>, but it doesn't seem to be answering the question
It seems the relevant "answer" is :
>To become a great programmer with very marketable skills, you have to build things and write code. [...] As you are building, save your work and put together a little portfolio on your website.
The projects portfolio gets people interested. I've seen some websites that showed off a project and on the webpage somewhere would be blurb like: "Btw, I'm also looking for a job in Javascript blah blah blah." And then the recruiters or hiring managers would email them because they were impressed with the work they saw.
No it doesn't. My portfolio that I've been adding to for the past 10 years doesn't get me any offers at all. You get offers by networking and making buddies with high powered people.
I think he's implying that you get it through an abundant portfolio and the ability to ace the "practical" kind of technical interview, but you're right, that needs to be spelled out. I imagine that very few people doing everything this guy is describing are going to get a job at one of the larger companies with a more rigorous vetting process where the gaps in the CS fundamentals are going to show. He should delineate the kinds of jobs these people will be strong for.
I agree even though there are several ways, having a portedolio is the best.
The first method I personally used was to work for the guy one week with ludicrously low pay. He said yes at 7$/h, but I would have gone down even more. This kick started my carrier enough to not worry about searching for jobs anymore.
Second method I employed to get to the place I wanted to be was to build something that would impress them and publish it. It took 2 years and it worked.
You can still ace the theory.. plenty of online courses that emphasize the fundamentals... without a degree you will trade at a discount at first. But that's moneyball. Plenty of companies will hire you if you know your stuff. lots of levels to this. Don't sweat the small stuff. Work hard, learn, apply. Know your algorithms and data structures.
What does a developers portfolio entail? I'm a motion graphic designer and when I apply for jobs I send a demo reel of my work. Which is a 1 minute video with snippets of my best stuff set to music. Is there something similar developers send along with resumes?
It dances around becoming good and having a lot of things to point to to demonstrate being good, but doesn't go near the actual question.