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    Ask a developer: what are the biggest mistakes a dev can make?

    Guide
    by Stacy Parr Finance Manager

    Welcome to our brand new series where we sit down and ask our developers those all important questions…

    This week, I’ve been chatting to Abdul (remember him?) about some of the biggest mistakes developers can make…

    What are the biggest mistakes a developer can make?

    “I’d say, some of the biggest mistakes you can make as a developer are totally avoidable. I’m just going to outline a few and how you can solve them …

    Uploading the wrong versions of files to the server. Whenever you are about to make a change, take a back up of the site first. That way, if you do make a mistake like uploading the wrong files, you have a recent back up to restore to.

    Sometimes, WordPress won’t show correctly, either on the back or front end, and this can be due to bad downloads or uploads. If this is happening, remove the existing upload, install a fresh copy of WordPress, and try uploading your theme files bit-by-bit.

    Another fairly common error is styling the wrong sections of the site. Say you want an orange button on the checkout page but a green button in the account area, you should scope styles appropriately – either from the body tags or the wrapper tags – rather than setting globalised styles as these can be tricky to overwrite.

    Does being in a team help?

    “I definitely think it’s better to work in a team and with project managers because you have more guidance and quality control, and there are people to help you if you are ever unsure about something. We have worked on a lot of projects where our clients have had bad experiences with freelancers making mistakes that could have been avoided, and it’s left them with poor code and a site that’s not quite right.”

    What advice can you give developers?

    “The number 1 piece of advice I have for any developer is always keep a backup. You have no idea how many issues could be solved if you have a recent backup saved.”

    If you didn’t catch last week’s ‘Ask a Developer’, read it here.

    Got a question for our developers that you would like featured? Email me and I’ll see what I can do…

    Working at Gooey

    At Gooey, we like to nurture talent, and we offer training as part of the job. We like to recognise potential and provide opportunities for you to grow and improve.

    Check out our careers page to find out more about our training and apprenticeship programmes.