Web Development in 2017 && a look ahead at 2018 🍾🍷

Episode Summary

Executive Summary: Scott and Wes reflect on a transformative 2017, both personally and professionally, shaped by fatherhood, improved health, and major work changes. They discuss how their businesses matured through better automation, delegation, course platforms, and content production, then look ahead to 2018 with goals centered on more tutorials, better workflows, and expanded CSS/JavaScript education. They also review major web trends: easier JavaScript tooling, GraphQL, typed systems, WordPress adopting React, CSS Grid, componentized styling, and the rise of progressive web apps.

Main Topics: Personal and professional year-in-review: Both hosts describe 2017 as a year of major life changes, especially new parenthood, improved health, and shifting work rhythms caused by sleep disruption and increased responsibilities. Business growth, automation, and content production: They discuss platform improvements, email marketing systems, delegation, sticker fulfillment, and course releases, emphasizing that foundations laid in 2017 should enable more output in 2018. 2018 goals and business focus: The hosts outline plans for more monthly tutorial series, better production quality, improved checkout flows, stronger automation, and more time away from overtime to preserve family life. JavaScript ecosystem trends in 2017: They highlight how SSR frameworks, zero-config tooling, GraphQL, and typed JavaScript ecosystems made development easier and more approachable, with less configuration and more built-in structure. CSS advances and future direction: The conversation covers CSS Grid, CSS variables, component-scoped styling, design systems, and future features like container queries, with both hosts expressing strong optimism about the direction of CSS. Web platform and ecosystem shifts: They touch on WordPress/Gutenberg using React, Vue’s growth, VS Code’s rise, the Iron Yard closure, PWA adoption, and other industry changes that affect how developers build and ship web apps.

Key Arguments: 2017 was more about laying groundwork than immediate output; improving platforms, email systems, and workflows should produce bigger gains in 2018. Parenthood and sleep disruption significantly affected productivity, especially for content creators who need energy and clarity to record tutorials. Email remains one of the most effective business tools despite being disliked by developers, so improving tone, frequency, and segmentation is worth the effort. JavaScript tooling got easier in 2017, with frameworks and bundlers reducing configuration and making SSR/static generation more accessible. GraphQL is worth learning because it is typed, efficient, self-documenting, and increasingly valuable for job seekers. CSS Grid is a major breakthrough that will reshape layout work, especially as browser support matures and IE11 becomes less relevant. Component-scoped CSS and design systems are becoming the new normal because they reduce leakage, naming pain, and maintenance overhead. Delegation and automation are necessary for sustainable growth; doing everything personally is no longer viable for the hosts' workloads. 2018 should focus on content creation, higher production value, and improved user experience rather than spreading effort across too many side projects.

Data Points: Podcast episodes released: 23 - Wes notes the show reached 23 episodes and that it launched in mid-2017. Tutorial videos recorded: ~400 - Wes estimates he recorded around 400 tutorial videos during the year. Course releases: 3 major courses mentioned - Wes references Learn Node, an updated ES6/JavaScript 30 course, and work on React and Grid courses. Sticker sales batches: 2 big runs - Wes says he completed two major sticker runs and eventually turned a small profit. Email marketing migration: 1 major platform move - Scott moved email systems to Drip to improve tagging, segmentation, and automation. New child birth month: May - Wes mentions his son Landon was born in May 2017. New child birth month: September - Scott mentions his youngest child was born in September 2017. Age milestone: 30/31 - They discuss turning 30 in early 2018; one host says he is 31 and the other is turning 30 in February. Twitter limit change: 280 characters - They mention Twitter’s expansion from 140 to 280 characters as a notable non-dev change. Free trial offer: 3 months free - Snipkart’s sponsor offer gives Syntax listeners three months free. Business locations closed: ~15 locations - Wes says Iron Yard had around 15 locations across the U.S. before closing. CSS Grid rollout: Browsers turned on support within months - They emphasize that major browser support for CSS Grid arrived quickly in 2017.

Pivotal Quotes: "2017 was a year for the books." — Scott: Used to frame the year as unusually significant due to personal and professional changes. "Things are getting easier and better to build." — Wes: Summarizes his view of the JavaScript ecosystem’s direction in 2017. "If it's not a hell yes, it's a no." — Wes: Applied to choosing which opportunities to accept in 2018, emphasizing focus and prioritization.

Implications: Listeners should expect 2018 to reward focus on fundamentals: content, automation, design systems, and modern tooling. The industry is moving toward simpler JavaScript, stronger typing, CSS Grid, and more app-like web experiences.