Low Code and No Code Services are Ideal for Learning Computer Programming Logic

I’ve been on a very long and slow trajectory to learning computer programming. There have been some small victories, and I’m gradually getting closer to being able to create software.

At one point, I started taking CS50 from Harvard, a recommendation from the novel local tech training and job placement program LaunchCode. As it too often seems, I didn’t have (or make) the time to complete the program.

The class is long, and takes off quite slowly. One of the first lessons was using Scratch, a web application geared toward children. Using animated puzzle pieces representing computer logic and flow — loops, if/then statements, comparison operators, etc — you create “programs”.

That’s neat, and if I had a five year old I may introduce them to computer programming literacy this way. I learned the lingo for getting machines to follow instructions through online automation services, first IFTTT, then Zapier as my understanding increased. The simplest way I can describe these applications is: they provide a GUI to connect and control other applications through their API’s.

My first automation, and how I found IFTTT, was I wanted a way to repost Instagram pictures to Twitter for Food Pedaler. I was seeking to have the actual picture and not just a link (how Insta did it at the time). As time went on, I began using Zapier to connect (and discover) many more services. With Zapier you can build with multiple steps, and there is a full spectrum of flow control available through filters. One fine example of how far I’ve taken this is a “Zap” we have for onboarding new members for Perennial City — it is 19 steps long, connecting 10 different services — saving us countless hours on its own.

I’ve begun filling in the capability gaps by learning some Javascript and using Google Apps Script for more custom needs.

Most recently, I discovered coda.io, which takes No Code to another level. You build a shared “doc” that automatically gives you access to many different views including a mobile app, allows for conditional and dynamic formatting, integrates with many other services, all while uncannily feeling like a simple Google Doc. It’s difficult to describe, and I’ve only personally scratched the surface of its potential, you can read a previous post detailing our small success story using their product.

All this is to say there are many, many options to learn how computers talk, and you can build helpful and productive things along the way. Maybe they are too helpful and have enabled me to not need to get good at coding! Or, maybe they’ll become so robust I may never need to be a computer programmer to make all my crazy ideas happen. Either way, I still recommend playing with these tools to help make your life and business run a little more automagically.