I'm new to ExpressionEngine, for those of you with some experience under your belt ... what are some of the things that you wished you knew when you first got started with EE?
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1Despite the fact that many have chimed in with their own experiences here, this question is not within the scope of the site: that is, a question that can have a correct answer. (See the guidelines.)– Derek HogueOct 8, 2013 at 16:33
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I definitely appreciate your explanation of the [on hold] status. I do think it's a valid question for new EE users, but perhaps the question would've fit better within the guidelines of the EE forum instead of here. So we can let the question die off a natural death. To those of you that answered the question ... thank you it helps a great deal and I've bookmarked each site for reference. Again, thank you.– clearviewlabsOct 8, 2013 at 19:18
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4 Answers
It depends on your milage, for me coding was quite new. So, yes, I wished I discovered earlier...:
The videos of Mike Boink http://www.train-ee.com/courseware/free-tutorials (then buy his book)
These podcasts http://ctrlclickcast.com
This website http://devot-ee.com, but be careful there. It is amazing what one can do with EE right out of the box. No need to rush for addons right away.
and last but not least, the art of DRY. And to work systematically. And to make a good plan before even starting. And to have a very good conversation with the client before taking the job.
Did I forget something? Probably yes, but I hope this helps a bit.
My tips:
- Read the user guide.
- Read it again
- parse order
- master config
- partials - dry approach
- Use Stackexchange forum, past and present posts
- Use the debugger and profiler to optimise page load times & minimise number of queries
- Use Simple conditionals wherever possible
- scratch different parts of your head so you dont get a bald spot!
I've had a blog post in the works for 2 years with almost exactly the title of your question! You've motivated me to quickly finish it off, update it and publish it:
http://www.jamessmith.co.uk/articles/expressionengine-beginners-guide
The best thing I can suggest is READ READ READ. Look over the tutorials and examine the sample sites that come with the installs. I got thrown into the mix fast and hard in the beginning and it caused a lot of confusion and a gateway to "bad habits".
Mike Boink was a Godsend in my time of need. He has several tutorials and a good book to get here:
Another great resource of knowledge is Ryan Ireland. He also has some great resources here:
Jae over at http://www.ejaedesign.com/ has great training courses too.
I know there are a ton of people that have helped and that have excellent resources. The entire community is great when it comes to helping each other out. Twitter will become your best friend.
