CodeRoad

CodeRoad
Matthew Toomey’s Programming Blog
REST API Design Practices
For many assignments in a recent class, I had the opportunity to use and learn about REST (Representational State Transfer) API in relation to simple web applications. In working with REST, I was unsure about some of the syntax and conventions used with the API, namely the difference between different response types (JSON vs StringContinue reading “REST API Design Practices”
Software Architectural Patterns and Their Uses
When working with larger projects, a unified system or pattern can be useful in keeping things organized and cohesive over time. Design patterns can be applied to general problems in software development, such as creating many similar objects with slight differences from a factory class which handles object creation within the program, or using decoratorsContinue reading “Software Architectural Patterns and Their Uses”
YAGNI Design Principle & Redundancy
Oftentimes, when programming in an object-oriented language, I have the issue of unintended redundancies. I write things to be too verbose; long variable names (studentClassId, carManufacturerName), with unnecessary complications, methods and variables that could easily be removed from my code without losing anything. My reasoning in these cases is always ‘this will make my codeContinue reading “YAGNI Design Principle & Redundancy”

Welcome to My Blog
With this blog, I will post updates for various projects I am working on, technologies and software that I find of particular interest, and general programming, technology, web development and game development topics, as well as information on things I am currently working on, including personal projects and practice in various languages and frameworks.
I hope to eventually replace this blog with a self-developed (non-wordpress) website as I continue to study web development topics and design.
Uses, Drawbacks, and Additions to JavaScript in 2020
In web development, the development of web applications (software accessed through a web browser) and even game development, JavaScript is used to add interactivity and function to what would otherwise be static webpages, and to create software which runs entirely within users’ web browsers. And while JavaScript is undoubtedly useful in the contexts of webContinue reading “Uses, Drawbacks, and Additions to JavaScript in 2020”

Design Patterns: Useful Tools for Structure & Organization
When I was first learning about programming and writing code, I never stopped to consider issues like effective layout, efficiency, or structure in my programs. At these early stages, it was enough for me that the code worked and ran without crashing. Now, as I have been studying design patterns in one of my UniversityContinue reading “Design Patterns: Useful Tools for Structure & Organization”

CSS Grid: A Better Layout System
Whenever I find myself working on a website, one of the more time-consuming aspects of development is often the CSS (cascading style sheet) code which controls the layout of the site. While CSS properties often have names which are self-explanatory the various formatting tools in CSS can oftentimes be confusing to me. In the past,Continue reading “CSS Grid: A Better Layout System”