, and scalability. Bear in mind this is still a placeholder of sorts. As I'm slowly thinking of obstacles that will arise in Project E, I will eventually hammer this one down with more specifics.
Project D: (RSS Reader - Mobile - Java or C variant) This will be a springboard to developing a desktop client and anonymous meta-data collection.
Project E: (Unannounced) This project will combine the unique elements of each project before and introduce data analysis, data verification tools, and version control. The Data Analysis aspect will be center stage, for this I have already enlisted assistance, more to announce later. Whew!

Given a rough estimate, I would say project A is about 50% done at this point. I cannot say that I will stick with each project until completion. Ideally I would however realistically I'll likely be bouncing around between them. This will be determinate on several factors not limited to: core concepts I'm learning at the moment, what I believe I need to strengthen at the moment, and any ideas I come up with that would make a good addition to an individual project, and what I had for breakfast.

In summary: If at this point is has not been cloudy enough, I will clear the air by stating my career interests heavily lie in project management with coding as a springboard to that ultimate goal. To achieve this, I must develop deep knowledge of coding and coding concepts, as well as the management side of the dice.

Up next: Abstractly realize the individual projects A through D, recognizing the unique problems each one intends to solve and the various ways to reach those goals. Much like a software development cycle from a competent business' perspective, this will give me 'quarterly' goals, helping to further clear the fog and set course for the future.