Top 5 Places to Learn Coding Online

by Startacus Admin

The popular consensus at the moment is that Coding is the literacy of the 21st Century and therefore by definition should be something which is embraced by all of us.

Let’s face it though - if you’re not that technically minded, learning to code might seem like a pretty impossible and unachievable task - one of those things that ‘other people’ should do. But you know what? It’s not. Even you aren’t harbouring ambitions to be the next Zuckerberg and to create a global digital empire, knowing how to code will benefit you and your startup in some way - after all, virtually every business these days is automated in some way and is pretty much ‘run’ by computers.

Our advice?

We reckon you should add ‘Learn to Code' and undertaking Online IT Courses to that to-do list. Yes - that one. The one that has all the important stuff on it.

We know too that deciding where to learn how to code can be a bit of a task in itself, which is why we’ve chosen our Top 5 Places to Learn Coding Online, to help make that decision making a little easier.

So without further ado and of course in no particular order…

Codeacademy
Probably the most well-known name on our list and for good reason. This ‘education company’ offer a range of courses including JavaScript, HTML/CSS, PHP, Python, Ruby and APIs. Whether you want to learn a language or try your hand at building a web app this extremely intuitive website is for you. The courses are easy to follow and best of all, they’re free!

Code Avengers
If you like your learning to be fun, this one’s for you. With courses in HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript, Code Avengers interactive approach introduces a ‘game’ element to learning how to code. What we love most is the fact that there’s a quiz at the end of each lesson that’s designed like a video game. Who said learning code would be dull?

Learnstreet
With beginner courses available in Python,JavaScript and Ruby, this site is easy to use, intuitive and free! What’s not to love about that! With a range of beginner, intermediate and advanced projects available, it’s best suited to you if you like good old-fashioned no-nonsense learning.

Treehouse
If you prefer your learning to have a more project based element then Treehouse is probably for you. This site offers over 1000 videos on everything from web design to coding. With practical projects, interactive quizzes and cutting-edge workshops, this site claims to provide new course content every single week. This one isn’t free but offers several monthly and annual subscription options which you can select depending on your own learning needs.

Coursera
Although this one doesn’t exclusively specialise in coding, it’s still a worthwhile inclusion on our list. There are over 5 million people currently using the site and over 80 universities and companies have provided open online courses. Once again the courses are free and cover a whole host of subjects from Python to C++. Course formats include video tutorials, interactive exercises and sometimes...only sometimes may we add, a final exam.

So there you have it - our top 5.

Go do it.
Learn how to code.
You know you want to...

• #coding
• #technology
• #learning
• #code

Published on: 15th October 2013