About

An Android App Developer, mentor, passing on what I now know to you, seeking to inspire more App developers.

A regular guy, growing up with a huge passion for computing technologies, but little knowledge of how things worked. I am proud to now be an Android Developer.

Through countless efforts to get into Android development, I want to share with you how I found Android development and the path / techniques I used to get to into the industry, hopefully helping you get into it too.

“I didn’t know I wanted to be an Android App Developer. I didn’t know what I wanted to be.”

As far as I can remember, I was fascinated in computers; the thrill I got from changing the background colour of the screen on my Commodore 64 from boring blue to vibrant orange. Growing up I became more and more passionate about computers, how they actually worked. I managed to get myself some work experience as a youngster in a small computer shop which built custom PC’s. There I learnt how to put together PC components, and built my own. It was a good skill to have but I saw it as more of a hobby rather than something I want to do for the rest of my life.

I was lost. I was a gamer at heart, so I went on to follow that dream, attended the University of Bradford and got my degree in Computer Game Design. After that… I was deemed useless. Rockstar doesn’t want to hire a newbie from University with no experience in the industry! After defeat, I would relentlessly apply for anything, as long as the words technology or computing were in the job title I would click Apply.

Low and behold, I got a job at the local city College working with Assistive Technologies, I got good at it too, after 2 years I got promoted. Despite this, I was not happy. Why? I was not doing something I enjoyed, I needed an escape route. I decided to enrol myself onto a Masters course in Computing and I stumbled across the subject topic of Mobile Application Development.

“I had no choice, this was my only get out.”

Having never coded, never even thought of how a mobile app was made, I installed Android Studio and followed these steps to get started (getting started). Curious, I started looking at coding tutorials, Youtube was my only resource, you don’t get taught how to code on a Masters. Over the next couple of days I started to develop a user interface, with functionality; the tutor hovered over my shoulder, “look, you’re coding“, without thinking, I stopped to reflect. I was actually coding. This realisation drove me to want to get good at it, it wasn’t that hard.

I completed the course, I knew this is what i wanted to do, be an Android Developer. I completed my degree developing an app for the college using Firebase for notifications and storage. So, maybe what i developed was not industry standard but thats ok, what I did was all from research, reading and hard work, but most of all I had a reason for following this path, I finally found something I enjoyed.

“Who is going to hire me?”

That was the next step, getting hired. Proving to myself I can do this professionally. Having applied for multiple junior positions I finally got a job, but with a large decrease in pay. With a family to support and bills to pay it was a hard pill to swallow, but I pressed on as my goal was to flourish in this role.

“I was in charge”

I was the only Android developer for the company. Talk about being thrown into the deep end. This is where the real learning happened. I taught myself more and more as I worked, eagerly trying to please the owners.

After around 6 months i started applying for further jobs, wanted to be part of a team, feel like I belonged and most importantly, needed a pay rise. My self learning, industry experience as a junior paid off and I landed my perfect job at Sky, developing the Sky Sports and Sky News mobile application.

“Learning never ends and its the only way to move forward”

Working in a team with others is what makes you grow as a person. The vast amount of knowledge you gain from others is the most valuable asset you could hold onto which is why I wish to pass on what I have learnt to you.

Thanks for visiting my site and I am thrilled that we are connected, now Get started into the world of Android Development.