Writing this article, I must confess, was very challenging.
Not because the content is difficult to write about—be assured, it isn’t—but because it involves scrolling through Reddit to find the best posts, comments, and subreddits regarding freelance developing. Have you ever found yourself endlessly scrolling through Reddit?
Well—somehow I accomplished finishing this article despite the distractions on Reddit. A short summary of the three best and most general posts about freelance developing in Reddit:
Do you search for something more specific? Have a look at the table of contents and click on the topic that interests you most!
IF YOU CLICK ON ANY REDDIT SCREENSHOT, IT’LL OPEN THE POST IN A NEW TAB!
[Top 3] Freelance Developer Salary Reddit
[Top 3] Freelance Software Developer Reddit
[Top 3] Freelance iOS Developer Reddit
[Top 3] Freelance Back-End Developer Reddit
[Top 3] Freelance Front-End Developer Reddit
[Top 3] Freelance WordPress Developer Reddit
[Top 3] Freelance Game Developer Reddit
[Top 3] Freelance Python Developer Reddit
[Top 3] Freelance Android Developer Reddit
Do you want to develop the skills of a well-rounded Python professional—while getting paid in the process? Become a Python freelancer and order your book Leaving the Rat Race with Python on Amazon (Kindle/Print)!
Quora is an excellent source for information. However, it is safe to say that the vast majority of information on Quora is relatively low-quality. In this article, we compiled the best questions and great answers from Quora—all around the topic of freelance developing. So, let’s dive right into the first questions!
There are many factors at play here so I will share my personal experience. I am based in the US. I began my freelancing career by building simple static websites in HTML, CSS, with a sprinkling of Javascript.
A typical website that took me 10–20 hours would earn me about $250 – 500.
I got most of my clients through Craigslist or though friends and family. As I progressed I started to learn PHP/MySQL, Javascript, JQuery, and in the past few years frameworks like React and Laravel.
I have a degree in computer science, so designing and building applications is more of my strength than building nice looking websites (although if I could do everything again I would have skipped college and just learned everything myself – I had already gotten through Calculus and AP science courses when I finished high school and the useful skills I learned at college I could have easily taught myself in 6–12 months, and I could have spent the remaining time becoming an expert in things like that would have tangible effects on my ability to earn income).
These days I have left behind the days of building simple websites and I now build web applications. This has allowed me to make far more income, sometimes over $200k US dollars per year.
I do not get work from sites like Upwork. The good, high playing clients with large budgets typically go through reputable agencies and most of my work I now do on a contract basis for agencies. I have gone from freelancing to essentially being a part time employee of two agencies, and they give me steady work. I do know other developers here in the US that build web applications on a freelance basis, and none of them earn less than $100k/yr unless they are having a slow year.
Note that here in the US at least earning $100k/yr freelancing is probably equivalent to a full time job with benefits that pays a $70k/yr salary because people who are not full time employees of a company pay far more in taxes and health insurance.
Let’s face it. For starters, it can be done from nearly anywhere in the world, or right from the comfort of your own home. You also have the freedom to establish and control your own schedule, hourly rates and workflow. Last, but far from least, is the fact that web developers is one of the most in demand industry to be working in at the moment. The demand is only growing, so the potential to find clients and to have a lucrative career is strongly in your favor!
Here we can discuss some points that how to start freelancing as a web developer :
Establish Your Brand : How are you going to brand yourself? Many freelance web designers use their name as their brand this is great and can lend real personal attachment. Alternatively, like I did, consider using a more formal name for your fledgling business, especially if you envisage your business becoming more robust in the future. If you have plans to maybe turn yourself into a studio, with a couple of people working for you, you might want to start out with a more formal company name. Think about how you would like to be perceived – as an individual brand, or as a young company. Think about what your potential clients will read into this and ask yourself whether that fits in with your view as a freelancer.
Create Your Online Portfolio : One thing a client looks for in a potential freelancer is whether you’ll be able to deliver. If you’re new to freelancing, there’s a 90% chance you’ll lose out on projects to a more experienced freelancer. After all, clients are spending a lot of money on their projects, and they want every penny to count. Occasionally, though, a prospective client doesn’t just choose the most experience freelancer, but instead spends the time to review the profiles of other freelancers who offered to work at a lower rate. Now you have a chance to convince the client that you are worth a try. To make a great impression with the client, you need to have a convincing portfolio.
Attend meetups : Social connection can have a drastic impact on your career growth. The more well connected you are, the more likely you are to get projects. While social networking sites can be a great way to interact with people and to make new connections. Attending technical meetups is another excellent way to interact with people and promote yourself. Meetups give you a chance to share your knowledge as well as learn new things from fellow attendees.
Develop a Sales Cycle : So, you need to formalize a sales cycle a process for finding prospects, cultivating your relationship with them, educating them about your services, offering your services to the right ones, fulfilling their expectations, and developing that relationship with them. You’re going to need ways to find good prospects. Start by identifying your ideal client, who are they, what do they do and where do they hang out. Start hanging out there too and engaging them in conversation. Work on your elevator pitch – that little burst of information that explains clearly to potential clients how you can help their business and why they should hire you to do it.
Organize a Routine : Your day is going to need structure. It’ll help you if you can have a consistent structure for your working day. Have a daily schedule mapped out which works around when you are most productive and when you are more likely to get things done. I try and group like tasks together – if I have a bunch of phone calls to make, I try and do them all mid-morning. Emails I typically handle mid-afternoon. If I’m coding, I find that easiest to do first thing in the morning when my brain is fresh, and, oddly, last thing in the evening when I get a second wind.Go with whatever works for you. But being able to stick to a similar routine each day will help you.
Find Your Community and Work It : The great thing about being a freelance web designer is that there is a tremendous community of professionals who can support you in what you do. It’s a very open, communicative bunch of people. So start following people on Twitter, getting to know them on LinkedIn, Facebook and other social media hang outs. There are other people out there in similar situations and they have a lot to offer. LinkedIn offers a number of groups for freelance professionals. You establish your expertise and help people out who may be looking for your services. Be sure to get involved in the communities where you customers are. If you’re targeting a specific niche. Immerse yourself in the communities in which you operate and you’ll build up a really strong network – not just of other web designers but of potential clients and referrals.
Market Your Services : To effectively market your freelance services, you should ask yourself, “Who is my target market?” If you’re passionate about one area of business or another that may help define your target market. Some sample target markets include:
Local small businesses that do not have an online presence yet
Non-profit organizations whose current websites are ineffective
Sales companies who don’t offer online purchasing
You can also target a single industry.
“Success builds on success”
As you go, always look for ways to turn your successes into lasting advantages that will help you get more business in the future.
Some people charge an hourly rate, around 75$-120$. I think this is too tedious, a root for arguments, and an incentive to not work as quickly as possible. I charge a fixed rate that is dependent on the project scope (am I designing all the pages, is it on a CMS like wordpress, do they want ‘out of the box’ features, etc). Then it is payed in two installments: half as a deposit for the design, half to develop and publish the page upon completion.
From scratch, pretty much like any other job source, contact recruiters, peruse the want ads, the digital equivalent, craig’s list, Linkedin, Indeed, sometimes even news stories that mention a company and technologies that are inline with what I am capable of implementing.
If I get to the point where I know more of the specifics, such as, company projects specific to my nature, aware of direct people in charge of making hiring decisions, a specific project that has a direct sense of urgency, then I will by-pass conventional methods, such as going through a recruiter, throwing darts at the want ads, pushing out CVs in the dark and prepare a better script, for a specific person of the specific project that have specific needs.
I often find myself in the uncanny valley of optimization, with only 24 hours in a day, to either sharpen my technical understanding to the degree where I make myself indispensable to their needs or working on my golf swing, where I make myself known to the correct networks where the people in-charge of the actual decisions can be contacted directly.
This is difficult to pull off effectively, most of the time because with keeping up with tech and trying to backwards engineer not only the tech the target company deals with but moreover, the issues they are having with the tech and the problems they are facing which are often a proprietary secret that is not easily discerned. Or getting to know who is who in the selection game, by-passing the gate keepers, that just get in the way and to curry favor with the key masters that are the end-game target to land the contract.
In the end the term freelance, is essentially you are your own business, and either you have to outsource your own engineering department or marketing department or build them in-house, but it is hard to do both in-house without losing the integrity you need to excel at both.
To become successful in coding, you need to get out there and solve real problems for real people. That’s how you can become a six-figure earner easily. And that’s how you polish the skills you really need in practice. After all, what’s the use of learning theory that nobody ever needs?
Practice projects is how you sharpen your saw in coding!
Do you want to become a code master by focusing on practical code projects that actually earn you money and solve problems for people?
Then become a Python freelance developer! It’s the best way of approaching the task of improving your Python skills—even if you are a complete beginner.
With increasing supply of freelancing platforms such as Upwork, Fiverr, and Toptal in the programming industry, more and more companies decide to hire expertise remotely over the Internet. The demand for freelance developers in Python, web development, machine learning, and data science surges—as can be seen by the double-digit growth rates of all of those platforms.
Freelancing is the new way of organizing the world’s talents in the 21st century. To some people, this trend “threatens” their existing job safety. Others believe it’ll help creating a more meaningful working relationship based on respect and value. No matter what you think, you want to belong to the winners of this mega trend, don’t you?
This article shows you the 5 best blogs that teach you how to thrive in this new work environment for decades to come. We selected only blogs that focused on two topics: coding AND freelancing/business. If a blog focuses on only coding or only freelancing, we excluded it from the list.
The Finxter blog is the world’s largest blog on Python freelancing. In addition to that, it provides plenty of valuable articles, videos, and business strategies for all kinds of freelancers and freelance developers.
The idea is to help you reach six-figure earning potential, which is the average income of a Python freelancer in the US, via 100% remote work on freelancing platforms such as Upwork and Fiverr.
“We help web developers launch and grow their freelancing business.” This is the slogan of the Study Web Development blog. You can see their focus clearly: web developers and freelancing business.
If you’re a web developer, this blog is definitely of interest to you. Traditionally, most freelancing jobs appeared in the web development industry. However, this is rapidly changing. Due to the surge of machine learning and data science, a larger proportion of better-paid professionals sell their Python rather than their web development skills.
Overall, the number of blog articles about freelancing is much smaller than the number of articles at the Finxter blog. However, the ones that are there are interesting reads—check them out!
Upwork is the biggest freelancing platform on the planet. Connecting millions of clients with freelancers, they know a thing or two about how to become a successful freelance developer.
The blog is quite general, with lots of tips for non-developers as well—so, it doesn’t strictly fit our requirement of being focused only on freelancing AND coding. However, if you search for the keyword “developing” on the blog, you’ll find countless of resources specifically tailored towards freelancing as a programmer.
Here are some of the best articles on the Upwork blog for freelance developers:
However, be careful—this blog is mainly focused on bringing you to the Upwork platform. I wouldn’t recommend this resource if this wouldn’t align with my recommendation in 2020. Upwork is a very attractive freelancing market for clients and freelancers alike.
This recommendation is a bit off topic. There are many resources on freelance web developing and remote work as a programmer. However, there are also many resources for employed programmers. Thus, the blog’s sentiment is kind of neutral against the freelance developing opportunity.
These are some interesting articles about freelance developing though:
There are other blogs about only freelancing and only developing. In this article, we focused on the blogs that addressed both topics. If you want to become an expert, and you have a coding background, you should focus mainly on the business side of things. Business skills such as marketing, selling, positioning, negotiating, and accounting are much more important than coding skills on your road to freelance developing success.
Where to Go From Here?
Enough theory, let’s get some practice!
To become successful in coding, you need to get out there and solve real problems for real people. That’s how you can become a six-figure earner easily. And that’s how you polish the skills you really need in practice. After all, what’s the use of learning theory that nobody ever needs?
Practice projects is how you sharpen your saw in coding!
Do you want to become a code master by focusing on practical code projects that actually earn you money and solve problems for people?
Then become a Python freelance developer! It’s the best way of approaching the task of improving your Python skills—even if you are a complete beginner.
Freelancing is the new mega trend of our time. Large freelancing platforms such as Upwork and Fiverr grow double-digit—they’re out to disrupt the organization of the world’s talents. And it seems like they’re succeeding!
Do you want to participate in this trend rather than only holding on to your cozy developer job as long as you can? Between you and your freelance developing success is only one thing: education.
This article shows you how to accelerate your career as a freelance developer by presenting you the best freelance developer books on the market. Reading books is among the highest-ROI activity you can do as a self-employed full-time or part-time freelance developer.
So, here’s an overview of the 9 best freelance developer books every coder must read!
Leaving the Rat Race with Python shows you how to nurture, grow, and harness your work-from-home coding business online — and live the good life!
It’s an insider’s guide to freelance developing. Start your new thriving coding business now!
Do you want to learn about becoming a Python freelancer and start your thriving coding business online?
Do you want to regain control of your life?
Are you committed to succeeding in life and business?
This practical how-to book will help you nurture, grow, and harness your new online coding business plant—even if you’ve got little or no experience as a programmer and business owner.
“The Software Engineer’s Guide to Freelance Consulting will help teach you to be an effective freelance software consultant, which will enable you make more money, dedicate more time to hobbies, spend more time with your loved-ones and even discover new businesses.”
“Are you ready to jump-start your freelance career? Freelance Newbie has you covered! In this book, you’ll learn practical, actionable steps you can start using today to get your first client by the end of the week. Featuring all the methods, techniques, tips, tricks, and insights you need to succeed, Freelance Newbie was written by a working freelancer whose mission is to help people like you find personal success and financial independence. The material you’ll read here has never been featured at a lower price — you simply cannot get this kind of value for less. We go through everything step-by-step with real-world examples so you know exactly what you need to do to become a successful freelancer.”
“This book dives deep on making freelancing more stable, beating “treading water” cycles, repelling ‘bad apple’ clients, multiplying online exposure and follows the journey of Liam, with honest, clear advice and guidance from laptop and rented desk to $1m web agency.”
“Working for a design company? Freelancing? Under-utilised, unappreciated or uninspired? Do you want to break free from employment and run your own business, call the shots, and be your own boss? This is the book for you.”
“Done right, a web design business can be an excellent way to create a main source of income. The problem many face is getting enough clients to provide that income without giving up everything else in life to support their business.Whether you’re thinking about doing web design on the side or you have an established business, this book is for you. You’ll learn easy-to-implement strategies to set up your business for success. Web design is a fun, profitable and fulfilling business you can do anywhere with an internet connection. But for many it can be a roller coaster ride of feast or famine, wondering when they’re going to get their next client. Or having so many projects to juggle that they feel overwhelmed. What many web designers take for granted is learning how to take the art and skill of web design and turn it into a profitable business. That’s what Secrets to Scale will show you.Learn how to take the art and skill of web design and turn it into a profitable business—one that doesn’t make you extremely stressed.”
“Most business books give you the same old advice: Write a business plan, study the competition, seek investors, yadda yadda. If you’re looking for a book like that, put this one back on the shelf.”
“In this thoroughly revised edition of his classic book, Alan Weiss shows how consulting fees are dependent on only two things: value provided in the perception of the buyer and the intent of the buyer and the consultant to act ethically. Many consultants, however, fail to understand that perceived value is the basis of the fee, or that they must translate the importance of their advice into long-term gains for the client in the client’s perception. Still others fail to have the courage and the belief system that support the high value delivered to clients, thereby reducing fees to a level commensurate with the consultant’s own low self-esteem. Ultimately, says Weiss, consultants, not clients, are the main cause of low consulting fees.”
“Many developers would love to go solo and be their own boss. Being self-un-employed can be great, but it’s not easy. Bear Cahill has been a professional software developer at companies since 1990 and freelance since 2008. He has learned vital lessons, many the hard way, and has shared them in this book. Learn great practices about how to manage clients, watch for red flags and thoughts on invoicing practices. Though Bear’s insight you’ll see way a bad client is worse than no client. You’ll have a better picture of what to charge a client – one of the key things that makes it hard for many developers to stay freelance. The wisdom and knowledge it takes to stay solo for the long-term doesn’t come easy. To find so many valuable lessons in one place is rare. If you desire to be on your own, be your own boss and control your destiny, this book is for you. While developers are smart, motivated people, that isn’t all that it takes. You need to understand the dynamics of being freelance, how to deal with clients, how to manage the business, sales… and everything else. Are you good with people? Are you social? Do you balance your time, relationships, priorities and budget well? Do you have a passion for development but not able to wear the hats necessary? This book will help show you the things to consider both in concept and concretely in navigating the waters alone.”
To become successful in coding, you need to get out there and solve real problems for real people. That’s how you can become a six-figure earner easily. And that’s how you polish the skills you really need in practice. After all, what’s the use of learning theory that nobody ever needs?
Practice projects is how you sharpen your saw in coding!
Do you want to become a code master by focusing on practical code projects that actually earn you money and solve problems for people?
Then become a Python freelance developer! It’s the best way of approaching the task of improving your Python skills—even if you are a complete beginner.
Freelancing is the new mega trend. And there’s a good reason: more and more companies see the cost benefits of hiring outside expertise by the hour. Much like cloud computing revolutionized the server market, freelancing disrupts the talent market with a pay-as-you go model for businesses. The big benefits for freelance developers are convincing as well: higher pay, more flexibility and freedom, and an increased sense of purpose and learning.
Do you want to become a freelance developer? Joining a freelancing program from someone who’s already been there and done that will save you months, if not years of trial and error and potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars of money you could have earned but haven’t due to a lack of business expertise.
Here’s a quick overview of the courses addressed in this article:
Let’s dive into the courses! We used some of the verbatim course information to compile the table of contents and the general course value propositions. This helps you differentiate the courses and choose the one that fits your needs best!
The industry-leading freelance developer course that’s most comprehensive is the only course that guarantees success: the FINXTER Python Freelancer Course.
What you’ll learn
The course is structured as a step-by-step guide to push you from $0 per month to six-figure earning potential. The targeted earnings are given in parentheses:
Get Started with This Course
Get an Overview of Python Freelancing
Improve Your Coding Skills – and Complete This 5-Step Python Crash Course ($0 – $1,000)
Gain Experience and Start Earning Money as a Python Freelancer ($1,000 – $2,000)
Create More Value for Your Clients ($2,000 – $4,000)
[Fiverr Gig] Practical CAD Project with Lukas ($4000-$5000)
Freelancer Student Adam’s Upwork Journey From $0 to $100 per Hour
Boost Your General Code Understanding – 50 Practical Python Puzzles ($5,000 – $6,000)
Beyond: Get the Right DNA for Your Coding Business – and Reach the Next Level ($6,000 – $10,000)
To become successful in coding, you need to get out there and solve real problems for real people. That’s how you can become a six-figure earner easily. And that’s how you polish the skills you really need in practice. After all, what’s the use of learning theory that nobody ever needs?
Practice projects is how you sharpen your saw in coding!
Do you want to become a code master by focusing on practical code projects that actually earn you money and solve problems for people?
Then become a Python freelance developer! It’s the best way of approaching the task of improving your Python skills—even if you are a complete beginner.
If you’re like me, you try things first in your code and fix the bugs as they come. One frequent bug in Python is the IndentationError: unexpected indent. So, what does this error message mean?
The error IndentationError: unexpected indent arises if you use inconsistent indentation of tabs or whitespaces for indented code blocks such as the if block and the for loop. For example, Python will throw an indentation error, if you use a for loop with three whitespace characters indentation for the first line, and one tab character indentation of the second line of the loop body. To fix the error, use the same number of empty whitespaces for all indented code blocks.
Let’s have a look at an example where this error arises:
for i in range(10): print(i) print('--')
The first line in the loop body uses two whitespaces as indentation level. The second line in the loop body uses three whitespace characters as indentation level. Thus, the indentation blocks are different for different lines of the same block. However, Python expects that all indented lines have structurally the same indentation.
How to Fix Python’s Indentation Error?
To fix the error, simply use the same number of whitespaces for each line of code:
for i in range(10): print(i) print('--')
The general recommendation is to use four single whitespace characters ' ' for each indentation level. If you have nested indentation levels, this means that the second indentation level has 4+4=8 single whitespace characters:
for i in range(10): for j in range(10): print(i, j)
Mixing Tabs and Whitespace Characters Often Causes The Error
A common problem is also that the indentation seems to be consistent—while it really isn’t. The following code has one tab character in the first line and four empty whitespaces in the second line of the indented code block. They look the same but Python still throws the indentation error.
On first sight the indentation looks the same. However, if you go over the whitespaces before print(i), you see that it consists only of a single tabular character while the whitespaces before the print(j) statement consists of a number of empty spaces ' '.
Try It Yourself: Before I tell you what to do about it, try to fix the code yourself in our interactive Python shell:
Exercise: Fix the code in the interactive code shell to get rid of the error message.
Do you want to develop the skills of a well-rounded Python professional—while getting paid in the process? Become a Python freelancer and order your book Leaving the Rat Race with Python on Amazon (Kindle/Print)!
How to Fix The Indentation Error for All Times?
The source of the error is often the misuse of tabs and whitespace characters. In many code editors, you can set the tab character to a fixed number of whitespace characters. This way, you essentially never use the tabular character itself. For example, if you have the sublime text editor, the following quick tutorial will ensure that you never run in this error ever again:
Set Sublime Text to use tabs for indentation: View –> Indentation –> Convert Indentation to Tabs
Uncheck option Indent Using Spaces in the same sub-menu above.
Where to Go From Here?
Enough theory, let’s get some practice!
To become successful in coding, you need to get out there and solve real problems for real people. That’s how you can become a six-figure earner easily. And that’s how you polish the skills you really need in practice. After all, what’s the use of learning theory that nobody ever needs?
Practice projects is how you sharpen your saw in coding!
Do you want to become a code master by focusing on practical code projects that actually earn you money and solve problems for people?
Then become a Python freelance developer! It’s the best way of approaching the task of improving your Python skills—even if you are a complete beginner.
While using a function, we generally use the returnkeyword to return a value computed by the function. Similarly, the yield keyword also returns a value from a function, but it also maintains the state of the local variables inside the function and when the function is reused in the program, the execution of the function begins from the state of the yield statement that was executed in the previous function call.
Example:
def counter(): x = 1 while x <= 5: yield x x += 1 for y in counter(): print(y)
Output:
1
2
3
4
5
To understand the usage of yield keyword, you have to understand what are:
Iterables
Generators
So let us discuss generators and Iterables before diving into the yield keyword.
Iterables
An iterable is an object in Python from which we can get an iterator. For example, when a list is created, all its items can be iterated one by one. Thus, reading the items of the list one by one is known as iteration while the list is iterable. In Python, string, lists, sets, tuples, and dictionaries are iterable containers from which we can get an iterator.
Example:
name = "FINXTER"
li = [1,2,3]
tup = (4,5,6)
s = {"A","B","C"}
d = {"a":100,"b":200,"c":300} print("\nIterating over String:")
for x in name: print(x, end=", ")
print("\nIterating over list:")
for x in li: print(x, end=" ")
print("\nIterating over tuple:")
for x in tup: print(x, end=" ")
print("\nIterating over set:")
for x in s: print(x, end=" ")
print("\nIterating over dictionary:")
for x in d: print(d[x], end=" ")
Output:
Iterating over String:
F, I, N, X, T, E, R, Iterating over list:
1 2 3 Iterating over tuple:
4 5 6 Iterating over set:
A C B Iterating over dictionary:
100 200 300
So we know, what is an iterable object. But what is an iterator?
❖ Iterator
Simply put, an iterator is any object that can be iterated upon. Iterators are implemented using loops.
Iterators implement the following methods which are known as iterator protocols:
__iter__() : returns the iterator object.
__next__(): allows us to perform operations and returns the next item in the sequence.
Let us have a look at the following program how we can iterate through an iterator in Python using the iterator protocol.
Example: Returning an iterator from a list(iterable) and printing each value one by one:
li = [1,2,3,4,5]
it = iter(li) print(next(it))
print(next(it))
print(next(it))
print(next(it))
print(next(it))
Output:
1
2
3
4
5
Now that brings us to the question, what’s the difference between an iterator and iterable?
Here’s a one-liner to answer that:
Every Iterator is an iterable, but every iterable is not an iterator.
For example, a list is an iterable but it is not an iterator. We can create an iterator from an iterable object using the iterable object as shown above.
❖ Creating Iterator Objects
As mentioned earlier, the __iter__() and __next__() methods have to be implemented in an object/class to make it an iterator.
Example: The following program demonstrates the creation of an iterator that returns a sequence of numbers starting from 100 and each iteration will increase the value by 100.
class IterObj: def __iter__(self): self.value = 100 return self def __next__(self): x = self.value self.value += 100 return x obj = IterObj()
it = iter(obj) print(next(it))
print(next(it))
print(next(it))
Output:
100
200
300
The above program will continue to print forever if you keep using the next() statements. There must be a way to stop the iteration to go on forever. This is where the StopIteration statement comes into use.
❖ StopIteration
Once the iteration is done for a specific number of times, we can define a terminating condition that raises an error once the desired number of iterations are over. This terminating condition is given by the StopIteration statement.
Example:
class IterObj: def __iter__(self): self.value = 100 return self def __next__(self): if self.value <= 500: x = self.value self.value += 100 return x else: raise StopIteration obj = IterObj()
it = iter(obj) for a in it: print(a)
Output:
100
200
300
400
500
Generators
While using iterators, we learned that we need to implement __iter__() and __next__() methods along and raise StopIteration to keep track of the number of the iterations. This can be quite lengthy and this is where generators come to our rescue. All the procedures that need to be followed while using iterators are automatically handled by generators.
Generators are simple functions used to create iterators and return an iterable set of items, one value at a time.
You can iterate over generators only once. Let us have a look at this in a program.
Example 1: Using an iterator to iterate over the values twice.
it = [x for x in range(6)]
print("Iterating over generator")
for i in it: print(i, end=", ")
print("\nIterating again!")
for j in it: print(j, end=", ")
Example 2: Using generator to iterate over values. ( The generator can be used only once, as shown in the output.)
gen = (x for x in range(6))
print("Iterating over generator")
for i in gen: print(i, end=", ")
print("\nTrying to Iterate over the generator again!")
for j in gen: print(j, end=", ")
Output:
Iterating over generator
0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, Trying to Iterate over the generator again!
Generators do not store all the values in the memory, instead, they generate the values on the fly. In the above example 2, the generator calculates and prints the value 0 and forgets it and then calculates and prints 1 and so on.
Now this brings us to our discussion on the yield keyword.
The yield Keyword
As mentioned earlier, yield is a keyword similar to the return keyword, but in case of yield the function returns a generator.
Example: The following uses a generator function that yields 7 random integers between 1 and 99.
from random import randint def game(): # returns 6 numbers between 1 and 50 for i in range(6): yield randint(1, 50) # returns a 7th number between 51 and 99 yield randint(51,99) for random_no in game(): print("Lucky Number : ", (random_no))
Output:
Lucky Number : 12 Lucky Number : 12 Lucky Number : 47 Lucky Number : 36 Lucky Number : 28 Lucky Number : 25 Lucky Number : 55
In the above program the generator function game() generates 6 random integers between 1 and 50 by executing the yield statement one at a time and finally generates the 7th random number between 51 and 99 by executing the yield outside the loop.
Note: When the function is called, the code within the function body does not run. Instead, the function body simply returns the generator object, and then the code will continue from where it left off each time the for loop uses the generator. Tricky!!! Isn’t it?
Let us discuss the workflow to make things a little simple:
When the for loop is used for the first time, it calls the generator object created from the function. It runs the code in the function from the beginning until it hits yield.
Then it returns the first value in the loop.
Then each subsequent function call runs another iteration of the loop inside the function and returns the next value.
This continues until the generator is empty, that is when the function runs without an yield statement. This happens when the loop is exhausted or the if-else condition is no longer met.
Things To Remember:
Since yield stores the state of local variables, overhead of memory allocation is controlled.
This also ensures that the program control flow doesn’t start from the beginning all over again, thereby saving time.
However, time and memory optimization can make the code complex to grasp.
Comparing Time And Memory Optimization For Iterator Functions Vs Generators
Example 1: The program given below computes the time and memory usage while using a function with an iterator.
import time
import random
import os
import psutil mobile_name = ["iPhone 11", "iPhone XR", "iPhone 11 Pro Max"]
colors = ["red","black","grey"]
def mobile_list(ph): phones = [] for i in range(ph): phone = { 'name': random.choice(mobile_name), 'color': random.choice(colors) } colors.append(phone) return phones # Calculate time of processing
t1 = time.time()
cars = mobile_list(1000000)
t2 = time.time()
print('Took {} seconds'.format(t2-t1)) # Calculate Memory used
process = psutil.Process(os.getpid())
print('Memory used: ' + str(process.memory_info().rss/1000000))
output:
Took 14.238950252532959 seconds
Memory used: 267.157504
Example 2: The following program uses a generator with the yield statement instead of a function and then we calculate the memory and time used in this case.
import time
import random
import os
import psutil mobile_name = ["iPhone 11", "iPhone XR", "iPhone 11 Pro Max"]
colors = ["red","black","grey"]
def mobile_list(ph): for i in range(ph): phone = { 'name': random.choice(mobile_name), 'color': random.choice(colors) } yield phone # Calculate time of processing
t1 = time.time()
for car in mobile_list(1000000): pass
t2 = time.time()
print('Took {} seconds'.format(t2-t1)) # Calculate Memory used
process = psutil.Process(os.getpid())
print('Memory used: ' + str(process.memory_info().rss/1000000))
Output:
Took 7.272227048873901 seconds
Memory used: 15.663104
The above examples clearly depict the superiority of generators and yield keyword over normal functions with return keyword.
Disclaimer: You have to pip install psutil so that the code works in your machine. Further, the time and memory usage values returned will vary based on the specifications of the machine in use.
return Keyword vs yield Keyword
Before we conclude our discussion, let us finish what we started and discuss the difference between the yield and return statements in Python.
Conclusion
In this article we learned:
What are Iterables?
What are Iterators?
The difference between Iterables and Iterators.
Creating Iterator Objects.
The StopIteration statement.
What are Generators in Python?
The Yield Keyword.
Comparing Time And Memory Optimization For Iterator Functions Vs Generators.
The difference between return and yield keywords.
Here’s a small recap of the concepts that we learned in this article; please follow the slide show give below:
To become successful in coding, you need to get out there and solve real problems for real people. That’s how you can become a six-figure earner easily. And that’s how you polish the skills you really need in practice. After all, what’s the use of learning theory that nobody ever needs?
Practice projects is how you sharpen your saw in coding!
Do you want to become a code master by focusing on practical code projects that actually earn you money and solve problems for people?
Then become a Python freelance developer! It’s the best way of approaching the task of improving your Python skills—even if you are a complete beginner.
Clever business owners are never too busy to learn something new and improve their business continuously.
I know you are busy yourself but listening to a podcast while going for a walk can hardly be classified as a huge time investment. So, what are the best freelance developer podcasts on the planet?
This article compiles the 7 top podcasts for freelance developers—with a focus on podcasts that are likely to kick off some real improvements in your business!
As a freelance developer, you’re both a freelancer—that is, a business person—and a developer. In this list of 7 high-quality podcasts, we’ve given you some podcasts that teach either one or both.
Do you want to develop the skills of a well-rounded Python professional—while getting paid in the process? Become a Python freelancer and order your book Leaving the Rat Race with Python on Amazon (Kindle/Print)!
Here’s a short overview of these podcast with a screenshot and an audio sample to help you decide which podcast to binge-listen first.
Build a 100% remote, online, and expertise-driven business. Hosted by Philip Morgan and Liston Witherill, we’ll share what’s working, what’s not, and what scared the sh** out of us, every single Friday. If you’re a consultant, software developer, professional services provider, coach, accountant, lawyer, or any other service provider, and you want to build your business online, this podcast is for you.
The #1 business podcast on all of Apple Podcasts, and it’s been ranked #1 out of 500,000+ podcasts on many occasions. It is the first business/interview podcast to pass 100,000,000 downloads, it has been selected as “Best of” Apple Podcasts for three years running, and readers of Fortune Magazine‘s Term Sheet recently selected The Tim Ferriss Show as their top business podcast. It has now surpassed 500M downloads.
To become successful in coding, you need to get out there and solve real problems for real people. That’s how you can become a six-figure earner easily. And that’s how you polish the skills you really need in practice. After all, what’s the use of learning theory that nobody ever needs?
Practice projects is how you sharpen your saw in coding!
Do you want to become a code master by focusing on practical code projects that actually earn you money and solve problems for people?
Then become a Python freelance developer! It’s the best way of approaching the task of improving your Python skills—even if you are a complete beginner.
Freelancing is the new mega trend. And there’s a good reason: more and more companies see the cost benefits of hiring outside expertise by the hour. Much like cloud computing revolutionized the server market, freelancing disrupts the talent market with a pay-as-you go model for businesses. The big benefits for freelance developers are convincing as well: higher pay, more flexibility and freedom, and an increased sense of purpose and learning.
Do you want to become a freelance developer? Joining a freelancing program from someone who’s already been there and done that will save you months, if not years of trial and error and potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars of money you could have earned but haven’t due to a lack of business expertise.
Udemy provides a number of courses tailored towards freelance developing. Yet, the industry-leading freelance developer course that’s most comprehensive is the only course that guarantees success: the FINXTER Python Freelancer Course.
If you want to find the best Python freelancer course, look no further. If you want to keep looking, let’s dive into the best Udemy freelancer courses!
Here’s a quick summary of the best courses for freelance developers:
Do you want the most complete course on the market that guarantees your first gigs? Check out the FINXTER Python Freelancer Course!
Do you want a relaxed conversation with a freelance developer who’s already been there and done that? Check out the How to Thrive as a Freelance Developer Course on Udemy!
To become successful in coding, you need to get out there and solve real problems for real people. That’s how you can become a six-figure earner easily. And that’s how you polish the skills you really need in practice. After all, what’s the use of learning theory that nobody ever needs?
Practice projects is how you sharpen your saw in coding!
Do you want to become a code master by focusing on practical code projects that actually earn you money and solve problems for people?
Then become a Python freelance developer! It’s the best way of approaching the task of improving your Python skills—even if you are a complete beginner.
Freelance developing is snowballing—more and more coders decide to “work for themselves” and smash their well-compensated coding jobs in order to earn even higher rates as freelance developers.
What are the reasons for the double-digit growth rates of freelancing platforms? Many freelance developers name higher hourly rates, no commute time, no bosses, greater flexibility, more experience, and higher work satisfaction as some of the benefits compared to being an employed developer.
However, freelancing can be quite a lonely work environment… IF you don’t get active in forums and other communities with like-minded people. This article shows you the best freelance developer forums and communities.
The Python freelancer course from Finxter is the world’s most comprehensive learning resource for every ambitious person who wants to create their thriving coding business online. Is this you?
With the course comes access to a community of other freelance developers (Facebook Mastermind Group & upcoming Slack Community) with coders ranging from complete beginners to 20 years of experience in the freelancing industry. This is the best freelance developer forum for coders who seek help on every step of the way to reaching average freelancing skills with six-figure earning potential and beyond.
Reddit is one of the first resources you can think of when searching for communities of like-minded people. There’s a subreddit for everyone. The best Reddit community for freelance developers is the /r/FreelanceDevelopers subred:
This supportive developer group is free to access and it contains roughly 20,000 people interested in coding. It’s not per se a freelancing group but for freelance developers, it’s definitely a great resource to ask questions and find support as you work on your coding projects for clients.
Upwork is first and foremost a freelancing platform. But it’s also an active community of freelancers who communicate with each others. To participate in the discussion, you need an account—only passive reading can be done without an account. However, as a freelance developer, you do want to have an account on the leading freelance platform Upwork anyway, don’t you?
I don’t recommend Freelancer.com as a resource for finding gigs. Why? Because in recent years, the quality of the gigs suffered badly due to the flood of cheap labor competing away the monetary benefits of being a freelancer. However, the website contains solid information on freelancing and freelance developing. In fact, freelance developing has a very strong standing on the community platform.
This forum is tailored towards web developers and web designers—so, it’s relevant to many freelance developers as well. However, you also find discussions about non-tech related freelancing topics such as marketing, legal help, sales, SEO, social media, etc. You can not only post questions and answers in the forum but also ask for gigs. A great forum for most freelance developers.
This community is for every person who’s starting a home-based business. As a freelancer, chances are that you are as well. However, the forum is also a bit broader covering all range of jobs that can be performed from home. Many topics cover essential topics such as business strategy, marketing, sales, tax, accounting. As a freelance developer, you must know these topics very well in order to thrive! With over 23,000 members and 7500 topics, the forum is not a small one either.
I hope you found this collection useful—no go ahead and start your own freelancing adventure if you haven’t already!
Do you want to develop the skills of a well-rounded Python professional—while getting paid in the process? Become a Python freelancer and order your book Leaving the Rat Race with Python on Amazon (Kindle/Print)!
Where to Go From Here?
Enough theory, let’s get some practice!
To become successful in coding, you need to get out there and solve real problems for real people. That’s how you can become a six-figure earner easily. And that’s how you polish the skills you really need in practice. After all, what’s the use of learning theory that nobody ever needs?
Practice projects is how you sharpen your saw in coding!
Do you want to become a code master by focusing on practical code projects that actually earn you money and solve problems for people?
Then become a Python freelance developer! It’s the best way of approaching the task of improving your Python skills—even if you are a complete beginner.
You can iterate over generators only once. Let us have a look at this in a program. 
