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Geekpedia » General Tutorials » How to start programming

How to start programming

A guide for those who want to learn programming but don't know where to start. It guides you through selecting the right programming languages at the right time.

On Sunday, July 24th 2005 at 04:50 PM

By Andrew Pociu (View Profile)

(Rated 4.4 with 34 votes)

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This guide is for you if...

This guide is for you if you consider that developing software applications might be interesting, but you don't have a clue about how to program. Most of the people who want to learn programming and have no prior experience at all, find themselves in the situation where they don't know where to start.

Of course, I suppose you have at least one year experience on using computer applications and you are completely accommodated with using an operating system like Microsoft Windows XP. If you don't yet know how to format a hard drive, install an operating system, configure it, partition a hard drive... I'm afraid programming is not for you yet.

This guide is not for you if...

This guide is not for you, and in fact programming is not for you, if you want to become a programmer just because it is a well-paid job. Software development is not the kind of thing you learn overnight. To get a well-paid job you need a nice résumé plus years of experience. That's why there is no one month course on how to program. Programming is more like mathematics where you need to exercise continuously. Don't be scared, even if the high school's mathematics left you with a trauma, you still can be a good programmer without any vast knowledge of mathematics.

Who am I?

I ask myself this question all the time. Even if I would love to say that I'm a programmer with over 20 years experience, I'm not. In fact a few years ago I was in the same position you are now - in front of the computer... not knowing where to start. As a side note, if this sounds to you like one of those 'Learn how I lost 20 pounds in a week' guide, it's not. I don't have a 'before' and 'after' photo of me.

Concerning my programming experience - look at the good part - maybe it's better to get advice from someone who was recently in your position than from someone who started to learn programming 20 years ago.

Some programmers reading this may not agree with my guide. They might say something like: it's better to start programming with Java and then continue with C++. However, each person has a different opinion, you can't satisfy all.

Enough about me.

Am I too old / young to learn programming?

Are you too old?

Well, it depends... not so much on the age but on your ex-profession. I believe that if you are asking yourself this question you are over 25. If you are... let's say... a 30-year-old sales manager with a degree in marketing and a nice salary. In this case, at this age and with no prior experience in software development, I don't quite see you as a lead programmer at a software company. Of course, it all depends on your will and power of learning at that age. Don't quit your job, because you won't get a good job without continuously programming for at least 2 or 3 years. The best way to see if you can still learn and programming is for you is to follow step 1 and 2 of this guide. It won't cost anything, just a little time spent for learning something new.

Are you too young?

You're never too young in my opinion. Start programming while you're in the elementary school and chances are you're going to become a highly skilled programmer. Sixteen is also a good age to start learning.

What's the cost of all this?

Programmers and other geeks are known to have less interest in their social life. It's not all true, we have a social life, only it's mainly based on the internet. As a side note, I'll mention here that you need a permanent internet connection at the computer you are learning. You will permanently ask questions - how to do this, how to do that, why is that so, why is my code not compiling - and the only place you'll get some good fast answers is on the online community of programmers.

The main cost of learning to program is time. Fortunately this isn't wasted time - time spent for learning something new is never wasted. If you wanted to become a good programmer in a couple of years you'll have to spend at least 6 hours a day, not necessarily programming without any break (unless you're not human) but also spending time on some programming forums, newsgroups where you can gain experience.

I think I'm ready, shall we go for it?

Certainly yes.

From now on this guide will tell where to start and how to move forward. There will be programming languages, book and tutorial recommendations for each step.

Step 1 - Learning HTML - not quite a programming language

You saw thousands of websites until now, but you didn't bother to find out how their done. Dynamical websites are created using programming languages like ASP .NET, PHP or JSP. No matter in which language they are written, they all end up being HTML pages. I'm not going to explain why and how because you'll learn later when you're going to have to learn one of these languages.

HTML is not really a programming language - it's a mark-up language. You are probably thinking now - I want to program, not to... mark-up, why do I have to learn HTML? Moreover I don't even want to make websites, I'm interested in software applications.

There are many reasons why you need to learn HTML first. One of them is that easier programming languages are usually designed for web programming. So before you move to a programming language like C#, Java or C++ you have to experience some easier language s like JavaScript. Remember that these programming languages and HTML work together, so you need to learn HTML. Another reason I can think of is that you'll eventually use XML, which is another mark-up language, and it will be easier for you to learn XML (another mark-up language) because you already know the basic concept.

In conclusion, first learn HTML. HTML is really easy to learn and in a few days you should be able to make some simple web pages. However remember, the programming languages you are going to learn - they are nothing like HTML, because (I repeat), this is a mark-up language.

Also before recommending you any book or online tutorial I should tell you that there is also something called CSS, which you'll often hear about. Almost any HTML book will also cover CSS - I'm not going to describe you what it is, I'm just going to tell you that it's good to know CSS as it's very easy to learn and you'll surely need it if you want to make some nice looking websites.

One more thing: XHTML is almost the same as HTML, actually, it's a newer, stricter version of HTML. There's no big difference, if you learn HTML then it won't take you more than half hour to understand XHTML.

Recommended book:

This book is perfect for the total beginner who has never written one line of HTML. Even if it has 480 pages, don't let this scare you, in a week you'll be creating some nice web pages. It also teaches you CSS, so after reading the entire book you'll have some good design skills, which are always important even if you don't plan in creating websites in your programming career. Because you never know when you may need it... to create a website for your company or for your portfolio... or perhaps just for fun.

It won't take you too long to finish this book as it is a very pleasant lecture, and you'll probably be so excited about the web pages you will create that it won't take long until you reach the last page.

In this book you will also get a grip of JavaScript. Actually our next step implies JavaScript as a language to learn so don't skip chapter 19.

Recommended links:

If you are really cheap you can learn HTML on the web. There are plenty of tutorials to choose from. Here are a few selected by me:

HTMLGoodies.com - Check out the HTML primer, it will put you up on writing HTML immediately.

W3Schools.com - Along with many other tutorials they have a well formed HTML tutorial and a nice CSS tutorial which are both useful also as a reference.

Recommended communities:

These are places where you can discuss HTML and ask questions:

Experts-Exchange.com - Experts Exchange is the place where you can ask questions and expect an answer in the next few minutes. Highly recommended.

HTMLForums.com - Here is a very active forum that discusses different HTML subjects and compatibility between browsers.

Step 2 - Learning JavaScript - a scripting language

Most programming languages, even if they differ in syntax they have a similar concept. For example in almost any programming language you'll encounter variables and loops.

Perhaps you'll get your first job as a programmer in C++ or maybe Java. No matter in which you end up programming at last, you don't usually want to start with that language because it's usually more complex than a simpler language like JavaScript.

You don't have to learn JavaScript by heart, you don't have to be an expert in programming JavaScript. JavaScript is, if you don't know already, a scripting language. You can consider scripting languages as a lite version of a programming language.

It's easier, less complex, therefore it's very good to teach you to the basic concepts and give you an idea of how a programming language is like. For example, the variables, arrays, operators and loops in JavaScript are very similar to the ones in C++, Java, PHP, C# and almost any other programming languages. Sure, the syntax may be different and they may have a slightly different behavior, but the concept of a variable, array or loop is the same.

So when you're going to learn the loops in PHP (in the next step) it won't take you more than 5 minutes. It's like driving a car. You learned how to drive on a SAAB and now you're moving on to a Cadillac Escalade. You'll get accommodated fast because you already know what's important: how to drive.

JavaScript works a lot with HTML, because JavaScript is designed for web pages. It brings a little dynamism to your page and improves the interaction with the web page user. I'm sure you'll like JavaScript mostly because it's your first programming language and you'll discover a brand new concept.

Before recommending any learning material, I should tell you what's the deal with object-oriented programming. Object-oriented programming is a recent concept of programming based on objects. There are books with hundreds of pages that describe object-oriented programming so I'm not going to explain it in a paragraph. I'm only going to tell you that you'll have to learn it. Except from the old programming languages, most languages have object-oriented capabilities including JavaScript.

Almost any recent JavaScript book also teaches you how to program object-oriented. It's your decision if you want to skip that chapter and learn object-oriented programming with some other language like PHP or C#. Eventually you'll have to understand the base concept of object orientation.

Perhaps you'll end up being a programmer in some .NET Framework language like C# or Visual Basic .NET which is fully object oriented... so there's no way out. Even if you'll go the C++ or Java way... no one will hire a programmer that has no object-oriented programming skills.

Recommended book:

There are many good books that will teach you JavaScript, yet I selected this one because I think it's the very suitable for the non-programmer, great to teach you JavaScript as your first programming language.

It will teach you variables, arrays, functions, operators, loops, event handlers, objects... these are common to many programming languages as I said earlier, so learn them good.

If you find out you like JavaScript and designing websites, you can also read chapter 16 of this book (An introduction to Advanced Techniques), where you'll improve you JavaScript skills. It will teach you Regular Expressions which you'll encounter later in other programming languages.

Recommended links:

Although you'll get the best results from the JavaScript book, here are a few links to some JavaScript tutorials on the web:

HotScripts.com - HotScripts is a major resource of tutorials and scripts for different scripting and programming languages. It also has scripts and tutorials for JavaScript and I recommend you to try some of these scripts, see how they are done and try to do similar stuff yourself.

W3Schools.com - This famous website has a JavaScript tutorial that is also useful as a reference.

Geekpedia.com - How can I not recommend the website I have created. Geekpedia has a JavaScript section with a few tutorials including some introductory tutorials I made a while ago.

HTMLGoodies.com - Along with the HTML primers, this website also has a JavaScript primer that you should consider.

Recommended communities:

These are some places where you can discuss JavaScript and ask questions:

Experts-Exchange.com - Experts Exchange also has a JavaScript section.

ProgrammingTalk.com - A nice community of developers with a JavaScript section where you can get answers to your questions.

CodingForums.com - Great forums for web developers.

Geekpedia Forums - You are always welcome to our forums at Geekpedia.com.

Step 3 - PHP & MySQL - thousands of lines of code

You may fall in love with this duet. PHP and MySQL makes a very nice couple with which you can create interactive websites like Geekpedia.com. Many scripts like vBulletin, phpBB, phpNuke are written in PHP and use a MySQL database.

While you learn to program PHP and to handle a MySQL database, you may decide to go for developing websites and other web applications. It's your decision, the next step (step 4) is the last one, and there I'll show you how to go for both ways, the web applications way or the windows applications way. So beware, PHP can be rather addictive.

You learned JavaScript, which is a client-side language, now you learn PHP, which is a server-side language, therefore you'll see some major differences.

While you learn PHP you will get deeper in programming therefore you'll develop new skills and experience. MySQL will be your first contact with a relational database, and no matter if you'll end up doing web or windows applications, you'll often encounter databases. In addition, it's a good introduction to Structured Query Language.

If you really like to program you will make some websites, perhaps some forum scripts or content management systems powered by PHP and MySQL. I encourage you to do that, a good programmer is a programmer with experience.

Recommended books:

It's not very efficient to learn PHP and MySQL from two different books, as they work hand in hand. That's why there are some books that teach you both PHP and MySQL. These two for example.

I learned PHP and MySQL from the book on the right (at that time it was the first edition). Very good, complete book.

The book on the right is also one of my recommendations. I had the chance to read from it recently and I think it's also a good book for the total PHP & MySQL beginner.

Both books have practical examples (my favorite way of learning) so you'll write some thousands of lines of PHP code.

Recommended links:

There are lots, lots (!) of tutorials and scripts for PHP & MySQL on the web. Here are just a few:

HotScripts.com - HotScripts is a major resource of tutorials and scripts for different scripting and programming languages. The PHP category is well organized and it contains tens of thousands of scripts and programs.

PHP.net - You will often find yourself coming to this website, as it's the official website of the language. A great reference.

PHPBuilder.com - A community of PHP programmers with PHP articles and a rich code library.

DevShed.com - DevShed offers you professional articles on web development subjects and of course PHP and MySQL.

Recommended communities:

These are some places where you can discuss PHP and MySQL and ask questions:

Experts-Exchange.com - You'll get some professional answers to your questions here.

ProgrammingTalk.com - ProgrammingTalk.com has an active forum named PHP & MySQL that you can join.

DevShed Forums - DevShed also has a big forum where you can get answers to your questions or discuss PHP & MySQL development.

Geekpedia Forums - You are always welcome to our forums at Geekpedia.com to ask your PHP questions.

Step 4 - Choose your final programming language

This is the last step. This is where you choose what kind of programmer you want to become.

Mainly there are two options - web applications Windows applications. That is: you either make websites, web services and work with technologies like SOAP, or you make software applications (perhaps for the Windows operating systems). Of course you can always do both. Actually in the communication era, it's good to know a bit of web programming even if you're planning on making offline software applications, so you'll get the chance to work with web applications a bit.

In this final step, you can choose from programming languages like C# (C Sharp), Visual Basic .NET, Java or C++. Personally I recommend you to go with the .NET platform (C#, Visual Basic .NET), but instead you might like Java. It's a matter of taste. Don't go with programming languages like Visual Basic (the old one, not .NET) as they are obsolete.

If you go with the .NET platform, you can learn both the main languages: C# and Visual Basic .NET as they are similar because they are part of the same platform. Also, if you choose the .NET platform you can choose from Web Applications and Windows Applications, or both (as I said earlier). If you choose Web Applications you will be more interested in Web Services and ASP .NET.

Java is similar to C#. You can try it, maybe you'll like it more. Also, you can try J#, Microsoft's version of Java.

In conclusion, at this step check the characteristics of the .NET programming languages and compare them to Java or C++. Programming languages don't quite conform with "one size fits all", so you'll probably love a language and dislike another.

Learning one of these languages isn't enough, you also need to learn technologies like XML. Also you'll need to know how to work with databases like SQL.

Before I move further I should tell you that I'm going for .NET, and because I have more C# knowledge than Visual Basic .NET or some any other language, I can only recommend you books on C#.

Recommended books on C#:

Some books will only teach you C# and some will only teach you Visual Basic .NET but many books will show you examples on both languages, and if you're really ambitious you can learn both at the same time.

As I suppose this is are the languages in which you're going to program for a long time from now, a book is not enough to teach you anything you need to know. You'll need many books and lots of time spent developing.

First, you'll need a book that will give you a taste of .NET. For this I'm recommending you the book on the left - C# How to program. Don't let the 1500 pages scare you. It's a beautiful book that teaches you C# by using real-life examples.

Along with it, the book from O'Reilly named 'Programming C#' is pretty good for learning C# and great as a reference.

If you are going for windows applications development here are two books I recommend. At the left side we have Windows Forms Programming with C#. The author of this book did a great job on teaching how to develop windows applications. It has a 'photo album' application that you develop while learning. At the right side, there is a well-known book by Charles Petzold. A bit similar with the book we discussed earlier, but paying more attention on GDI+ (a feature of .NET).

If you are looking to develop Web Application with C# I can recommend you the book on the left - Developing Web Applications with ASP .NET and C#. This well-written book will get you on coding C# for the web.

Further, you'll want something more advanced. I got the perfect book for you.

It's called Essential ASP .NET with examples in C#. A concise book that covers data binding and technologies like HTTP Pipelining.

After reading this and some other books on C# I believe you are getting ready for the MCAD exam. MCAD is a certification from Microsoft for .NET programmers. Here is more information on MCAD.

Preparing for the MCAD certification:

Microsoft recommends some books for preparing for the MCAD certification on its MCAD Requirements and Training Resources page.

In addition, I also recommend some books by Amit Kalani that will prepare you nicely for the exams.

At the left side we have the book entitled MCAD Training Guide 70-316: Developing and Implementing Windows-based Applications with C# and Visual Studio.NET, the training guide for the C# Windows Applications MCAD exam (70-316).

At the right, although it may seem to be the same book, is another book by Amit Kalani but for the 70-315 exam (MCAD/MCSD Training Guide (70-315): Developing and Implementing Web Applications with Visual C# and Visual Studio.NET).

Finally

Along with all the books I recommended at step 4 you will have to read more. Even the MCAD certification implies an XML Web Services exam, so you'll have to read some XML books and then get accommodated with Web Services. If you are curious to see some examples of web services, there are some tutorials at Geekpedia. One shows you how to use the Google Web Service and another how to use a Geo IP web service.

Good luck with your career!

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Current Comments

by Zeb on Tuesday, July 18th 2006 at 07:44 PM

I am 16 years old and thinking about a career in computer programming. I have always had an interest in it, but it wasn't until now that the interest has really been sparked. This tutorial has been a tremendous help. I have mostly been self-taught so I wasn't quite sure where to start until I read this tutorial. Thank you for all the book recommendations! They were excellent.

Thank you again!
Zeb

by Ralph on Sunday, October 22nd 2006 at 02:11 PM

Iam 32 yrs old and worked as a software support and implmentation. I am keen in being a good programmer please suggest how to go about and what should learn to be in par with the market.

by Suudsu2200 on Tuesday, March 6th 2007 at 08:21 PM

WOW! I search the world wide web aimlessly for programing things to do and learn because hell, its fun. This was a tremendous help. I\'ve always liked these types of things but this article organized it into one, easy to do location. Thanks alot, and keep writing.

by Younis on Saturday, June 30th 2007 at 06:34 AM

umm im 12 lmfao but im reaaaaally keen to learn programming so am i too young as u said that 16 is ok then yes i am young i reallly want to learn programming pls
Younis_212@hotmail.com

by Jonas on Wednesday, August 29th 2007 at 11:07 PM

Hi. I am Jonas. I am 25 and working in a callcenter.

It is true that I wish to learn about programming because it is a better paying job. Also, since I am dealing with computers in almost 3/4 of my daily routine (work related= 8-9 hrs every day, fun related-plays warcraft at least 3 hrs minimum daily)

My issue is, my computer knowledge is limited. I think I can learn how to format a hard drive, install an OS, and a few other things.

Can you give me a little tip? Where do you think should I start?

Thank you.

by Moritz Zimmer on Monday, September 10th 2007 at 07:36 AM

Thanks a lot for this articel!

I write code for over 20 years and would like to teach a beginner. But even though I know all the things that good (or maybe because I know them that well) I was so unsure where to start. And you\'re absolutely right: HTMl and CSS is the beset starting point, because you have quick results.

I just don\'t agree with you in one point: Scripting Languages are not \"lite versions of programming languages\" as many people say. Although I also know a lot of \"pro versions of programming languages\" I now script for even a longer time. Not because I am lazy, but because its a question of professionally but a question of the problems you have to solve. And since 2005 time showed, that a lot of problems you stumble on as a coder, can be solved quicker and easier with scripting languages than with dinosaurs like Java or C#.

Thanks a lot.
Moritz

by Pete on Monday, November 26th 2007 at 07:58 PM

Hi. I've been scouring the net for week after week to find a good step-by-step account of what to do to begin programming and until now hadn't found anything of any help. Great pointers, and I look forward to seeing what else you have in store for us new 'uns! A month ago I didn't know what a server was (yes...seriously) so I went truffling around the undergrowth of the web to gather information on what it will take to get myself into programming, yesterday I got myself a laptop (my boss wasn't keen on me poking around in his computer) partitioned my hard drive and installed a secondary O.S - no names mentioned - and a very basic programming and HTML tutorial. I'm a chef by trade, and 27 years old, if I were to give any advice on this matter i'll say, it's not how old you are, or how intelligent you are, it's like anything else in life, if you really want to do it just go ahead and do it. I figured out myself that it's going to be real hard work, but it's also real rewarding! I haven't even began to scratch the programming surface, but what I have done, and the work i've put in to find out the very basic issues and guidelines has been quite a challenge. It's nice to know after a few years hard work i'll have forgotten more than most people know ;) Keep it up. It'll pay off in the end

by Osamah on Sunday, January 27th 2008 at 05:21 PM

This osamah, I can tell every body who want to have an intersting job exactly in web design or proggraming any other applications to choose this book because they are useful and I did'nt say that to market them. So, when you are learing that books don't try to skip the beginning of that books because they are the base...
That is osamah's comment only.
With my greeiting..

by Melvyn McCambridge on Wednesday, February 20th 2008 at 06:07 PM

Thank you for at last showing me the route and method I should start on to become a programmer - I was truly perplexed as to what should be studied first and then what next etc.

Again very many thanks

Melvyn

by Stanley Agbonifo on Thursday, April 10th 2008 at 07:09 AM

Thanks for the guide, i\'ve always wanted to be a programmer to be able to understand how programming stuff can be made possible even if i have to bring in some people to help out on it.\\

I have experience in hardware and operating systems for 5 years now and a little of html.

Thanks a lot for the advice.
Anyone have free tutorial books? digitalchange_ng@yahoo.com

by fariba on Sunday, June 29th 2008 at 01:14 PM

thanks a lot for your recommendations, I will start as soon as I buy HTML book!

by Nokards on Wednesday, July 2nd 2008 at 02:45 PM

why so complicated, isn't it all right if I learn only html and c ?

by Nokards on Wednesday, July 2nd 2008 at 05:22 PM

why so complicated, isn't it all right if I learn only html and c ?

by Nokards on Thursday, July 3rd 2008 at 07:16 AM

why so complicated, isn't it all right if I learn only html and c ?

by farren on Monday, September 15th 2008 at 10:59 AM

What if i started with C# i mean would that be trying to learn running without having learnt walking? Or do the preliminaries (html etc) help get a feel for programming and build confidence?

Thanks

by Jenny on Saturday, December 6th 2008 at 03:59 AM

Thanks for this great tuturial. I am writing code for more than 20 years now and for the future I will just pass this link when people ask me how and if to start programming. Maybe one aspect could be added that is often not seen by people starting software development: like with driving you have to know the theory (the general traffic rules) AND how to operate your equipment (car, truck or motorcycle). Most people think that when they are able to operate a car they can drive. Well - if you don't know the traffic regulations and how to read a map you will never arrive anywhere. On the other hand: if you know traffic rules and how to ride a motorcycle then learning to operate a car is just a matter of hours. Applied to computers that means:
Learn problem solving (!) using any easy to understand programming language (any object oriented programming language will do). The challenge is NOT the syntax of the programming language. The challenge is to reduce a complex problem into smaller chunks that can be soved with a programming language.
The problem-solving aspect is in most cases not covered in the programming-language books. It's like trying to learn to drive by reading the operating manual of your car....
I would recommend in addition to simply learn a programming language to attend a introductory course in your high school or college.

by Mido on Sunday, December 7th 2008 at 05:18 PM

This is a great article. I have aleardy started learning HTML before reading your geeky article. I am sure that I would stuck after learning it, but you paved the road for me man. Thanks!

by Stas on Saturday, February 7th 2009 at 07:41 AM

hmm.. that's why i got stuck in java ^_^

i tried hard but didn't understand lots of stuff!
maybe i really should start with HTML>Javascript.

thanks for this great article!

by marble host on Monday, March 9th 2009 at 06:14 AM

Hmmm… This will be interesting to see in the future. But, I think “U comment I follow” is just a move to release the old-still-attached “rel=nofollow” from the comment page.

I think google won’t counter attack it seriously…
<a href="http://www.marblehost.com">Marble Host</a>

by marble host on Monday, March 9th 2009 at 06:15 AM

by Nokards on Saturday, March 14th 2009 at 09:54 AM

Start with Game Maker Language, then Html after that css maybe, php or c . At the first you need to understand the way how the programming works.

by Binsish on Friday, March 20th 2009 at 09:17 PM

Hi
I've programming experience about 1-yr in vb6.0 nut now i change my job and now they ask me to do microcontroller progamming and emded software programming so i'm confused that i start ehich language for the said things.

Hope a poistive reponse from you people through mail

by Vadim on Sunday, April 12th 2009 at 07:07 AM

I am start programming at 12 years old

by VladimirII on Friday, April 24th 2009 at 07:43 AM

Great advices. I am 34, and I work as a field salesman. I use database that I developed in Access, to store and manage my customers and prospects. I tried to find out how to develop my software and offer it to people with similar needs. Here, you gave me some good tips what to start with.

by Tijjani on Saturday, April 25th 2009 at 04:52 AM

i am 35yrs and i have a little knowlegde of computer and i have the interest to be a programmer because i always read articles about programming.
Please advice me on the 1st stage.

Tijjani

by Tijjani on Saturday, April 25th 2009 at 04:52 AM

i am 35yrs and i have a little knowlegde of computer and i have the interest to be a programmer because i always read articles about programming.
Please advice me on the 1st stage.

Tijjani

by Steve on Thursday, May 21st 2009 at 05:39 PM

Im 17 and ill, and have an A-level math exam tomorrow which i know nothing about and have not revised for, im sat here watching Numbers (an obvious tinder for this camp fire) and im wondering i have written 700 line codes in a game called garry's mod, which do a great number of things and managed to program a game during my first year in computing stuides at college, i dont know how i did this but found whilst doing it time stopped for me and when complete i was never satisfied, i always found ways to optomise etc. None of this amounts to the complexity of even the most basic java programs but i was wondeirng if any of this at all helps my programming abilities ??

I mean within the garrys mod i have developed path fidning alogorithms, massive data storages and then had to create an effective means by which to search these, is any of this useful.

I know im going to fail tomorrow, i dont particulary care because i understand the theory behind what is going on with the math, i just can't be bothered to do all the work it seems pointless, dont try to sway me on this im open to suggestion, but soundkiller777 (my online persona) is not as flexable.

Anyways, apologies to cause ripples, i just needed to post something, that way when im working in the local co-op i can look back and think, hey .. maybe if i wasn't ill and wasn't addicted to gaming i could have been a programmer, this however would mean violating the tennants of gaming and thus forcing me to renounce my gamer status, perhapas becoming something more than a gamer, maybe. An artist is a title which one can assume if he shapes wood into ascetically pleasing shapes, however this is also the name given to those who put pen to 0's and 1's producing works that refine the very people who read them.

Again apologies, very much so, ill be going to bed now, perhaps in the morning i'll feel better. Yeah, i probz will, yay, im happy now. Good Night.

by Steve - again on Friday, May 22nd 2009 at 05:53 AM

I like posting.

Exam done, felt it went well, nice to see myself as a magical panda above.

YAY

by Paul on Thursday, May 28th 2009 at 09:00 AM

You tutorials are so nice just that i have just got them now but am really happy that at least now i can learn binary and computer programming. please advise i want to learn subnetting and networking what can i do thanks

by Paul on Thursday, May 28th 2009 at 09:00 AM

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by jj on Sunday, June 21st 2009 at 07:48 AM

iiiiii

by Thomas on Friday, August 14th 2009 at 01:42 PM

Great tutorial! but I am also curious... Can you learn c before code?

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by film izle on Sunday, November 29th 2009 at 04:45 PM

I was looking for something like this. Thanks!

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by Steve on Sunday, November 29th 2009 at 07:58 PM

Whooot. Like a few months down the line and im back. Im at uni studying computer games design and programming <3.

From the ashes can rise something far greater than the sum of its parts.

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by olivier on Tuesday, December 22nd 2009 at 05:14 AM

thanks for all the information. very helpful. i don't know if i want to become a professional programmer but i would like to understand how programming works...

by Ben on Tuesday, January 26th 2010 at 08:50 AM

A lead programmer once talked me out of persuing it as a career. She said, working in a big company, programming means making imperceptable changes to arcane lines of code that some ex-employee wrote 2 years before you started. I've also known more programmers to jump into sales and marketing than vice versa. Programming can be an enjoyable creative outlet, but make sure corporate programming is really something you want to do before you make it a career choice.

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by kamal on Saturday, March 20th 2010 at 07:39 AM

Hi , This is kamal deep joshi from india , Delhi

This is not any type of argument that you can't learn coding (in c , c or many , many others).
Rather , it is a intrest of the brain that in which unit you are intrested in program .
Althogh , i'm a programmer of c , c , perl , Basic , Qbasic , Visual basic , Java , Javascript , ActionScript , Python , C# , VBScript , Visual basic.Net , Visual c eXpress Edition , and many , many others . and i'm of only 12 years old and i just wanna to become a System programmer , Hacker , System Developer , Desktop Application Programmer , Operating Systems Developer etc.
If i can do this then you can too .

For any responses , Questions , or just for any Feedback

Please freely E-mail me @:-

kamal_123_joshi@yahoo.com

by kamal on Saturday, March 20th 2010 at 07:39 AM

by esnake on Wednesday, April 21st 2010 at 12:30 AM

why this tutorial didn't mentions Unix/Linux programming and some low-level stuff, like network/device driver?

by Doru on Wednesday, April 21st 2010 at 04:55 PM

thx 4 your time. At last i find a good tutorial. Many thx

by wat on Friday, May 21st 2010 at 07:16 PM

im 12 and wat iz this

by Arman on Wednesday, June 9th 2010 at 07:32 AM

I have almost three months experience in programming using C , and I didn't expect that it will going to be hard.

C is the one that I learned first before anything else(except html), but until now, its hard for me to write many programs and what I only understand is the basics. I can't even understand arrays and many other functions while complexity comes to my mind every time a new concept came in.

For those who are just beginning, I highly suggest start first to learn low level language --- Its just like learning to drive a 1970's car then switch to learn a more advance vehicle with some high-tech gadgets.

by Arman on Wednesday, June 9th 2010 at 07:32 AM

by Arman on Thursday, June 10th 2010 at 06:39 AM

Hey, wait..I mean 3 weeks and C plusplus not C.Dont know why plus doesn't appear.

by Kyle on Sunday, August 1st 2010 at 08:38 PM

I'm 14 and I have actually been programming for a few years now, and I was rather disdained to see .NET being advertised rather rigorously with very little attention actually being payed to C, C and Java along with the multitude of interpreted scripting languages. Truth is, the moment you start using a .NET based language you immediately place yourself in a position that disregards *NIX based operating systems and even though Mono does exist to ease this it is always going to be behind the .NET's CLI in general and is not nearly as stable.

Instead, if you are planning on developing for a variety of different platforms I personally recommend learning Java and a scripting language to pair with it, and if you are willing to delve into lower level languages and native code add C and C to your arsenal. The CLI is good generally for Windows programming and its form designer is a damn useful tool for beginners but it is limited and shouldn't be singular in the programmers arsenal for the platform flexibility it lacks.

And for scripting languages I would recommend learning a more flexible scripting language to aid or disregard PHP duly to the fact that it is rarely used for desktop programming/scripting and is surpassed by other languages like Perl, Python and Ruby at this precise thing. All three scripting languages mentioned are very easy to learn, and each have a very understandable syntax (albeit Perl is a little less clear than the others) and they should always be looked at and at least one learned to a good standard.

by Rebecca on Thursday, August 5th 2010 at 02:50 PM

I'm 28 and getting ready to go for my MBA in fall 2011. I would like to push toward a focus in IT, leaning toward a career in Database Management.. but really want to get a grounded understanding of programming in several arenas in the year before I go.. and in the two years while I'm there.

I have been using a Mac for years.. and I will need to purchase a PC to begin my programming studies.. but I have no idea what the system requirements are. What specs are needed for a PC that can handle training in multiple languages (specifically the ones mentioned in your article)? I don't want to spend exorbitantly.. but I also don't want a machine that drags or that I am continuously having to fight with.

Any information is greatly appreciated!
Thanks!

by VanDuyBao on Friday, August 13th 2010 at 07:06 AM

I am 11 years old and i'm from Vietnam!I wonder if i could be computer pogrammer at my age!I know HTML PHP and Actionscript already but do you guys know how to create a program like paint or something thanks alot!!

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