Ever since I started programming, one thing I always had trouble with is my PC. The ones I used when I started were horrible to put it nicely because I couldn't afford anything better, and I'm currently writing on a less crappy computer but crappy still. The fact that my machine was below specifications, was an obstacle to my learning speed and it cut down my motivation to code a lot. If you are like me when I started then this might help you.

There are two things you need to consider:

1. Your PC hardware specifications
2. Your Coding Software

First let's talk specifications

Now I'm not much of a computer engineering whiz but what I know is most of the suitable machines have an 'i' and a number after when indicating what kind of processor is installed in it. So something like -core i3, i4, i6, i7 are some of the best to have. Anything below these like Intel Pentium or Celeron, are the real culprits. It's very difficult to run software that you need because they are not capable of handling them.

Here are a list of things you can do if you can't afford a higher spec PC:

• Upgrade the memory of the system: When I say memory, I mean the RAM. This is where most of the software you load will live while you are coding. The reason why this is important is because most software take up about half of the memory, a common culprit is Chrome( You must have seen the memes online). With continuous use the memory gets filled up and if you are learning something like web development, running chrome and VScode might not be the best idea if your RAM isn't large enough. So here I'll say upgrade your RAM to at least 8GB.

• The Operating system of choice: Now i'm not insisting that any OS is most suitable but operating system use also adds to the load on the processor and the RAM. So it will help if your OS barely adds more pressure. Now most PC users have Windows as their operating system but windows tends to make it more difficult when you are running on a Pentium or Celeron processor. Another OS you could try is Linux. I know someone cringed somewhere but hear me out. Linux has gotten better since the last time you probably saw it and said 'Yuck! what the hell is that?' There are distributions that have beautiful UIs. Some include Manjaro, Deepin and my favorite pop OS. You can click on the links to see what each os is about and also check this article for ways to customize your linux desktop. Also linux is more lightweight than Widows so that will prevent/reduce things like lag/hanging from happening. Take note that there's a lot to know about the linux environment and you can checkout this article.

  https://mindmajix.com/linux-tutorial#linux-vs-windows

  There are also different flavors of the linux environment like gnome, KDE plasma, Pantheon, Budgie and so on.

Now to the coding software

Not everyone will like to switch to linux if they are already to used to using Windows and learning how to use a new OS might be stressful. Well, you still have another hurdle to cross after dealing with specifications and operating systems. The coding software it's self. Most beginners tend to want to use what's the latest trend in coding software or at least get to know how to use it because it seems to be the industry standard. Thing is most of these IDEs and Code Editors might not work the way they should if your PC isn't up to spec. Running Chrome and Visual Studio code or Atom on a 4GB memory with an Intel Pentium/Celeron or even lower will cause a lot of lag/hanging. VScode for instance is built with electron and most electron apps will cause your PC to hang a lot. A solution to this problem and the best solution in my own opinion(apart from just buying a PC with a better spec) is to use in-browser coding environments. These in-browser applications have been available for a long time; the most recent being CodeSandbox. They range from being just specific to frontend programming to being useful for both frontend, backend and even none web based programming. Some of these include:

• codepen
• glitch
• repl.it
• codesandbox

A thing to note is that these are not replacements for super IDEs like VScode or Atom, but they will do especially for a beginner/junior level developer.

There are other in-browser tools like CodeSpaces from GitHub still on the way but these apps above are really good places to kick off if your machine can't handle the coding software you need.

I hope this helps you on your journey into programming the web despite the odds.

Cheers.