Just copying and editing codes

I have been coding and doing projects here effectively but i cant remember the codes and usually i just edit the samples and make them what i want. How can i be sure that i truly Know a thing?

If you understand why and how the samples work (or don’t) - all is good.
I think that most important thing to learn here is knowledge how to find answers and applying them in real-life scenarios.

Creating a page, making an algorithm, connecting to a database…
If you know how after these lessons, it is ok.

Hi @tgodsam60 !

I would highly suggest to not do that.
The best way to learn is to research and ask questions.

Start with the html and work through the user stories one by one.
When you get stuck, research that particular part of the user story.

For example, if you are working on the tribute page and don’t know how to center an image, than you can google how to center an image css.

Programming is not about memorizing but rather researching through documents and articles.

That is how you will truly learn this material.

Hope that helps!

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If I’m understanding this correctly you’re working on the projects for certification but you’re just editing the sample projects instead of starting from scratch with a blank page.

If that’s the case it’s not a good thing. You should make the projects from scratch, with your own code, style and content. Without taking code from the sample projects.

  • The projects aren’t just another challenge. Each one is meant to be a significant step in your progress. Every project you do will require research, planning, trial and error, and strengthening your skills beyond what you gain from the incremental challenges.
  • The hardest part of coding is looking at a problem and coming up with a plan to solve that problem. Starting out by looking at someone else’s code completely bypasses that step.

If we’ve misunderstood what you’re trying to say please clarify so we can properly answer what you’re asking.

Hello, tgodsam60. :grinning:

I really believe in building small, simple projects and exercises of my own design that include code that I’m trying to understand, and then experimenting with that code to see how I can change the results. Most of these projects are not beautiful: in fact, they look pretty awful, but they help me figure out how things work.

For example, below is a screen capture of one such project I built some time ago to help me understand how the CSS classes and styling of a div element could be modified with inline styles.

It is obviously not something I’m going to show off in a portfolio. You can see where my text runs up against or over the border of the shapes, but after making the project, I learned more about HTML and CSS than what was presented in the FCC lessons. After building my understanding and confidence with the simple exercises, I was able to work on more complex ideas without copying samples.

I hope this gives you some ideas on how to proceed. Best of luck! :grin:

Whoa, I have been sleeping at the wheel obviously then… :man_facepalming:

Well, now you’re awake :slightly_smiling_face:

Go ahead and start the first project from the beginning. Start with a blank page and start with that first user story. Once that’s completed move on to the next user story. And so it goes. The output will not look so pretty but once all the user stories pass then you can start styling.
Don’t be afraid to reference the lessons. Don’t be afraid to use Google.

Now as the projects progress there will come a point where you’ll work through the user stories but will not be able to complete all of them with just HTML, some will require CSS. But it’s still the same. One step at a time.

If you have questions, or run into an issue that stumps you don’t be afraid to reach out to the forum community. That’s what it’s here for.
Responses will not always be the answer but rather a pointer to help you find the answer. Don’t get frustrated, it is hard, keep working through it, ask again if you’re still stumped.

Edit: When you’ve finished a project you can get feedback from the community by posting a link to your live project on the #project-feedback subforum.

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At least you are asking this question now instead of three certifications from now.

It shows that you really want to learn this stuff.

I understand being a beginner and trying to build your own projects.
It can be intimidating at first but that is how you will learn.

You really will start to see the difference in your learning.
And the concepts will start to make way more sense building projects from scratch. :grinning:

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