FreeCodeCamp vs paid course, my 4 week test in Austin

I started learning JavaScript back in February and kept bouncing between a $15 Udemy course and FreeCodeCamp. After 4 weeks of doing both, the free one won because it forces you to type everything out instead of watching someone else code. The paid course had better production quality but I finished whole sections without actually remembering anything. FCC made me solve problems from scratch, and that's when stuff clicked for me. I ended up finishing their Basic JS section in 3 weeks after stalling on the Udemy one for a month. Anyone else find that free interactive platforms stick better than polished video lessons for total beginners?

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morganmartinez4d ago

So you paid 15 bucks to watch a guy type code while your brain was on vacation? Been there, done that, bought the t-shirt and forgot where I put it. Watching someone code feels productive but it's basically Netflix with a syntax highlight, you just sit there nodding like you get it. The second you have to open a blank file and write it yourself, that's when the panic hits and the real learning starts. Free stuff that makes you struggle beats fancy videos that let you coast every single time.

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