What's next?
Introduction
We are reaching the end of our course. The final thing to cover is troubleshooting and finding solutions. Their already exists a lot of great tools and forums out there to help you accomplish this. This module will be very light and hopefully you won't need to troubleshoot too much, but coding is a process of troubleshooting and finding out how not to do something, so take your "failures" in stride because they are all part of the learning process. This is one of the few things were failure is encouraged because it helps you figure out your code.
Objectives
- Learn how to use the Inspector Element
- Get to know what the errors mean
- Find forums that help find solutions to your problems (Stackoverflow)
Inspect the Inspector
Google Chrome is a godsend for coders. It has a feature that allows you to see function errors in a console, so you can pinpoint what is going wrong on your page. To use this, right click on your page, and click on "Inspector Element". Then, click on the "Console" and take a look at any errors popping up (they will have little red x's by them).
The Inspector tool also lets you edit the code right there and see changes so you quickly can figure out what works and then add it to your page. It also is a great tool for debugging.
For a comprehensive list and how-to's on all things the Inspector Element can do go to Google's Overview and read about the features.
Help Forums
Stackoverflow is one of the most comprehensive forums out there that is a community of coders that are here to help you overcome your coding obstacles. Most problems can be googled because odds are they already exist. But if you are still having trouble finding a solution, go to Stackoverflow and post your problem. The great thing about this forum is you can post your code directly into the question, so you can get multiple eyes on your code. Odds are you've missed something little and it just needs a fresh pair of eyes to find it.
Use forums such as this to help you along the way. Fellow coders will respond quickly and are eager to help you. This will become your most valuable resource.
Exercise
- Make an error on your page, open Inspector element, and translate what it is saying. Take a screenshot of the error, post it to the discussion and explain what it is saying.
- Continue adding to your portfolio and share a first draft on the discussion forum.