What should I learn in 2022

In 2019, these are the items I thought I should learn and these are what I feel about those now as of end of 2021.

1. Dot Net Core
   1. At work, we use dotnet core in many apps now so it became a norm to use dotnet core for any new projects. Dotnet core is nothing special anymore. As dotnet5 and 6 release. It’s just a faster and better new version of dotnet. Surely, as a dotnet developer I should follow up the latest dotnet version in terms of new feature, etc, it is just a daily task I will do at my work.
2. Cloud (Azure)
   1. At work, we use Azure to host a few apps and utilize Azure function, storage, and Cosmos DB. However, there is still more to learn. e.g. Best practice of cloud app management in terms of cost, devops, etc. Best architecture in terms of getting the most out of clouds, and more.
3. Big Data
   1. NoSQL does not mean big data. However, clearly, NoSQL like Cosmos DB is useful when handling big data. At work, we collect quite a big data from many sources and the size got so big so quickly. Demand for information collection keep growing even in the company. My personal project also considers a collection of lots of data from many places. So, the topic also became a daily task rather than something I need to learn by spending extra time and effort.
4. AI and ML
   1. It became easy to run a data set through ML model and return some level of the answer of high probability out of it. However, it’s still hard to apply Machine Learning to solve a real-world problem. There is definite potential in this area. However, it’s a bit hard to prove it with limited experience. There is definitely more to learn and experience in this area.
5. Front-end
   1. Again at work, we are testing to use Vue for the next big project. The main reason to choose Vue is that it’s arguably the easiest to learn and adapt to newcomers to the SPA world. However, if the new app is going to be an enterprise-level complex app, it seems like there is not much benefit of using Vue believing that Vue has the least learning curve. At least from my experience so far, full-blown Vue is as complex as Angular with less integration to DotNet. Less popular than React. Having said that Vue looks capable enough for a big size web app.
6. Mobile Development
   1. No chance to learn. It’s not used at work. I have no plan to develop a mobile app personally either. Considering that there are too many areas in developer topics to catch up, it might be good to decide not to learn this topic. Simply because I can’t learn everything with the limited resources I have. I need to choose what to not learn. Maybe I could do a toy project of the mobile app just for fun at some time. Or, I can start learning it if needed at work.
7. DevOps
   1. At the moment, I set up and use Jenkins at work and am happy with it. Personally, use Azure DevOps a bit, which might be the next go-to DevOps tool. However, no chance to try Docker or Kubernetes except watching a few training videos. We need at least something at work to deploy the app in a smart way. Once we have one, this is not a high priority in a small team.
8. Functional Programming
   1. Still interested in this topic. and probably try F# in near future.
9. Another Language
   1. Python, the most popular language and must know if you work in ML space. I might learn it when I need it as I go. I don’t feed I need to reserve some time for it. I would rather spend more time on Javascript, which is a familiar programming language that I first use more than 20 years ago. But, I’m still not confident to use it. I feel it’s quite useful getting confident in using Javascript.
10. Blockchain
    1. It is still a hot topic. However, it will not be technology that a normal developer should know.

 

If those topics that I thought I need to learn in 2019 was buzz words across many areas, the topics that I’m interested in in 2022 will be more focused and deep.

1. Front-End
   1. At least one SPA framework, which is Vue for me, and modern JavaScript confidence will be the first area I will focus on. I mostly spend time at work in back-end space, that’s why I already feel not enough confident in front-end space. By focusing on the front-end for some time, it would be a good chance to get myself confident on it and move on to the next subject.
2. Cloud (Azure)
   1. There are many areas in the cloud that will be helpful to make the most out of it. Architecture, economic management, and security, etc.

Actually, learning a topic deep enough requires more than a few years and the topic keeps evolving. So, in 2022, I might focus on these 2 topics only and spend decent time and effort. There is always new stuff to learn and new releases to follow up and new tools to learn, etc.