[Dantheman]

Dark_Necros, on 1 Jun, 2009 - 10:39 AM, said:

Thanks for all the advice, and is there any way for me to do a poll? and dan tha man, would your email be camoblur @ gmail . com?

Nope. You probably mistaken me for somebody else.

[Dark_Necros]

ok. sorry, thought your were my cousin

[computerfox]

*scratches head* anyways...

i would suggest C++

[jeff666]

Use C.
You can do everything in C
It's the most used language in industry (I use it for 25 years, for any sort of project (mainly SGBD access))

[Kanvus]

Be practical about it. How do you know what your true love will be? Download all the compilers that are hot-topic until you meet one that makes you swoon and brim with curiosity It's gonna take passionate motivation to go beyond merely reading about a language's syntax and actually having the grits to do exercises for the sake of wanting that sort of indepth skill. And if you never find your one and only "go-to" language then you simply will wander at the gate of Hello World until you find something you strongly favor. Here's a brisk beginner-friendly overview of the popular ones going around today:

Java - It has applets that you can place on web pages, similar to Flash games. Works solely with classes that are put together like legos and looks very much like C#. If you seek power and adventure in the long run--well, Java feels like sitting in church. There's some things you aren't allowed to do and say. This may bother some people but the code is made to be clear and precise in what it says and means to do. Cleans up after itself like a good girl.

C++ - The Indiana Jones of the computer world. It can do anything and simply defies gravity. But with this power, you're bound to have to be more careful. Some coders sit and do trial and error with their debugging, poking F5(compile/run on VC) around 15 times until something happens to work. Feels like the compiler hates you and won't listen unless you throw a fit and exhaust every google search term thinkable(hoping someone else has had your problem and solved it eventually). But when mastered by an experienced and bruised guru, every move you make is a beautiful stroke with a purposeful purpose.

Python - Remember those blocks with alphabets on them when you were smaller? It's kind of like that but only a little more complicated. Python gives you instant-gratification if you need it. The IDE lets you process one line of code at a time or a whole entire page. This means you can open it and use it like a calculator for a quick few seconds or run a test without the ritual of setting up a template and always including or importing headers. No void main() needed either. Just open the IDE and start punching in numbers to see it working immediately. Ex. typing in "42 + 8" without quotes and hitting enter will give you the solution right away. It's great. NASA runs tests with it(maybe atmospheric pressure calculations?) that are important for mission simulation and number crunching.

Javascript - To be honest, it's best used as a pinch of salt or the sauce of a meal. If used by itself, it's really only for; forms, small widgets, hacking log-in scripts, and doing webpage-related tinkering straight on the browser. Good news is you can type commands in your address bar at the top and hit enter. Lines are ended by ; so a whole script can be pasted into the address bar as one mess. An example of what it could do is take all of the pictures from the current page you're on and make it swirl around like a galaxy of happy images. It is best used as a supplement to PHP, XML and DHTML if html is still relevant to your learning curve. A must-have for server crackers.

PHP - Amazing amazing. Although an internet language, it can do it all. Has its own compiler that you usually don't need to install if you sign up at a webhosting site. If not, XAMP and WAMP are wonderful setups to get you going. It's beautiful for having Global Values. That means it can hold one value from one page's form, and that variable can be used from any other page on the domain so it keeps track of things like a champ. PHP handles your cookies so you can say an awareness for security eventually is needed. It is best friends with MySQL and close to PERL(and other string handling languages). The possibilities and potential of this unix-ish warrior is up to the craftiness of its developing community. PHP has replaced most of html/CSS, making it the new face of the web this day.

VBasic - Nice and easy if you love clicking and dragging to make windows. Must-have if you consider exploring MFC and do WinAPI stuff. An easy alternative to C# and most languages in general. It has its Ups and Downs. Making plus coding entire applications does not take very long but installing it on another PC so others can use your program is a bit tricky. The files they would need are part of the VB SDK but you sure don't want them to go and download that whole thing. So you would need to find dll's with peculiarly irrelevant names to package along with your .exe app. Good practice, probably bad habit. If you want a nicer way to do drag and drop GUI development, learn some C++ and look for Qt4.

Want more?

Download and use Ubuntu for a week to a month. Try to admire it. Figure out how to make folders and basic .txt files using its Terminal. This will make you intimately familiar with any portable language, graphics library, and the way modules link up to make one program.

Become a disassembler to learn the building blocks of data. This is the only way to understand what people mean when they say words like "memory," "pointer," "heap/stack," and speak of a binary file's armor of security. From this you will innately gain the ability to convert between hex, dec, binary and pulses of high bits and low bits.


Have people around who inspire you but don't accept a mentor who isn't comfortable with letting you surpass them by sharing equal information. Open-source is the spirit of meaningful art and science--whichever is more alluring to your computer interests. People take about 6 months to 2 years to explore code until they decide on their reason to move in further. Be ginger with it. The actual learning takes place while you rest in between reading tutorials. Good code definitely glows with attitude so don't go around taking polls from people just as unsure as you lol.

[xiii1408]

Java* or Python is usually the language programmers learn first, although many people don't start with on of them. The best language to start with is the one which you want to start. Look at the language's main uses and decide from there depending on what you want to do.

*Students in Computer Science 101 classes learn Java, as (like IngeniousHax said) it helps the learner become involved in one of the major elements of modern programming, Object-Oriented programming, right from the start.

Edit: Computer Science classes do this because it encourages good programming techniques and habits from the beginning.

I advise Java or C++, but start with whatever you want (some people say C++ is hard, but it's not; C++ was my first language. If I can do it, it can't be that difficult ;-).

Whatever you do, don't deliberate too much. The important thing is to pick a language and get good at it, whether it's BASIC or assembly language.

This post has been edited by xiii1408: 02 June 2009 - 10:34 AM

[quicksilverprince]

A wonderful way to start learning to program would be DrScheme, it comes with a free online reference book How to Design Programs, and has been proven in study's and is beginning use in high schools. Scheme is also very similar to lisp, and an easy way to learn all about different functions and concepts (WONDERFUL with recursions)

[c0mrade]

Poor OP - I think everyone has said something different...

I recommend C (not C++).

But honestly, it doesn't really matter - just get programming!

[Raynes]

The language you start with really doesn't matter. I seriously recommend that you stay away from anything Starting or ending with the word "basic". You'll find out why in the future. I personally recommend starting with C, Python, or Java in that order. Eventually learn other languages like PHP, Haskell, Clojure, and anything else you find appealing. Don't try to go for the "easiest" language you can find, Programming isn't easy, and it shouldn't be easy.

[no2pencil]

Dantheman, on 29 May, 2009 - 07:26 PM, said:

Basic is the perfect language for you. I strongly advise it.

Stay away from C, C++ and Java for now.

My introduction to programming was Batch programming in Dos. After that was QBasic. I gave it up, I wanted something real. Basic is kids stuff. It really detoured me from the desire to learn.

A friend of mine started with Visual Basic, & to this day has not gone much further out.

It's from these experiences that I say it's up to the individual. If they truly have the thirst & the desire, then C/C++ is perfect for them. If they want to learn it, but don't want the head-ache, then Basic is just fine.

[paperclipmuffin]

What ever the hell you do, DON"T START WITH BASIC! As someone or other said, "If you learn basic first, your'e fucked."

[Hiram]

Quite honestly, I think a good starting point is good old Pascal. I learnt the basics, everything I needed to understand computers from a programmer's point of view in Pascal. Then when you're reasonably competent, try moving on to c++ or even Java. I did Pascal for I guess 6 months or so in 2005, probably much less, then did no programming until about 12 months ago.

Now I do C++ and Java at an intermediate level, and I find it's pretty easy to move on to other languages, because you understand the computer science behind it all and what you need from the language.

I would say that nearly all of this came from learning the fundamentals through Pascal though.

[kewlkreator]

Dark_Necros, on 29 May, 2009 - 09:45 AM, said:

I need some help with deciding on which language to start off with. Please, dont advise a hard one, because, like i said, im new. Thanks!

HTML isn't realy a language but it's probably the easiest. If you really want a programming lang. go for VB or VB.NET.

[Raynes]

kewlkreator, on 3 Jun, 2009 - 03:29 PM, said:

Dark_Necros, on 29 May, 2009 - 09:45 AM, said:

I need some help with deciding on which language to start off with. Please, dont advise a hard one, because, like i said, im new. Thanks!

HTML isn't realy a language but it's probably the easiest. If you really want a programming lang. go for VB or VB.NET.

It's HyperText Markup Language. He needs to understand that programming is /not/ easy, nor is it supposed to be easy. Using languages that try to make it easy is just asking for problems. Turing tarpits are no fun!

[xDutchGunn]

kewlkreator, on 3 Jun, 2009 - 03:29 PM, said:

HTML isn't realy a language but it's probably the easiest. If you really want a programming lang. go for VB or VB.NET.

HTML IS a language, also the basics are easy, but like if you try more, it gets harder

Also HTML is a Web Dev language, not a programming one.