Backend

What is Backend Web Development?

Aug 07, 2023 by Natalie Schooner

The boring answer is that backend web development is the process of building the server-side of websites and web applications. It primarily focuses on handling the logic, data processing, and communication between the user’s web browser and the server.

The Pros and Cons of Django for Backend Development

Jul 17, 2023 by Natalie Schooner

Django is a popular Python-based framework for building web applications. It provides pre-built components and conventions, which simplifies the web app development process and allows developers to focus on writing their application’s specific logic rather than dealing with repetitive tasks. Basically, it’s all about reusability.

The Best Backend for Vue: 6 Options

Jul 11, 2023 by Natalie Schooner

Part of being in the software development space means I’m near a lot of entrepreneurs. Code is a powerful building block, and that appeals to a lot of self-taught big thinkers.

Frontend? Gross. This is Why I've Always Preferred the Backend

Jul 09, 2023 by Lane Wagner

As a kid, I always wanted to be good at drawing. I practiced drawing my favorite anime characters, but frankly, my mom was the only one who thought they were good.

What’s the Best Backend For React? 5 Options to Choose From

Jun 26, 2023 by Natalie Schooner

“I already know React,” mused my friend. “What popular backend language should I learn that will make me a useful hire to companies?”

Do Backend Developers Need to Know SQL?

Mar 02, 2023 by Natalie Schooner

A while back, one of my friends bragged that he bagged a six-figure backend developer job after watching a few YouTube videos on APIs and reading parts a bit of the PostgreSQL documentation.

How to Become a Golang Engineer (on the Back-End)

Feb 23, 2023 by Natalie Schooner

“Guys, I’ve got an idea. What if we could design a language that’s easy to read like Python, but fast? That has a slim feature-set like C, but is good for web development? That’s compiled like Java, but doesn’t need a VM?”

What is in a Back-End Developer's Job Description?

Feb 10, 2023 by Natalie Schooner

What’s it like being a back-end developer? Well, it’s different depending on which developer you ask.

5 Critical Differences Between DevOps and SRE Jobs

Jan 30, 2023 by Natalie Schooner

To someone who isn’t familiar with these roles, it’s easy to think that DevOps and systems reliability engineers (SREs) might have the same job. After all, both of them involve automation, coding, scaling, and reliability to one degree or another. Both roles are trying to make an organization more efficient. It’s reasonable to wonder if there’s any daylight between DevOps vs SREs.

4 Key Differences Between DevOps and DevSecOps

Jan 23, 2023 by Natalie Schooner

Doesn’t it seem like every day there’s a new mishmash of responsibilities into a job title? One day soon, someone will be hired as a DevOpSysSecInfraArc engineer.

6 Differences Between DevOps and Cloud Engineers

Jan 18, 2023 by Natalie Schooner

The deeper you get into the tech sphere, the more unintelligible the job titles seem to be. Plus, the same title at different companies often encompasses different responsibilities. Ask twenty data scientists what they do and you’ll get twenty different answers.

I Didn't Explain Clearly, but Still Don't Learn Frameworks First

Jan 17, 2023 by Lane Wagner

I wrote an article about not starting with frameworks that got some attention from /r/programming on Reddit yesterday. While a good number of people must have enjoyed the article (some people upvoted? idk) I was rightfully blasted with a lot of criticism. Here are some of my favorite comments:

If You're Learning Back-end, Don't Start with Frameworks

Jan 16, 2023 by Lane Wagner

Look, I don’t hate frameworks. I’m not as starry-eyed as some other developers, especially when it comes to back-end frameworks, but I don’t think there’s anything wrong with using tools that make you productive. On the contrary, I’m always trying to find tools that make me as productive as possible.

What do Frontend and Backend Development Mean?

Dec 13, 2022 by Natalie Schooner

Soon after you dip your toe in the water of software development, you’re guaranteed to come across the terms “frontend” and “backend”. There are also frontend and backend developers, but what’s the difference? What do frontend and backend mean?

What is Backend-as-a-Service?

Dec 05, 2022 by Natalie Schooner

Plenty of people have heard of SaaS, or Software-as-a-Service, which is simply software made available by a third party over the internet. Think Salesforce, WordPress, or MailChimp. And most people know what a “backend developer” is, that is, someone who is responsible for things building server-side systems like user authentication and data storage.

The Top 22 Backend Technologies to Learn in 2023

Nov 16, 2022 by Natalie Schooner

A backend technology is anything used server-side to build stable and efficient web architectures. Back-end technologies include programming languages, databases, communication mechanisms, or frameworks that make up the building blocks of a web application’s back-end.

The 8 Top Back-end Programming Languages for 2023

Nov 10, 2022 by Natalie Schooner

A backend programming language is what a programmer like you uses to create internal systems that work in the background of a web application. Backend developers make a lot of money and are growing in popularity and desirability.

What is a DevOps Engineer's Salary?

Nov 01, 2022 by Natalie Schooner

The median DevOps engineer’s salary is $103,994 in base pay, with around $28,514 in additional pay through bonuses, commissions, and profit sharing according to Glassdoor. Salary.com estimates the average is closer to $125k, while BuiltIn puts the average closer to $128k in base pay, with an additional $15k in cash compensation.

How Much Do Backend Developers Make?

Oct 25, 2022 by Natalie Schooner

The short answer? On average, backend developers make either $82,462, $95,472, or $104,865 per year in base pay depending on who you ask. (I asked Glassdoor, Indeed, and Salary.com respectively.) StackOverflow uses medians instead, and their survey suggests the backend developers actually make upwards of $150,000 per year.

The 6 Best Backend Project Ideas for Beginners

Oct 19, 2022 by Natalie Schooner

Want to become a backend developer? Not surprising. Backend developers enjoy an average base salary of $160k per year, not to mention comprehensive benefits. And best of all? You no longer need a four-year degree to learn backend development. With the help of some of the best backend projects, you can prepare yourself for a backend development job in about nine months, even if you’re a total beginner.

Should You Learn Front-end or Back-end Development First?

Oct 13, 2022 by Lane Wagner

So you want to get into web development, and you keep hearing about “front-end” and “back-end” positions. The question is, which should you learn first? As someone who’s held both front-end and back-end positions, and even been a hiring manager, read on and I’ll give you my thoughts.

The 7 Best Backend Bootcamps of 2022

Oct 11, 2022 by Natalie Schooner

So you’re looking for the very best backend bootcamp of 2022. You’re not alone – most backend engineers earn over six figures according to Glassdoor, plus they have wide and varied job prospects. It’s a good gig.

Full-Stack Ops: Back-end and DevOps Roles are Merging

Oct 10, 2022 by Lane Wagner

It’s time for some speculation on my part 🔗 I believe that the job duties of “back-end” and “DevOps” engineers will coalesce to include almost everything that “the user doesn’t see”. There will still be room for specialization, but these roles will become less distinguishable overall.

CI/CD Isn't Just About Efficiency

Sep 26, 2022 by Lane Wagner

DevOps principles, and CI/CD specifically, are generally presented as a more efficient way to run a software development organization. While I hold the belief that CI/CD is more efficient and effective than manually testing and deploying code, I’d like to talk about something we don’t bring up quite as often.

Backend Engineer vs Data Engineer: What's the Difference?

Sep 21, 2022 by Natalie Schooner

The sexiest job title of the decade, data scientist, has spawned about a dozen equally sexy but somewhat confusing and overlapping job titles. The primary offshoot of a data scientist is a data engineer. Let’s talk about the difference between a data engineer and a back-end engineer, because frankly, the lines can get quite blurred.