Explain Like I’m 5 (ELI5) is a subreddit dedicated to putting complex concepts and subjects into laymen terms. It’s multidisciplinary, covering topics in fields from history to science and engineering.
Whenever I’m ready to dive into a new, complex topic I like to seek primers first. It gives me a quick glance at all of the parts that make up the whole. So once I dive into a specific component that may be particularly hard to understand, at least knowing how it fits into the big picture makes it much easier to tackle.
With that being said, the next web development tool I’m tackling is React. As mentioned, phase 1 is primers. Unsurprisingly there is a React ELI5 post on reddit.. but it is not enough. Here are a few short YouTube clips I’ve found helpful as ELI5 substitutes that explain the foundational principles behind React:
What Is React and Why Is It So Popular?
Learn React.js in Just 5 Minutes
Why & When I Use React.js
Lastly, framing the tool from a slightly different perspective:
Do You Know Enough JavaScript to Learn React?
All the JavaScript You Need to Know for React
I’ll watch these once or twice as conceptual primers, then complete a short, basic course to get my hands dirty. Third is the funnest part: building something with it from scratch, however small.