Notes | felixlau0106.com

Programming Languages To learn in the future (click to expand):

Python
- Beginner-friendly, versatile, and powerful.
- Great for backend web development (Flask, Django), automation, and data science.
- Complements your web skills by letting you build full-stack projects.
HTML
- The foundation of the web.
- Easy to learn, gives you instant visible results.
CSS
- Adds design and layout to your HTML.
- Together with HTML, you’ll be able to build static websites.
JavaScript
- Completes the “front-end trio.”
- Lets you make your websites dynamic (buttons, animations, forms, games).
- Since you already know some basics, this will click quickly.
Java
- Once you’re comfortable with Python and JS, Java gives you strong OOP discipline.
- Used in Android apps, enterprise systems, and large-scale backend services.
- Builds your understanding of typed, compiled languages.
C
- A low-level language that teaches you how computers really work.
C++
- The most complex of the list, but by the time you reach it, you’ll have solid programming fundamentals.
- Essential for performance-critical applications, game engines, and systems programming.
- Deepens your understanding of memory management and low-level computing.

Development Environment Tools to Install (click to expand):

Git – Version control system for tracking changes in code.
Visual Studio Code – Lightweight code editor with powerful extension support.
Python – Install from python.org; includes pip for package management.
Node.js – JavaScript runtime for building server-side applications. Includes npm for package management.
Docker – Containerization platform for consistent and isolated development environments.
MSYS2 – Software distribution and build platform for Windows, useful for Unix-like tooling.
MinGW – Minimalist development environment for compiling native Windows applications.
GCC/G++ – GNU Compiler Collection for compiling C and C++ code.
MSVC – Microsoft Visual C++ Build Tools for compiling C++ on Windows.
CMake – Cross-platform build system for managing and automating the build process.

Non-Download Development Tools to Use (click to expand):

GitHub Pages - Host your static websites directly from your GitHub repository.
Porkbun - Domain registration and management service.

Useful VS Code Extensions (click to expand):

Prettier - Code Formatter Automatically formats your JavaScript, HTML, and CSS so your code is always clean and consistent.
ESLint - Lints your JavaScript code, catching errors and enforcing best practices. Works perfectly with Prettier.
Live Server - Launches a local development server with live reload — every time you save, your browser refreshes instantly.
Live Preview (from Microsoft) - Preview your HTML/CSS/JS files directly in VS Code without needing an external browser.
Turbo Console Log - Quickly inserts and manages console.log statements for debugging. A lifesaver when testing JS logic.
GitHub Copilot / Copilot Chat - AI-powered code suggestions and explanations. Helps you write functions faster and understand tricky code.
Import Cost - Shows the size of imported npm packages in real time, helping you keep your app lightweight.
GitLens - Enhances Git integration, showing who changed what and when, right inside your editor.
Image Preview - Lets you preview images directly in VS Code when working with HTML/CSS.
Indent Rainbow - Colorizes indentation levels, making nested JavaScript code easier to read.

           ⚖️ Optional but Useful

Debugger for Chrome/Edge → Debug JavaScript directly in the browser from VS Code.
Path Intellisense → Autocompletes file paths when importing modules.
npm Intellisense → Autocompletes npm package names in imports.
REST Client → Lets you test HTTP requests directly in VS Code.

Essential Python Libraries (click to expand):

Pandas – Data manipulation and analysis library, built on top of NumPy.
NumPy – Fundamental package for scientific computing with Python, providing n‑dimensional arrays and math functions.
Matplotlib – Plotting library for creating static, animated, and interactive visualizations.
Requests – Simple and widely used HTTP library for making API requests.
openpyxl – Library for reading and writing modern Excel files (.xlsx, .xlsm, .xltx, .xltm). Does not support legacy .xls.
pyxlsb – Library for reading Excel binary workbook files (.xlsb).
xlwings – Library for automating and controlling Excel itself (Windows/macOS). Can read/write workbooks, run macros, and connect Python with Excel, either headless or attached to an existing instance.
tqdm – Fast, extensible progress bar for Python loops and iterable processing.
tabulate – Library for pretty‑printing tabular data in plain text, Markdown, HTML, LaTeX, and more.
python-dotenv – Library for managing environment variables by loading them from a .env file into os.environ.
playwright – Library for browser automation and testing, supporting Chromium, Firefox, and WebKit with a single API.
pyinstaller – Library for packaging Python applications into standalone executables.

Linux Distributions (click to expand):

Ubuntu – User-friendly, widely supported, and has a large community.
Debian – Stable and reliable, with a vast repository of software packages.
Raspberry Pi OS – Optimized for Raspberry Pi hardware, great for learning and projects.
Arch Linux – Highly customizable and lightweight, ideal for advanced users.