13 Blogs Every Software Developer Must Bookmark
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Join For FreeAs a software developer, you need to keep yourself updated about the latest happenings in your niche. You also need to brush up on your development knowledge regularly so that you don’t take a wrong turn while building an application.
One of the ways that can help you become aware of the relevant developments in your field and also enables you to brush up your existing skillsets is going through blogs and websites either run by expert developers or which play host to informative pieces written by highly proficient developers.
While there are many blogs fighting for the attention of their readers, it’s a pain figuring out which sites are worth your attention and time.
So, to make your job a little easier, we have compiled a list of some of the best online sources of programming knowledge for developers.
Ranging from web development to mobile game development, these are a few must-read blogs for anyone who’s interested in learning about coding/development:
1. A List Apart
Any list of reputed programming blogs has to start with A List Apart. It is a team blog where multiple authors publish articles on topics ranging from web design to web development and web content to web standards. It’s a must bookmark blog for web developers and programmers who want to stay ahead in the world of web programming.
This blog also covers interviews with web development gurus and also has a section called ‘Ask Dr. Web’ where you can ask questions regarding a career in programming or the industry in general.
The term ‘Responsive Web Design’ was first coined in an article on this blog.
Coding Horror is a site curated by a highly experienced software developer, Jeff Atwood since 2004. This blog is a great place to look for posts related to the programming industry.
He frequently discusses his personal thoughts about particular programming topics and even gives advice to newbie and experienced programmers.
This is a blog for aspiring software programmers who are aiming to crack interviews at big tech companies. The main objective behind this blog is to provide answers for programming/algorithmic questions that are usually asked in interviews. It’s a user-submitted blog, where newbie programmers post their personal interview experiences.
This blog is the top destination for programmers around the world. Scott Hanselman, a blog named after its owner is an actively maintained personal blog that provides deep insights into the programming industry.
On this blog, you shall find a broad mixture of topics ranging from technology to coding, and Internet to tools. Scott Hanselman, a highly experienced developer even explores the future of programming while analyzing the impact of programming on gadgets.
5. Code Better
The tagline for this blog says it all – “Stuff you need to Code Better!”
It’s a multi-author technical blogging community created in early 2005 by bloggers Brendan and Darrell. It is a highly technical blog, which focuses mainly on Microsoft technologies, especially .Net based languages, SQL Server, SharePoint, BizTalk Server, platforms and other software.
Here, veteran programmers publish articles on best practices, efficient tools, proven methodologies and verified techniques that can be put to good use by the software developer community.
The Daily WTF is a humorous user-submitted blog that collects horror stories experienced by developers in a real world environment.
So, why should you bookmark this blog?
It is basically a ‘how not-to’ guide that will tell you what not to do while programming.
On this blog, several prominent figures have written about ‘the very real horror experiences’ of their professional lives. A case in point is Black Ross writing about the failure of Netscape 7.
Another blog named after its blog owner, this web programming blog has to be on your radar all the time as the blogger updates it frequently.
Technical write-ups on this blog simplify difficult concepts so that newbie web developers can grasp them easily. This blog mainly focuses on JavaScript (MooTools, jQuery, Dojo) along with some specialized topics like CSS, PHP, HTML5 and more.
This weblog is penned by Joel Spolsky, a software developer working out of New York. Although simplistic in design, it covers highly relevant content that can interest software developers, designers and managers. It covers topics like project management, coding habits and software best practices. This blog even contains articles that can help a potential entrepreneur start a business and break into this industry.
Joel stopped updating his blog last year in July.
So a question might spring up in your mind – “Then why should I bookmark this blog?”
Well, that’s because some of the content on this blog is as relevant today as it was when it was written; you would be remiss if you fail to read the fantastic articles on this blog.
Ok, so this isn’t a programming blog, but if cloud computing is your focus, then Nati Shalom’s blog will be of particular interest. Shalom, founder of Gigaspaces and top cloud computing blogger for CIO for the year 2012 gives information on Big Data, NoSQL and PaaS on his blog. You need to read this blog because it can help you understand the convergence of development and cloud computing technologies and how it can benefit you as a programmer/developer.
10. Tuts+
This blog is jam-packed with information that helps web programmers and mobile developers improve their skillsets in web design, game development and more. It offers video courses and rich code sample tutorials that help programmers learn specific skills from start to finish.
It discusses varied topics ranging from how to create an app to different ways you can increase user engagement potential of your app. In short, a blog that is designed to help developers learn something new every day.
11. Six Revisions
If you are familiar with web development, then you must have definitely heard about this blog.
Six Revisions was launched in February 2008 by professional web developer/designer Jacob Gube, who is now the chief editor of the site.
This blog has built a huge fan base by publishing countless posts that offer deep insights into web designing and development. It regularly publishes practical and useful articles for designers and web developers.
So, if web development interests you, don’t skip this one!
12. Gamasutra
Technically, Gamasutra is a website with a blog component, but it can be read as a blog by developers that are interested in game development. This is an excellent resource with knowledgeable insights into different aspects of game design and the mobile gaming industry.
Gamasutra basically has five main sections: ‘News’ where the latest news regarding the mobile industry is posted, ‘Features’ where developers post game post mortems, ‘Blogs’ where users can post their views and experiences, ‘Jobs/Resume’ where users can apply for various development positions lying vacant across various companies and ‘Contractors’ where developers can apply for contractual work.
13. Daily JS
This blog has some great stuff for JS coders. It covers news, tips, examples and reviews of a variety of JavaScript frameworks and modules.
Are there any other coding-related blogs that you would like to recommend to software developers? Which are the blogs you go through regularly to get the low down on the world of development and programming? We would like to know.
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