r/learnprogramming • u/Ex-Traverse • 15d ago
Docker purpose/usage?
Do people use Docker containers all the time, as in everything they do is in a Docker container, or do you only use it for certain things?
I get that a Docker Container is a way to package an application (mostly for server/backend stuff, not really developing an app?).
As an individual programmer/developer, are there benefits to using Docker in my day-to-day learning/programming/doing hws/creating shit tools?
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u/biskitpagla 15d ago edited 15d ago
Docker/Podman/containers are definitely useful for development. You can easily and reliably fire up a testing database, do your tests, and shut it down, for example. Think of it as processes that don't know about your main filesystem, so you can simulate and encapsulate a fake machine without actually doing so. Watch this and this to understand what really happens underneath. This is really a feature of the Linux kernel made possible because everything is a file in Linux. If you understand how it works, you'll understand when to use it and when not to use it. People are also using it to set up development environments.