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Programming Languages for Freelance Developers
6/1/2011 4:06 PM By Jeff OrloffUpdate: It has been brought to our attention that some information in this post is misleading or outdated and we are working on correcting it. Artisan encourages dialogue and constructive criticism to provide the most helpful content to its readers. Additional comments are welcomed.
Any web designer’s directory is going to be filled with web coders who have a wide range of skills. In order to find work and remain competitive, freelance developers need to stay on top of current technologies and be sure to have a skill set that contains the most sought after coding languages on the web.
If you are making the move from a firm or you are simply starting out as a freelance developer then you need to have a working knowledge of as many of the following languages as possible.
- Python – Python is interchangeable with PHP in the LAMP stack and many websites are built on this language.
- Ruby on Rails – While Ruby may not be the most popular of all languages it certainly has a following and can build great sites. Think Twitter when you think of Ruby on Rails.
- Javascript – Not Java, rather the scripting language Javascript. If you thought that Javascript died out in the nineties then maybe you haven’t heard of AJAX.
- Objective C – Anyone looking to design real iPhone apps needs to learn Objective C.
- PHP – PHP developers are all over the place because so many websites rely on PHP. Think Joomla!, Drupal, MediaWiki and WordPress and you can see some of the more popular web applications that are built with this language.
Of course while you want to have a familiarity with as many of these languages as possible, it is important that you specialize in at least one. This language should be the one that you work with primarily so that you can display your expertise in your portfolio and attract more clients.
Tags: coders, developers, freelance, programmers, programming language
