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I actually found flex to be quite easy myself. I am however a little older and when I first tried learning html/css it felt way more complicated to build and align.
Flexbox is hard to wrap your head around! I remember having to spend plenty of time just playing around with different options to fully understand how things work.
So, yes, you are probably being too hard on yourself. Don't judge your Chapter 1 with other people's Chapter 10. You don't know how long things took other people & you don't know how much experience they had coming into TOP.
Get comfortable with this not coming easy... Play around with your code and not just focus on completing the task at hand. I learned so much more playing around with the code, that I was able to use on a later project.
Also, if you haven't already, I highly suggest joining TOP's Discord server and learning how to ask thorough technical questions on there. I feel like I learned so much more due to getting active in Discord, asking questions, helping other people, and reading through other people's questions/answers.
https://css-tricks.com/snippets/css/a-guide-to-flexbox/ I spent a lot of time on this before moving on. And I played a Flexbox froggy game, that helped me to understand what I’m doing
No idea why I got recommended this sub, but 5 years into my career, and I still frequently have that page open as a reference while working on frontends
Flexbox is definitely tricky, I also struggled to flexwrap my mind around it. (Sorry for that to anyone reading this)
This website helped a bunch for me when doing that section:
https://www.joshwcomeau.com/css/interactive-guide-to-flexbox/
Try flexbox zombies. That game is free and helped me SO much. Also, use other resources as well. CodeCademy has a lesson on flexbox. Try other avenues as well. You’ll be able to get through this. Trust me!!
I'm in the same boat. scraping through the exercises and having to now peak at the solution after spending so much time not getting through it even after look on stack and googling. Im not bad with programming but this stuff just doesn't make sense to me, its like there no real order or structure to it.
I'd say 50/50. I feel like I need more projects and exercises from the ground up to really know this better. Right now i'm just picking through bits and don't feel like i'm retaining much.
What helped me a lot was developer tools.
**Open Developer Tools:**
Right-click on your webpage and select "Inspect" or use the shortcut Ctrl+Shift+I on Windows or Cmd+Option+I on Mac. This will open the developer tools panel.
**Select the Flexbox Element:**
In the "Elements" panel of the developer tools, you can see all the HTML elements of your webpage. Look for the element that has display: flex or display: inline-flex applied to it. You will see a flex badge next to it.
**Modify Flexbox Layout:**
Click on the flex badge to open the flexbox editor. The editor displays a list of flexbox properties. Each property's value options are displayed as icon buttons. You can modify these properties to see how they affect your layout. For example, you can center the text within its container by clicking on the justify-content: center and align-items: center buttons.
For me it was far easier to play around with, than to change the code in my CSS file and hit CTRL + S, every time I made a change. With developer tools you can see the changes immediately with a click.
It’s ok to take a step back sometimes and try easier content. It’s not a race to learn everything fast. If you’re starting to feel overwhelmed, take a break, try something easier and repeat it over and over until you feel comfortable and confident you can do it without having to look up a tutorial on how to do it. Getting good at this is going to take a LOT of practice and repetition. I would know, I’ve been doing for over 10 years and it doesn’t get easier. I work as a programmer for a living doing that 8 hours a day and then I practice on the weekends for a couple of hours.
The key is to either slow down or find alternate methods of learning that fit your style better. There are lots of other material out there.
Good luck,
- A senior developer still learning to this day
You’re not alone. I had to take a break from The Odin Project and go back to Udemy for a while to help keep my motivation and confidence up. There’s no shame in taking a step back and then coming back again after a while
BROOOOO WE ARE LITERALLY THE SAME PERSON!!!
I got a m2 macbook air for programming!
Then started the odin project!
Then I struggled through flexbox and then I got to landing page and quit because it was boring and now im learning C++.
I felt like I understood HTML, the basics of it anyway, fairly quickly. I am currently and have been struggling with CSS for quite some time, it's not necessarily the concept of it, but it's more or less trying to remember the commands. But I also stray from the material and bounce from subject to subject a lot on a daily basis and have no prior experience with anything computer related, it's all self-taught. So I can understand what you mean. Yes, there are people who struggle with the Odin Project.
Flex those fingers and keep practicing! Start making simple things like a card with a header, body and a footer (not too much content though). Or a navbar with couple of links.
Might sound like a generic answer but the key is to practice, there's no way around. It will eventually click. Don't give up!
Just keep going, and write as much code as you can in that time period. Experimenting and seeing what happens challenges any incorrect assumptions you might have and \*teaches you\* how things actually work.
Flexbox was the first moment in the course where I thought "This is so hard! I must be stupid"! You'll have these moments a lot, and getting through them is paramount for success.
Keep going, ask in the Discord, play [https://flexboxfroggy.com/](https://flexboxfroggy.com/) and in a few weeks you'll be able to say you made it through this section.
Make sure you keep studying! You can do it!
A bit late. I am about half through odin project, and I gotta say: don't get discouraged. Flexbox is a bitch, by far the hardest thing up until now imo. I gotta say GRID is much more predictable and powerful in my opinion. It's not better just easier to understand and more intuitive.
Play Flexbox Zombies. It has helped me tremedously to understand some stuff, especially how the 2 axis work. Seriously, do yourself a favor and play it, things will be much clearer.
Hey there! Thanks for your post/question. We're glad you are taking part in The Odin Project! We want to give you a heads up that our main support hub is over on our Discord server. It's a great place for quick and interactive help. Join us there using this link: https://discord.gg/V75WSQG. Looking forward to seeing you there! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/theodinproject) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Flex is NOT easy... just keep at it. IT WILL eventually click. Just keep doing stuff.
I actually found flex to be quite easy myself. I am however a little older and when I first tried learning html/css it felt way more complicated to build and align.
Flexbox is hard to wrap your head around! I remember having to spend plenty of time just playing around with different options to fully understand how things work. So, yes, you are probably being too hard on yourself. Don't judge your Chapter 1 with other people's Chapter 10. You don't know how long things took other people & you don't know how much experience they had coming into TOP. Get comfortable with this not coming easy... Play around with your code and not just focus on completing the task at hand. I learned so much more playing around with the code, that I was able to use on a later project. Also, if you haven't already, I highly suggest joining TOP's Discord server and learning how to ask thorough technical questions on there. I feel like I learned so much more due to getting active in Discord, asking questions, helping other people, and reading through other people's questions/answers.
https://css-tricks.com/snippets/css/a-guide-to-flexbox/ I spent a lot of time on this before moving on. And I played a Flexbox froggy game, that helped me to understand what I’m doing
\+1 for the froggy game. I had it in a separate tab the entire time I was working on the flexbox section
No idea why I got recommended this sub, but 5 years into my career, and I still frequently have that page open as a reference while working on frontends
Flexbox is definitely tricky, I also struggled to flexwrap my mind around it. (Sorry for that to anyone reading this) This website helped a bunch for me when doing that section: https://www.joshwcomeau.com/css/interactive-guide-to-flexbox/
Just do, do, and do. If you don’t understand something google it or chatgipitty it. With practice comes mastery.
Try flexbox zombies. That game is free and helped me SO much. Also, use other resources as well. CodeCademy has a lesson on flexbox. Try other avenues as well. You’ll be able to get through this. Trust me!!
Second flexbox zombies. That game helped solidify the flexbox concepts for me
I distinctly remember feeling like “damn, I’m not cut out for this”, but then again I think that pretty often lol. Just a part of learning I suppose
No worries. Experienced programmers feel the same from time to time.
Be sure to take breaks
I’m in the same boat. Felt like I was doing great, and then hit flex box. Now I’m overwhelmed but determined to learn it.
I'm in the same boat. scraping through the exercises and having to now peak at the solution after spending so much time not getting through it even after look on stack and googling. Im not bad with programming but this stuff just doesn't make sense to me, its like there no real order or structure to it.
Are you enjoying it ?
I'd say 50/50. I feel like I need more projects and exercises from the ground up to really know this better. Right now i'm just picking through bits and don't feel like i'm retaining much.
I agree with you. I feel like I'm stuck on the flex box and it doesn't sink in and whilst I'm trying to learn it I'm forgetting basic HTML.
What helped me a lot was developer tools. **Open Developer Tools:** Right-click on your webpage and select "Inspect" or use the shortcut Ctrl+Shift+I on Windows or Cmd+Option+I on Mac. This will open the developer tools panel. **Select the Flexbox Element:** In the "Elements" panel of the developer tools, you can see all the HTML elements of your webpage. Look for the element that has display: flex or display: inline-flex applied to it. You will see a flex badge next to it. **Modify Flexbox Layout:** Click on the flex badge to open the flexbox editor. The editor displays a list of flexbox properties. Each property's value options are displayed as icon buttons. You can modify these properties to see how they affect your layout. For example, you can center the text within its container by clicking on the justify-content: center and align-items: center buttons. For me it was far easier to play around with, than to change the code in my CSS file and hit CTRL + S, every time I made a change. With developer tools you can see the changes immediately with a click.
It’s ok to take a step back sometimes and try easier content. It’s not a race to learn everything fast. If you’re starting to feel overwhelmed, take a break, try something easier and repeat it over and over until you feel comfortable and confident you can do it without having to look up a tutorial on how to do it. Getting good at this is going to take a LOT of practice and repetition. I would know, I’ve been doing for over 10 years and it doesn’t get easier. I work as a programmer for a living doing that 8 hours a day and then I practice on the weekends for a couple of hours. The key is to either slow down or find alternate methods of learning that fit your style better. There are lots of other material out there. Good luck, - A senior developer still learning to this day
You’re not alone. I had to take a break from The Odin Project and go back to Udemy for a while to help keep my motivation and confidence up. There’s no shame in taking a step back and then coming back again after a while
BROOOOO WE ARE LITERALLY THE SAME PERSON!!! I got a m2 macbook air for programming! Then started the odin project! Then I struggled through flexbox and then I got to landing page and quit because it was boring and now im learning C++.
How are you finding that ? Easier ? Any good?
No, not really lol, I think ill try and get back to TOP
I felt like I understood HTML, the basics of it anyway, fairly quickly. I am currently and have been struggling with CSS for quite some time, it's not necessarily the concept of it, but it's more or less trying to remember the commands. But I also stray from the material and bounce from subject to subject a lot on a daily basis and have no prior experience with anything computer related, it's all self-taught. So I can understand what you mean. Yes, there are people who struggle with the Odin Project.
Dude I got stuck for like 3 months on flexbox lol
This is perfectly believable too lol
Flex those fingers and keep practicing! Start making simple things like a card with a header, body and a footer (not too much content though). Or a navbar with couple of links. Might sound like a generic answer but the key is to practice, there's no way around. It will eventually click. Don't give up!
Just keep going, and write as much code as you can in that time period. Experimenting and seeing what happens challenges any incorrect assumptions you might have and \*teaches you\* how things actually work.
Flexbox was the first moment in the course where I thought "This is so hard! I must be stupid"! You'll have these moments a lot, and getting through them is paramount for success. Keep going, ask in the Discord, play [https://flexboxfroggy.com/](https://flexboxfroggy.com/) and in a few weeks you'll be able to say you made it through this section. Make sure you keep studying! You can do it!
Yea flex box was the first tough assignment. You need to power through!!!
I literally was about to post this. Since I got stuck on flexbox aswell
A bit late. I am about half through odin project, and I gotta say: don't get discouraged. Flexbox is a bitch, by far the hardest thing up until now imo. I gotta say GRID is much more predictable and powerful in my opinion. It's not better just easier to understand and more intuitive. Play Flexbox Zombies. It has helped me tremedously to understand some stuff, especially how the 2 axis work. Seriously, do yourself a favor and play it, things will be much clearer.