Born out of passion, my DJ career started way back in campus. I always used to enjoy DJ music mix and would dance along the mixes, of course under influence. I use to like the way they would mix two songs and sound like it is just continuation of the first song. I never thought that one day I would be able to Dj. It looked challenging and demanding.

I search over internet what I would require to start mixing songs. While I don't own any Dj equipment, my computer skills came in handy. That would mean using software without the turntable. I started on with simple to learn Dj software which would auto mix the songs. This didn't look real and some songs were off the beat.

I bumped into virtual dj software and that's how my life changed. Learning was easy. I mastered how to mix two songs and as beginner it meant a lot of trial and error. I played with the keys and was able to master the basics. I never though I would get online. My mixes didn't sound professional. I didn't share with anyone for fear of ridicule.

One night out of boredom I decided to try virtual DJ and give it all my best and what I learnt. I played a reggae set. I replayed my recording not once but multiple times. It sounded different. I still didn't believe am the one who did it. So, I retired the recording for few days and decided to play. A friend who was listening commented. I thought he was referring to comedy on television. He told me to replay the mix and if I could copy for him.

As a friend I gladly copied and done with the mix. A few minutes I saw a notification on my YouTube that the friend had uploaded a video. I decided to check for the sake of clearing the notification. The video was my mix and had by then received 1000 views. I couldn't believe. By then YouTube had not introduced copyright music rule on their monetization policy. Comments came in. He didn't know I was the one who had done the set.

I did another set and uploaded it be fore anyone got to hear it together with my first set. I got few subscribers and over 10000 views on both videos. Comments came flowing in and the likes. What motivated me was that the dislikes were few. Going by comments, I looked like a professional DJ. My friend also got to know who the Dj was. He asked for more mixes which I did in good faith.

My channel grew and couldn't believe I was a Dj without name. I started lookin for favorite name that would be unique. All the names I came up with had another Dj using them. One day I toyed with the name used to call me. Finally I rested on Dj Wa-Angel. I used online text to voice apps to record my new Dj Name. 

I update my channel and create social media accounts for it. I did more sets and this time I had mastered the dj mixing skills. The name blew up and I got my first 100,000 views. It was awesome. While this didn't earn me any revenue, other videos which I had monetized gained and some revenue started streaming in. As luck would be on my way, I reached the amount required to add payment details. Google sent the code and I activated the account.

Sometimes you will not miss snitches in your group. One of the subscriber reported a set to one of my favorite artist manager. I got request to pull down the songs. At first I rejected the message and even blocked her from getting access to my mixes. The songs were picking up. She sent an email now requesting we discuss and of course this time she was looking for payment to allow me to continue using the songs.

It sounded ridiculous considering I was not earning anything from this mixes. I declined and pulled all the songs down. This didn't amuse her as she asked for forgiveness and I reupload the music but with conditions. This was my channel and now an outsider was ordering me what to do. I ignored her messages. 

Few days down the line and revenue was growing, YouTube came with the new requirements of 1000 subscribers and at least 4000 watch hours. Since  my subscribers were below this, my channel was deactivated for monetization. That meant getting subscribers. I used my sets to request people to subscribe. I reached the target but then most of the music was copyrighted. YouTube rejected my channel. I made decision to drop all the sets and leave what was copyright free.

This came with consequences.. My watch time dropped to below the required. I had to start all over again. I gave up and stopped doing Dj sets. I moved my channel to other stuff that would increase my watch time and guarantee approval. As I was pondering on the next move an idea came. 

What else would I do to earn as Dj? I did research and found that I could live stream or use my social media and as for tips from listeners. I would also upload on YouTube and use affiliate marketing. Also, upload on other sites and share set with friends. In turn I would ask a favor to download. 

The idea was practical. I started a new channel and blog. I activate the new strategy which has been paying very well. I also upgraded my sets which brought more listeners and even downloads. What motivates me is when I find my sets being played in a parties and public transport.

Whatever I started as a hobby is now a career earning enough to pay for my bills. Dj is a career like any other. You can earn more than even someone who is full time engineer. It is all about the strategies you use. Look out for my Dj sets.

 As a web developer, I have learned many skills. I always want to challenge myself throughout my career. This has lead me into exploring web development from designer to digital marketing.

Below are some of the platforms and code editors I have used to develop websites. I have over 10 years in web development and recently started my tutorial on web development to help others learnt new skills and follow my path where you get skills from designer to developer to digital marketer.

1. Blogger. I have been using blogger for over 10 years. It is one of my favorite blog sites development platform owing to its ease of use. It is owned by Google and such it makes much of work easier. I have used it for my personal blogs using various templates. I also design my onw themes and upload for use. Thus requires advance knowledge in HMTL, JavaScript and CSS. With blogger, one can create even complex websites. You only need to have basic understanding of HTML, JavaScript and CSS. However, if you are creating a basic blog or website then no knowledge in web design is needed. The platform is straight forward.
2. Joomla. This was one of my first platform to develop a corporate website. Installation was pretty simple, required basic understanding of Web design to start. Creating pages and templates was easy. I would work offline on my local server then upload complete website in test server for testing. Once the testing was complete I would then migrate to a webhost. I found it easy to work with Joomla. It could handle any form of website. Updates and back up were pretty much easy to do.
3. Wordpress.com. Just like blogger, I have used wordpress.com to develop blogs. I used this during my initial stages of web development. This as before I learnt coding. It was easy and straight forward to use. No technicalities involved. Hosting was taken care of. I would be concerned with creating content. However with advent of SEO, then it became harder to optimize this blogs owing to limitation on hosted blogs. This lead me to learn word press as a CMS.
4. WordPress. This has been my favorite web design CMS. From local hosting to online hosting, I found it easier to use. Lots of themes and templates to use. Plugins come in hardy where specific functionalities are needed. It is SEO capability made it my favorite. Most of the web hosts I have used provide WordPress. Installation is simple. With over 10 years using WordPress, I would say I have not found another replacement for WordPress. Where resources and funding is available, I prefer WordPress. Its alternative is Blogger.com. When it comes to security, it is comes hardy with requires settings and plugins. Integration with database is simple as it supports MySQL among other databases.
5. Wix. This is another alternative to WordPress and Blogger.com. The interface is simple for beginners. SEO is also pretty simple with wizard like assistance. While I use it, I find it limiting in terms of file management. Unlike WordPress, you cannot access your file directory. I have used it for corporate website. The downside is that you cannot limit users from accessing your webpages. this may expose your website if it has to be updated by third parties. Their user role is not limiting compared to WordPress.
6. Dreamweaver. This was my First code editor for web development. When creating website from scratch, I used Dreamweaver. As an Adobe product, I had much faith with it and also look more professional to use it. Its interface was also simple to understand and use. I liked the fact that I could use it on my local computer then upload files to webhost when ready.
7. Visual studio. One of my favorite code editor. I use it when designing asp.net websites. It is integration with MS SQL database makes it my favorite. I use it when designing systems that require online access.
8. Notepad++. Another of my favorite especially when coding from scratch. I also use it to edit code.

 As noted in my previous blog, I have been developing apps and games for over 10 years now. I used android studio, visual studio and unity as game engine. Android studio mostly used for android apps and games. Visual studio is for cross platform apps and games. I use unity for games and animations.

Learning curve for all is the same. I used to create sample apps or games and follow along the tutorial. You can also start by learning the IDE then follow along a tutorial. The most important is to understand what each menu or toll is used for.

My process in creating apps follows the principles of good design. Make eye catching designs of the app without interfering with user experience.  You can check my tutorial here.

1. Sketching. I usually start by sketching my app on a paper with pencil. This way I ca always erase parts that are not needed. The sketch usually captures the basic idea of my app. It also captures the main functions of the app. If I am working with client, this is where I usually collect app requirements and required functionalities. I write down then create sketch to guide me. When the sketch is clear and captures the high level operation of the app, I move to UI design.
2. UI design. This is where I spend much of my time. If you get your UI design well, then you spend less time coding. This is where you specify what elements you need on your app. This could be buttons, text boxes, input functionalities, data display elements and other UI elements. Also you design the number of scenes your app will have. I mostly use Adobe XD, Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator. Adobe XD is used mostly for UI design and prototyping. Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator are for creating UI elements for Adobe XD. I will pick my sketch and draw it in Adobe XD using basic shapes like rectangle, circles and triangles to denote UI elements. After sketch is done, I will either use adobe photoshop or illustrator to draw the specific UI elements. Say if it is button, Adobe photoshop may work better than illustrator depending on visual elements needed. I also use both where I start with photoshop or illustrator and import my design to he other for final touches. I will save and export my design in a folder within my project. I will then import this UI design into adobe XD project and replace my dummy UI elements created earlier. I will also add other small elements that I may not have created earlier. At the end of my design I will have an app that looks like a complete and ready to use app.
3. UX design and prototyping. Still in Adobe XD, I will the link UI elements with intended actions. This could be button click to open new scene or deactivate or activate UI element. This could also be button to save data or open URL link or even exit a scene. I will the play the final prototype and see how all elements interlink. While this may not be operations app, it covers most of the operations needed. 
4. UI elements export. - I will then export my UI elements depending on requirements of IDE an using. Say I am using android studio, I will select android option so that I get all UI elements for android in one export. I will then organize my exports in one folder for ease of access. I will also export scene for reference and also a video of app functionalities as capture in the prototype.
5. Coding in android studio, visual studio or unity. With my UI elements and scene exports, I am ready to code. I will open my IDE in this case android studio. create project and import my UI elements into their specific folders. I will then create layout of the app using my scene reference images. Once everything is ready, I will use the video reference to code my UI elements interactions. This usually takes short time as I already have video for reference. I start with basic interaction then do other complicated integrations like database integration, web services integration.
6. Testing. Once the app is ready, I will do initial test on my android phone or emulator. I will the rectify any glitches and add any other operations that I may have missed during prototype. At the end I will have complete app ready for publishing.
7. Integration with monetization. The final step is to add monetization. I usually use ads and in-app purchase as main monetization methods. I will head back to prototype in Adobe XD and add ads where I feel they fit and are visible. I will also add monetization UI elements where they fit too. I will export and import into my IDE and do the final coding. I will test with real device to make sure what is intended is what client gets. I usually use test ads and in-app purchase items. I will then add my real monetization setting.
8. Final testing. I will do the final testing. This include going over the whole app looking for any bugs. Also checking if monetization is affecting user experience. I will then adjust and export the final files for publishing.
9. Publish on Playstore or other app stores. I start by creating app store account if I don't have. I will make sure to capture my correct data and read terms and conditions. I will also check the rule and conditions of using and uploading store. After I complete, I will then upload my files and any screen shots that may be required. I will use Canva to create additional store elements. I also sometimes use Photoshop or Illustrator to design. Canva usually have ready made templates. I will then wait for publishing to be completed and approved.
10. Review progress and update. After the app is published, I am usually the first one to download and test the production version of my app. This helps in identifying any bug that may have come up when publishing. The next step is now to review my UI design and UX and improve or update. I will then update my app and publish. this is a continuous exercise.

 Immediately after graduating from University I was offered internship opportunity. I joined the company as Customer service representative. My task was to fill papers and assist clients when called upon. This provided opportunity to learn how the company operates. I was new working in any company or even engaging in any activity that would bring forth some earnings. I did this tasks for two months.

I completed filling and had no other work left to do. Nobody wanted to share what they do as the company was occasionally retrenching employees. Reality dawned on me that the skills I had learned in school were  not applicable in the current internship opportunity I was given,

I had to adjust myself and adapt to new environment and take any opportunity that came along. My interest was in information technology but didn't have any certifications to enable me apply or experience to enable me apply for the same. The company also didn't have I.T department.

An opportunity came up in the Finance department. I was offered that chance to try my luck. I was taken through the basics of accounting. Luckily I am those people who grasp details in short span. I was able to complete my task and other employees though I had done accounting.

I was permanently employed as account assistant. The person who was helping me advises I take accounting course so that I could secure my spot. With the little pay I was getting, this was not possible.

An year down the line and I had mastered most of accounting terminologies. By this time, most people had left the company. God's favor was on myside. With two years in accounting, I had done more work than those who had been employed before me.

There was change of management and executive wing. This spelt doom as I didn't have papers to secure my spot. One day the new executive called me and I thought this was my end. As we discussed he offered me opportunity to start my own department. This time no qualifications were needed as it was very urgent. I didn't even hastate. I joined the new operations department. Time didn't pass long before the person who was handling I.T resigned. Being in operations meant I could handle any task.

I.T roles were handed over to me. I had only three hours to learnt from him. I grasped what I though would enable me handle I.T. From the skills I learnt helping our university technician, I was now entering the department I dreaded to be in. I wrote down my do's and don'ts.

Luckily it was a small company and therefore there was no much to do in I.T. Most services were also outsourced. I worked my way up trying to understand what each team was doing. As fate would be, contracts for the outsourced services were terminated.

This meant I would have to handle all I.T functions on my own. No formal I.T training no certifications. One thing I told myself I that for every action in I.T there is undo function. Also any function that requires you edit, delete, add or save will result in data changes. This were functions I would avoid no matter the situation at hand.

Network was the next headache. How do I handle something I don't even understand. I requested for network diagram as I had seen something of sort on internet. I was handed over the document. I studied and tried to understand what each component did. I tried my best to simplify the terminologies to layman's language. To my shock, it was this terminologies that made me think I.T is hard.

I also taught myself database, web design, software and hardware skill on internet. I would then try and apply that to our daily office work. Things ran smoothly and even the executive thought I was hiding my I.T certifications. He offered to pay for a course in I.T. I grandly took that opportunity and that marked the start of my journey in I.T.

It was a crush course and hence no much to learn practically. By this time I had gotten used to I.T environment. I was also comfortable working with data. The little knowledge I had gathered from internet increase my confidence level.

For the first time the company won awards in I.T. This made the executive add more responsibilities. this meant I was to understand complete operations of the company. All services that were outsourced were handed over to me. After all the goal of the company is to use available resources and minimize expenses.

I made change on the network to limit external access as that would be the only way someone would access our system. Now I was in full control and had basic understanding of I.T. I was tasked with few programming projects which meant spending time on internet research and working on them.

This is how I found myself in programming. A field that I ever wanted to be in. The opportunity was there by no skills. Internet was my savior. Within three months I had mastered C# and visual basic.net languages. I would code web based applications and host them.

I also started my side hustle as Nokia developer. This boosted my programming skills. With my knowledge in account and customer service, I would help in creating application that would be used by said departments. Automating excel and word application to simplify other staff member's work.

It was during this time I learnt website design and development. We used Joomla at that time. It was easy to create website and host. Later I also learnt Wix and hosted our company website. I would create VPN's to connect our company resources to our partner networks. 

We the did system upgrade and that meant discontinue the current system and implement new system. The team that had been outsourced to provide system programming and maintenance had terminated their contract. I applied my database skills and migrated data from current system to new system. This was completed in time and had to learn the new system.

I took interest in back end operations. This created opportunity of learning operations of the new system. This worked to my advantage as I was the most skilled person in the company. While these exposure provided avenue to grow, my earning still remained low. I had to start my side hustles to keep me running and maintain the image of employed and earning. this is how I started as game and app developer. I would jungle between my normal office work and my side hustle.

 With experience learnt as Nokia and Games developer, I had to expand my net. See the previous articles on my journey as Nokia developer and Mobile games developer. I figured out that to make a meaningful app, I had to learnt android development. This time I was a step ahead having learnt C# through unity. At least getting a refresher in Java would also boost my android development skills.

Back to YouTube, I searched for tutorials that would guide me through. I got one where you would design UI in adobe XD and code in android studio. From previous exposure to adobe products in my game development, I knew there was no shortcut to this.

Creativity was needed and my design skills were to come in handy. The tutorial was well articulated and explained to beginner's level. I found it easy to follow through. All along I though I would only use Java but I was wrong. The tutorial dived into an area that I was comfortable working. Using database was meat of the day as we will see in my journey in I.T.

My skills in SQL and MySql rely made it easy for me to integrate my apps with database. However there was a problem. I had not master python. Luckily the same tutorial explain the concepts well that at the end of the lecture I would easily query and insert data using python. It felt like I was now a born again developer.

By now I had a working app. A very simple app so to say. I toyed around with my design and made adjustments and ended up creating a fully functional app.  As they say practice makes perfect, I did few other designs and grasped the whole process flow of making mobile apps.

I would start with design in adobe XD as a sketch, advance the UI elements using adobe illustrator and photoshop. Others I would using adobe XD toolbox. I would then create a prototype of my app and how each UI element interacts with the user. This looked like a complete app. In fact I would think I have already done coding were it that the data was dummy.

By now I had developed new skills. UI design and UX design.  Nothing was simple than working with adobe suite. I am a person who likes visual designs. I don't like too much theory.

With my design and UX ready, I would export UI elements into different android sizes and prepare them for import into android studio. With UX already exported as video, I would now be in position to follow along my coding and implement what I had designed.

I would start by creating layout in android studio. After everything was in place per my design, I would then dive into coding to add my flow in the prototype. This meant at the end of the day, I have a functional app.

I would then create database on a web host. I would search for the best web host who would allow access to database with unlimited or unmetered access. I would install Mysql database and configure. I would then created database and tables. This would not require technical knowledge in database programing. The tables were very simple.

After that, I would create a small PHP app to access database, read and write data for the app. this was the simplest part of my coding as the code was very simple and straight forward. If you have used PHP, then you understand what I mean.

With database accessible, it was time to incorporate this into my app and have the user send and read data. The new challenge was how to access read data from my PHP file into the app.  Through the tutorial, I learnt the new skills and was able read and write data. I would then display the data in my UI elements.

A few tweaks were needed for the app to look more professional and unique. I went back to my design in adobe XD and made changes, came back to android studio and made the new changes. In the end I had a fully functional app.

Money was the driving force. How do I make money from my app? I integrated ads as part of my first release. I never used mediation. I would create my own logic to display ads from different providers. The app was now ready for release. As fate would be. I got few downloads and this motivated me to even do more releases.

I added in-app purchase to allow users remove ads and buy other features that were more advanced.

My first complete android app was now in store. I went further and did more apps and this motivated me a lot. I have always wanted to develop something other people are using. This was my chance and I and already achieved this.

My Take

1. It takes dedication to be an app developer. Irrespective of your background, if you are determined, your can easily make it as app developer. Tutorials are there online to guide you.
2. Always learnt from creating simple apps and progress up. We always start from hello world app. this forms the basics of learning programing.
3. It takes practice to be a good designer and developer.
4. Start from design all the way to coding. It is not hard. The problem with developers is that we what to code what we have not visualized.
5. Learn to create your own UI elements. Copyright claim is the worst thing you can get in playstore. Account can be easily suspended and all your sweat goes to drain.
6. Planning is the key to success. Plan your app through the UI design and UX design. This makes your work easier and saves time.