A conversation with Clark SellGeneral Musings with Kevin Powell2024-06-16 | Go here to enter your name to win a ticket to THAT Conference: https://forms.gle/vQPr383ZodpTqLq16 Or check out the site, and get your own ticket: thatconference.com/wi
My primary YouTube channel where I teach frontend development, with a strong focus on CSS: youtube.com/@KevinPowell
Help support my channel π¨βπ Get a course: kevinpowell.co/courses π Buy a shirt: teespring.com/stores/making-the-internet-awesome π Support me on Patreon: patreon.com/kevinpowellWhy You Should Learn CSS Grid Before FlexboxGeneral Musings with Kevin Powell2024-07-14 | This week I'll talk about why I believe Grid is simpler and more intuitive to learn first compared to Flexbox, exploring some common misconceptions, the complexity of Flexbox, and how learning Grid first sets you up for success.
My primary YouTube channel where I teach frontend development, with a strong focus on CSS: youtube.com/@KevinPowell
Help support my channel π¨βπ Get a course: kevinpowell.co/courses π Buy a shirt: teespring.com/stores/making-the-internet-awesome π Support me on Patreon: patreon.com/kevinpowellI hate that people say stuff like this...General Musings with Kevin Powell2024-07-07 | In this episode I dive into a topic sparked by a discussion in my Discord community where someone avoided learning grid because an experienced developer told them Flexbox can do it all. I share my thoughts on the impact of experienced developers' opinions shaping new learners' paths and emphasize the importance of embracing new tools to make our work easier.
My primary YouTube channel where I teach frontend development, with a strong focus on CSS: youtube.com/@KevinPowell
Help support my channel π¨βπ Get a course: kevinpowell.co/courses π Buy a shirt: teespring.com/stores/making-the-internet-awesome π Support me on Patreon: patreon.com/kevinpowellWhy does CSS keep getting more complex?General Musings with Kevin Powell2024-06-30 | In this episode I delve into the evolving landscape of CSS, discussing why we have so many ways of doing "simple" things, like declaring colors. I emphasize the importance of a solid foundation in core languages, the necessity of continuous learning, and the value of practical experience in mastering front-end development. Despite the increasing complexity, I believe these advancements ultimately offer better solutions and flexibility.
My primary YouTube channel where I teach frontend development, with a strong focus on CSS: youtube.com/@KevinPowell
My primary YouTube channel where I teach frontend development, with a strong focus on CSS: youtube.com/@KevinPowell
Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 00:43 - CSS Day Experience 01:10 - Adoption of New CSS Features 02:35 - Challenges in CSS Adoption 06:02 - Raising Awareness for New CSS Features 09:22 - Final Thoughts
Our conversation explores their experiences in the web development industry and their approach to creating content. We discuss the pressure to conform to trends and algorithms, the importance of staying true to oneself, and the challenges of keeping up with rapidly evolving technologies.
We also touch on the role of AI in design and development (which you might be able to tell, I used for these show notes π ), highlighting the need for strong articulation skills to effectively communicate with AI models.
Overall, the conversation emphasizes the importance of experimentation, continuous learning, and pushing the boundaries of creativity. The conversation explores the future of software engineering and the evolving job market, touches on the idea that while technology is changing, the skills and problem-solving mindset of a software engineer will always be valuable.
We also reflect on the early days of their YouTube channels and the personal connections they formed with their audience, and the importance of a balance between work and personal life.
Travis reflects on his decision to leave the DevTips YouTube channel and the impact it had on his personal life. He discusses the importance of genuine relationships and the joy of being loved rather than praised. Travis shares the unexpected story of how he regained ownership of the channel after five years and his plans for its future.
My primary YouTube channel where I teach frontend development, with a strong focus on CSS: youtube.com/@KevinPowell
In this episode, Kevin discusses the importance of being open to different learning methods and not getting stuck in one's preferred way of learning. He emphasizes the debunking of the learning styles myth and advocates for a multimodal approach to learning. Kevin shares his personal experience of scheduling learning time and how it has helped him become more organized and efficient. He also talks about the challenges of creating online courses that cater to different learning preferences. The key takeaway is to be willing to try different learning methods and not dismiss them outright.
My primary YouTube channel where I teach frontend development, with a strong focus on CSS: youtube.com/@KevinPowell
Help support my channel π¨βπ Get a course: kevinpowell.co/courses π Buy a shirt: teespring.com/stores/making-the-internet-awesome π Support me on Patreon: patreon.com/kevinpowellAnswering your questions - Mailbag episodeGeneral Musings with Kevin Powell2024-04-15 | In this episode, I answer questions from my audience, covering topics such as studying coding courses, the importance of consistency in learning, starting a blog, the relevance of pixel units in CSS, other programming languages Kevin knows, the use of utility classes vs custom classes, and subtle UI animations and page transitions.
My primary YouTube channel where I teach frontend development, with a strong focus on CSS: youtube.com/@KevinPowell
Help support my channel π¨βπ Get a course: kevinpowell.co/courses π Buy a shirt: teespring.com/stores/making-the-internet-awesome π Support me on Patreon: patreon.com/kevinpowellHow teaching helped me become a better developerGeneral Musings with Kevin Powell2024-04-07 | In this episode, Kevin discusses the benefits of teaching as a way to enhance your learning. He shares his personal experience of teaching and how it helped him deepen his understanding of CSS. Kevin emphasizes the importance of building a strong foundation and filling in knowledge gaps through teaching. He encourages listeners to start a blog or any public-facing platform to share their learnings and insights. Teaching not only helps you solidify your knowledge but also benefits others who are trying to learn the same thing.
My primary YouTube channel where I teach frontend development, with a strong focus on CSS: youtube.com/@KevinPowell
If you ask any front-end developer what the easiest language is between HTML, CSS, and JS, and everyone is going to say HTML, right? Itβs funny though, because most of the things I hem and haw over the longest are often related to how to mark something up in my HTML.
Help support my channel π¨βπ Get a course: kevinpowell.co/courses π Buy a shirt: teespring.com/stores/making-the-internet-awesome π Support me on Patreon: patreon.com/kevinpowellDont rely on this non-existent optimizationGeneral Musings with Kevin Powell2023-12-17 | A recent video of mine has made me realize that a lot of people donβt realize that cross-site caching isnβt a thing anymore, so in this episode, I talk about that, as well as how we do still need to optimize things, how great CSS is becoming, and more.
You see, I recently have become so excited about how we can use a CSS feature that Iβm changing my approach to creating the core structure for websites going forward. The sort of final version of this idea Iβm talking about is something that I posted about this week on my main channel, but in reality, itβs something I figured out over five years ago, and I just never realized how great it was at the time. Or rather, I realized I was onto something, and then, for reasons weβll get to later, I stopped bothering with it and eventually totally forgot about it.
What Iβve been up to this week (and other links of mine that I mentioned): - My first video on Grid: youtu.be/plRcoRqLriw - My video from 2018 on grid as a container replacement: youtu.be/eC2v0v229Ec - My recent video on using grid as a container replacement: youtu.be/eC2v0v229Ec - My video from this week that expands on that idea: youtu.be/cf-J4ffMBfo - I ranked the CSS units into different tiers: youtu.be/S0wilV67hjQ
My primary YouTube channel where I teach frontend development, with a strong focus on CSS: youtube.com/@kevinpowell
- The thought process to break down more complex problems. - Being able to dive into existing code and quickly make sense of it.
These are probably two of the most important skills you can have as a developer, but they donβt get much attention because they arenβt as easy to convey as βfollow along as I code this upβ.
Iβll give some tips on how you can improve your skills on both of these though, and as a bonus it can even be a little fun!
Help support my channel π¨βπ Get a course: kevinpowell.co/courses π Buy a shirt: teespring.com/stores/making-the-internet-awesome π Support me on Patreon: patreon.com/kevinpowellHow do you know youre ready to start applying for jobs?General Musings with Kevin Powell2023-11-19 | This week is going to be a bit of a preview for a more in-depth video on my main channel that will be coming out in a few weeks because Iβm in the middle of breaking down a few interviews that Iβve done to get some insight on helping people get their first jobs.
In the video Iβll be talking about everything from positioning yourself to help you land interviews, how to have a successful interview, and how you can sometimes even skip a few steps along the way, but for this edpisode focus on how do you even know that youβre ready to start applying for jobs.
Help support my channel π¨βπ Get a course: kevinpowell.co/courses π Buy a shirt: teespring.com/stores/making-the-internet-awesome π Support me on Patreon: patreon.com/kevinpowellHow peoples struggles with CSS evolve over timeGeneral Musings with Kevin Powell2023-11-12 | This week, Iβm going to be talking about the results of the survey I ran last week asking about peopleβs primary pain point with CSS and exploring if we can find any correlation between years of experience and specific pain pointsβspoiler alert, we can!βas well as sharing a few of my favorite resources that I use to keep up with CSS.
Other awesome stuff around the web: - Stephanieβs newsletter: thinkdobecreate.com/newsletter - CSS weekly newsletter: css-weekly.com - Ryan Mulliganβs Layou Breakouts with CSS Grid: https://ryanmulligan.dev/blog/layout-breakouts/ - Breakout of the container snippet by Stephanie Eckles: https://smolcss.dev/#smol-breakout-grid
A lot of people get frustrated by CSS, but there are so many different aspects of it that seem to drive people crazy, and Iβd love to know what they are for you!
Help support my channel π¨βπ Get a course: kevinpowell.co/courses π Buy a shirt: teespring.com/stores/making-the-internet-awesome π Support me on Patreon: patreon.com/kevinpowellSupercharge your learningGeneral Musings with Kevin Powell2023-11-03 | If you don't use notes properly, they are often a complete waste of time, but if you take notes after your learning session, and you write down not only what you learned, but include explanations that you write in your own words, you might be surprised at how much it will impact your learning.Powering through a lot of lessons isnt the best way to learnGeneral Musings with Kevin Powell2023-11-01 | Sometimes we trick ourselves into thinking we're making progress by powering through tones of lessons from an online course, or going through a ton of YouTube videos. Covering too much material isn't helpful though, it's super important to both take breaks, and change things up and take time to practice as well!Supercharge your learningGeneral Musings with Kevin Powell2023-10-29 | If youβre learning something new and youβre putting in a lot of work, one of the best ways to supercharge your learning is to take notes. I know a lot of people might scoff at that idea because they see note taking as a waste of time, but in this episode I talk about how there are ways of doing it that can not only be effective, but which can supercharge your learning.
Other awesome stuff around the web β Reality Check #1: Building out a furniture site from Dribbble: https://set.studio/reality-check-1-building-out-a-furniture-site-from-dribbble/
Help support my channel π¨βπ Get a course: kevinpowell.co/courses π Buy a shirt: teespring.com/stores/making-the-internet-awesome π Support me on Patreon: patreon.com/kevinpowellKeeping up momentum with self-paced learningGeneral Musings with Kevin Powell2023-10-26 | It can be really easy to start an online course strong, getting through a lot of lessons, and then slowly fading over time, before never actually finishing it. There are a few ways to help keep the momentum up though, including scheduling time on your calendar. I share some more tips in the full video, which is the "related video" on this one, or whatever YouTube calls it on these shorts :)How much time should it take to complete an online course?General Musings with Kevin Powell2023-10-25 | How long should it take to complete an online course? Probably more than you think!Understanding vs Knowing how to do somethingGeneral Musings with Kevin Powell2023-10-24 | Tutorials can trick us into thinking we know how to do something, when in reality we only understand the topic, not how to do actually do it ourselves
#podcastKeeping up momentum with self-paced learningGeneral Musings with Kevin Powell2023-10-22 | Online courses are awesome, but itβs really easy to get started with one only to let it drop by the way side after completing 20% of it, or actually finish one, but not feel like you learned as much as you were hoping to.
In this episode, I explore some tips on how to get the most from online courses, and how to help make sure you actually get all the way to through them as well!
Other awesome stuff around the web:
β Sara Soueidanβs Practical Accessibility: https://practical-accessibility.today/
What Iβve been up to this week: β I asked people to make this simple layout and was surprised by the results: youtu.be/ztBgxsgEG9A β A simple approach to layouts when going from design to code: youtu.be/kmFr_8U81vU β :nth-child has a super power most people donβt know about: youtube.com/shorts/66Ouwg8fXL0
My primary YouTube channel where I teach frontend development, with a strong focus on CSS: youtube.com/@kevinpowell
You need to try and do things without the help of a tutorial sometimes, and use lessons and tutorials to help you when you are stuck, rather than blindly following along with them though. #ShortsWhy mobile-first isnt always bestGeneral Musings with Kevin Powell2023-10-17 | My primary YouTube channel where I teach frontend development, with a strong focus on CSS: youtube.com/@kevinpowell
Help support my channel π¨βπ Get a course: kevinpowell.co/courses π Buy a shirt: teespring.com/stores/making-the-internet-awesome π Support me on Patreon: patreon.com/kevinpowellMy simple technique for a better work/life balanceGeneral Musings with Kevin Powell2023-10-10 | I work from home, and with my home-office being the same place I use for my downtime, it can be a little tricky to make that separation at times. In this episode, I talk about how I use virtual desktops to help create a bit of a different environment for what tasks I'm doing, which I find has really helped me make that separation, and also avoid general distractions.
My primary YouTube channel where I teach frontend development, with a strong focus on CSS: youtube.com/@kevinpowell
Help support my channel π¨βπ Get a course: kevinpowell.co/courses π Buy a shirt: teespring.com/stores/making-the-internet-awesome π Support me on Patreon: patreon.com/kevinpowellIntrinsic Web DesignGeneral Musings with Kevin Powell2023-10-10 | Intrinsic Web Design, or Intrinsic Layouts, is a way we can approach writing our CS where weβre handing off a lot of the control the browser. That doesnβt mean weβre letting go of all the control though, but instead that weβre giving the browser hints on what weβd like to happen and letting it do the hard work for us.
What Iβve been up to this week: - How to make your own frontend roadmap youtu.be/W7PeT9CN9A4 - Create a progressively-enhanced infinite horizontal scroll animation: youtu.be/iLmBy-HKIAw - The border-radius feature most people donβt know about: youtu.be/iLmBy-HKIAw - CSS Mastery with Kevin Powell (The Code Ryan Podcast): Unveiling Uncommon Knowledge: youtu.be/8K8WM3ZGm3k
Other awesome stuff around the web: - Contextual Spacing For Intrinsic Web Design by Stephanie Eckles https://moderncss.dev/contextual-spacing-for-intrinsic-web-design/ - Styling the Intrisic Web with Cascade Layers & Container Queries by Miriam Suzanne oddbird.net/talks/intrinsic-web
My primary YouTube channel where I teach frontend development, with a strong focus on CSS: youtube.com/@kevinpowell
Help support my channel π¨βπ Get a course: kevinpowell.co/courses π Buy a shirt: teespring.com/stores/making-the-internet-awesome π Support me on Patreon: patreon.com/kevinpowellWhen you feel like youre losing motivationGeneral Musings with Kevin Powell2023-10-10 | This is the second episode of an experimental podcast where I use the AI voice-to-text service ElevenLabs to generate audio based on the general musings section of my weekly newsletter (I stopped using the AI, and started reading it myself, in future episodes).
In this one, I talk about why we can fall into a rut, or lose motivation, which can lead to things like burnout, how important it is to realize when we're heading that way, and also how I deal with it.
My primary YouTube channel where I teach frontend development, with a strong focus on CSS: youtube.com/@kevinpowell
As for the episode itself, in this one I talk about how people sometimes romanticize the idea of freelancing, and sometimes get into web development with the idea of becoming a freelancer, without realizing everything it entails.
Help support my channel π¨βπ Get a course: kevinpowell.co/courses π Buy a shirt: teespring.com/stores/making-the-internet-awesome π Support me on Patreon: patreon.com/kevinpowellHow I use Notion to help stay on taskGeneral Musings with Kevin Powell2023-10-10 | In this episode, I talk about how I use Notion to keep track of what Iβm up to, both for the bigger picture of my content calendar, and also a daily to-do list, and also how I managed to get this system to stick after trying, and failing, to use it several times.
My primary YouTube channel where I teach frontend development, with a strong focus on CSS: youtube.com/@kevinpowell
π¬ Come hang out with other dev's in my Discord Community: discord.gg/nTYCvrK
Help support my channel π¨βπ Get a course: kevinpowell.co/courses π Buy a shirt: teespring.com/stores/making-the-internet-awesome π Support me on Patreon: patreon.com/kevinpowellMy curseGeneral Musings with Kevin Powell2023-10-10 | This week, I talked about whether or not I can break the curse of every conference that I get invited to being cancelled π . So far, Iβm four for four, but I have a chance to break it to start off 2024, when Iβll be speaking at THAT Conference in Rolling Rock, Texas!
Help support my channel π¨βπ Get a course: kevinpowell.co/courses π Buy a shirt: teespring.com/stores/making-the-internet-awesome π Support me on Patreon: patreon.com/kevinpowellThe CSS MindsetGeneral Musings with Kevin Powell2023-10-10 | CSS is different from other languages, and while that can seem frustrating and leads to a lot of people complaining about it, thereβs a good reason that it is the way it is. In this episode, I explore how and why itβs different, and how we can overcome the frustrations we run into with CSS by adopting the right mindset when authoring our stylesheets.