MD. SABBIR HOSHEN HOWLADER

Programming Journey

It all began in 2015 when I was just playing GTA Vice City — a modded version called GTA Dhaka City. After completing the game, I thought, "Why not create my own game?" That curiosity pushed me to search on Google and YouTube, but I couldn’t find the perfect solution at that time.

Eventually, I discovered Unity, a game engine. To use Unity, I had to learn C#, so I started learning from the Brackeys YouTube channel. Back then, we had no ChatGPT — I used to write code line by line with passion, curiosity, and without shortcuts.

That’s also when I started learning HTML. At first, I didn't know CSS or JavaScript, but it was a magical time — the beginning of a lifelong journey in programming.

After that, I slowly shifted from game development to web development. I was curious — how could I make my own website accessible from someone else's computer? Back then, I had no idea how hosting or domains worked, and couldn’t figure it out.

Around that time, I also started learning Python. Most tech YouTube channels I watched back then, especially those focused on hacking or cyber topics, said that Python was the most-used language for hackers — and that made me even more interested in it.

I began learning Python from CodeWithHarry, but I felt like it didn’t quite fit my learning style. So I moved on to the freeCodeCamp YouTube channel — and that felt much more aligned with how I wanted to learn.

One interesting part of my journey is that I learned how to build GUI applications and even server-based programs. But the funny thing is — I only learned about threading and multi-threading after I had already created some GUI apps! I used to wonder, "How did my applications not crash without using proper threading?" 😅 Back then, the only way to find answers was Google — and a lot of trial and error!

Between 2015 and 2019, I was doing all these things just for fun — not in any professional way. Honestly, I didn’t even know that it could be done in a professional way! That changed when I saw someone I knew writing code in Visual Studio Code. I got curious, logged into VS Code myself, and after talking with her, I discovered Upwork.

Before that, I had tried many random things — like using Godot, Website2APK, ConcuSt, and other tools — but I had no clear direction, no real workflow, and no consistency. It was all just exploration and experiments.

2019

This was the year I created my first account on Upwork and figured out how the freelancing system works. I got my first job — a Unity game project — and from that point, I dedicated most of my time to Unity and Python projects.

Toward the end of December, I met Shadat, who had started developing Android applications. He told me more about it — and honestly, I didn’t know a single thing about Android Studio back then.

Yes, I had installed Android Studio once before, but only for Unity — just to deal with those SDK issues. After that conversation, I thought, "Why not try Android development too?" I already knew Python, and had written a bit of Java code.

That’s when I discovered XML-based UI in Android. These days, most developers use Kotlin, but for me, Java felt perfect at the time.

The period from 2019 to 2021 was my true learning phase. During this time, I explored a lot — from working with OpenCV and training AI models to learning languages like PHP and JavaScript. I was expanding my skills in every direction.

But the Python script I remember most from that time was one I wrote for brute-forcing Facebook passwords. It could check if the password matched or not — just as an experiment. What made it even more interesting was that I built it completely without internet access. I had downloaded the Facebook login and homepage HTML files from Shadat’s computer, and worked offline from there.

That was the moment I realized — Python is the language I feel most comfortable with. I truly understood its power, even without full-time internet access.

Around that time, I also stopped watching tutorial videos. I transitioned into learning directly from documentation — and that’s still how I learn today.

After that, the time between 2019 and 2025 became my true working phase — the years when I was fully involved in building real-world projects, learning deeply, and applying everything I had explored before.

Now, as 2025 approaches, I’ve been thinking about putting an end to my programming journey — at least professionally — because of my current path in education. I’m studying BBA (Bachelor of Business Administration), which is very different from what I’ve been doing in the tech world.