Hey all, I’m currently doing my design graduating project, researching on internet art and websites. My current end goal is to create a website, specifically incorporating SQLite Database, and node.js stuff.
I have various website examples for visual references and where I am heading towards in terms of concept, front-end and back-end.
Concept and Organisation https://www.softspace.world/
→ Users get to click into different ‘rooms’ (Meadow, Self-Sanctuary, Embodied Internet) and experience different features.
I intend to have this sort of navigation as well.
The main interactive feature that I want to incorporate in is:
Users go to the site > Click add > website prompts fields to include in text > Users fill in the fields and click add > text gets shown on the screen
Currently, I find that I’m lacking in a lot of the foundation coding skills required, specifically Javascript, so I’m speedrunning and studying it through Javascript lessons on Udemy. I’ve also asked around and I was told that I also need to sort of have a understanding of the back-end stuff (Server? Node.js and SQL) works.
It’s a very ambitious project to embark on since I didn’t code much, but I’m willing to learn and get it out.
My question for the community is: Are there any more advice and things I need to know to further speed run this process and get the website out? Should I also just work on the user-interface using HTML, and CSS first before incorporating the back-end stuff?
I still get overwhelmed and confused looking at the templated SQLite code on Glitch.
Would appreciate every and any help in the comments!! Thank you
you can run backends written in languages other than javascript on glitch too. so if you’re comfortable with a different language, maybe it’ll save time to do it that way.
in fact you can achieve the desired behavior to the word, if not to the original intent, without a backend. javascript on the webpage can take these field inputs and show it on the screen… of the same computer. you’d still need to learn javascript to build that though
First of all, it’s great that you have a final vision for what you’d like to build in mind because, trust me, that makes things waaayy easier. You’ll only have to focus on what you need to get the ball rolling, and it’s a great way to learn programming.
Second, you’re absolutely right in needing to learn JavaScript, but something that is not made clear is the learning gap between being able to write traditional JavaScript and then making the jump to Node.js. Although Node.js is JavaScript syntactically, that’s as far as it goes. You’ll feel comfortable writing code, which also makes learning easier because it’s all JavaScript! But for things to actually work, you’ll need to use libraries (think add-ons but for code) and have some idea of how webpages are served (especially if you’re using Node.js). These might sound difficult, but they make your life super easy, and its definitely worth spending some time getting to know Node.js and writing a few basic programs until you have a basic idea of how it goes.
Lastly, working on the interface or the backend design first is mostly up to you, and I don’t think it makes a huge difference. Your Node.js backend is going to define the structure of your overall website and what pages are served when people go to different URLs, so you can either set your website’s limits and then move to making the interface as it might arguably be easier considering how its just HTML and CSS; or you can be unprepared like me and start with the interface and then deal with the chaos that is Node.js.
It’s not as bad as I make it sound; after that initial lag, you’ll quickly catch up. Technology has come a long way, and if you’re short on time, something like ChatGPT can be good at telling you what goes where and how, although I wouldn’t completely rely on it. You still need to know your stuff, but it can guide you from time to time.
also agree with whatever my boy @wh0 said above, if you really don’t need node.js and think you can pull it off with bare javascript, then it’s not really worth it :))
Do you have an example of this? I don’t think I know how to run backends at all yet.
Oh yes! This might be my consideration to quickly get a prototype out if I can’t manage the backend at the end. I wanted a database because it allows the text to remain on the screen of other computers too.
Do you have some examples of those libraries! and yes, I’m preparing to dive into the world of Node.js to get the basic understanding of it too.
Okay, at this point, I think it really sounds like I need to have a basic understanding of Node.js before I’ll understand this as well. But yes I think I am also going to jump right into the interface and deal with the chaos later
Other than that, yea I have been using ChatGPT for guidance too! and I find that even not knowing all the basics I do have a rough intuition on how things work. The learning would definitely speed things up.
Okay, I feel a bit more assured and confident that I am on the right track to getting my deliverable, thanks for the reply
a while ago there was this huge list of languages (ok the list appears to contain entries other than languages too) that could run on Glitch:
but I don’t have any references for example projects. but they probably all come down to setting up a suitable “start” script for running the right command and having your backend process listen on the right port
