#FemaleGeeks: Nanikie Malwane on React Native

I am a Junior Applications Developer, a final year student in Information Technology - Technical Applications at Tshwane University of Technology. Web and mobile app development amongst the things I do. My goal is to elevate my development skills in order to solve real life problems.

We are living in a digital age, and we cannot all help, but to be absorbed in this rapid digital growth. For us to leave a remarkable digital footprint, we ought to put ourselves out there such that we do not fall behind.

React Native is a breakthrough for mobile app users and the community of developers at large. It is a JavaScript Framework that comes with pretty much most of the components you would need for building your mobile apps. It is open-source and runs on Android and iOS.

Challenges with using any new technology was getting started, however setting up the environment for React was not a train smash. The biggest mistake I committed was trying to be smart while all I needed to do was to follow simple instructions... I guess the excitement of getting that first React Native app to run got in the way.

Along the way, I discovered that the pain of “running" the app was not worthwhile after all. React introduces "Hot Loading” which updates the changes you make on the emulator without having to recompile or re-run your app.

So all the exhausting time of making changes, saving and running again is actually being utilized for more coding and zero-snoozing. This has improved my experience because now I could focus on the task at hand.

I am currently working on a Geekulcha Events App using react native. The app gives information about upcoming events and tracks hackathons for the community. I am using key components of react native such as the StackNavigator, ListView and TouchableOpacity which gives users the feel of the app, Data Parsing using JSON and other tools.

Girls need to be exposed to Technologies such as react React and many other new technologies because it is only through them that we really put ourselves out there, growing ourselves and be discovered, if not discovering ourselves in those technologies. This will further prove that girls are indeed moving with the rapid growth of Technology, in pursuit of living up to the expectations of leaving a remarkable digital footprint for future Tech ladies.

React has been a breakthrough in my journey as an uprising developer. It is so amazing to be provided with all the components but not knowing how to implement then becomes a problem. With React, I got an opportunity to revisit my programming skills in terms of understanding the flow of bringing in together all the components to accomplish a set task. I will continue using React because of its convenience.

"Try not to be that developer who does 1 000 things a thousand times", so said Tiyani Nghonyama. These are the words that were shared with me when I started my journey as a developer. To all the developers out there, do one thing a thousand times, master it and all the technologies that are yet to come will be so easy to adapt to.

The rapid growth of technology and how the whole world is emerging towards it is amazing. The excitement of bringing the physical world within the digital space promises a brighter future for me as a developer. Developers, let's unpack these technologies, use them and impact change in the world!