Learning Programming

[anto2554]

So, im want to learn to program and id like to ask what programming language would be the best to learn for a beginner. These are my criteria:

-Future proofing, i dont want to learn something nobody will use in a year.

-easy to learn for a beginner (i know programming isnt easy but id prefer it to be one of the easyer).

-id like to make games, but they are ``small`` not something like cod or bf. (perhaps a browser game or a little download one)

-it has to be for PC

i know it takes time, but as i game for hours id prefer to make games myself.

Ty in advance.

 

[carnageX]

Python is pretty easy for beginners from what I've heard.
C++, C#, and Java are probably some of the most common application languages out there.
There's also web languages, HTML, CSS, JavaScript (not the same as Java in any way, shape, or form).

Web languages are probably one of the biggest growing things you can learn (if you want to do this as a career), however it's also beneficial to learn one of the back end languages if you want to develop a site with stuff other than static content, which is where something like C# would come in to process things on server-side. Sidenote: I'm a .NET developer, which is why I focus mainly on C# - it's the one I know the most .

As for making games...most games nowadays are made in an engine, such as Unity, Unreal, which are the 2 biggest engines out there freely available for people to make games with.

In general, just starting out, I'd stick with small Windows or Linux console applications. Doing simple operations such as displaying text, getting input from the user, doing something with that input (whether it's adding numbers, sorting something, etc.), and then outputting something back to the user.

You'll want to decide which platform(s) you want to develop for...from there you can choose your appropriate tool, or IDE (Integrated Development Environment). E.g., if you pick C#, you'd go with Visual Studio. Java, you'd go with something like Eclipse or Intelli J IDEA.

 

[anto2554]

Python is pretty easy for beginners from what I've heard.
C++, C#, and Java are probably some of the most common application languages out there.
There's also web languages, HTML, CSS, JavaScript (not the same as Java in any way, shape, or form).

Web languages are probably one of the biggest growing things you can learn (if you want to do this as a career), however it's also beneficial to learn one of the back end languages if you want to develop a site with stuff other than static content, which is where something like C# would come in to process things on server-side. Sidenote: I'm a .NET developer, which is why I focus mainly on C# - it's the one I know the most .

As for making games...most games nowadays are made in an engine, such as Unity, Unreal, which are the 2 biggest engines out there freely available for people to make games with.

In general, just starting out, I'd stick with small Windows or Linux console applications. Doing simple operations such as displaying text, getting input from the user, doing something with that input (whether it's adding numbers, sorting something, etc.), and then outputting something back to the user.

You'll want to decide which platform(s) you want to develop for...from there you can choose your appropriate tool, or IDE (Integrated Development Environment). E.g., if you pick C#, you'd go with Visual Studio. Java, you'd go with something like Eclipse or Intelli J IDEA.

Im not really doing this as a career as im 12 (yes I know it's early but it can't be much harder then learning 3 normal languages at once ;D)

As for the starting simple I know about that, but I have to find one that I can use for other things then replying when I ask a typed question.

And the engines; what laungages do they take? As it seems true about engines as a good idea.

And thank you for the very long reply instead of just typing: the best

 

[carnageX]

For general use, I prefer C#. But that's because I'm a .NET developer. You may prefer another language for general-use.

If you're really wanting to get into game development, then you still have quite a few choices.

Unity uses many languages, as it's just a set of libraries that you can use. I've seen recommendations for C# for Unity though, so I'd suggest that.
Which programming languages i should learn first to use unity 3d if i want to make a simple games for iphone and ipad? - Unity Answers

Not sure what Unreal Engine uses besides it's own Unreal Script language.

C++ is still huge in development in general however, so you may want to look into learning that or C#.

 

[zaka100]

I recommend python because it was my first language that I learnt when I was 13. I got the basics of it within a week.

 

[iPwn]

Future proofing, i dont want to learn something nobody will use in a year.

I'm not saying they don't exist, but I'm not sure there's a language that ever died... If it was used in production at any point, somebody, somewhere is willing to pay you to do something with it.

COBOL was developed in 1959 and is still used in most financial software.

-easy to learn for a beginner (i know programming isnt easy but id prefer it to be one of the easyer).

-id like to make games, but they are ``small`` not something like cod or bf. (perhaps a browser game or a little download one)

I recommend python because it was my first language that I learnt when I was 13. I got the basics of it within a week.

Great language to learn on as you can get the concept rather quickly. That's really the most important part is understanding the logical operators. Sure, every language will have syntaxical differences in the way the code is written. Main operations like logical loops, decisions, methods, etc is what you need to understand. From there it's just learning the different languages and how they use main operations and what objects they offer to build solutions... Except CSS, that $*** sucks and needs to be uninvented and lost forever.

-it has to be for PC

Any language can be developed and at least emulated on any platform. The language is just a system of representations that are going to be turned into machine language so the CPU knows what to do with it. After you write code, you'll "compile" it against an architecture/platform, what have you, which builds the CPU/OS command set(s).

I've seen recommendations for C# for Unity though, so I'd suggest that.
[...]
C++ is still huge in development in general however, so you may want to look into learning that or C#.

The debate between C# and C++ for gaming can be summed up to memory management.

C++ is typically the preferred gaming code due to your ability to manage memory in so much more detail. Getting a memory leak in a game, and not being able to control/easily debug/modify behavior of it can be frustrating, to say the least.

C# is growing in adaptation with the new Metro platform, so if you're developing for tablets/phones, then C# would probably be your best bet, as you use the silverlight platform.

A great site to get started with many languages is Codecademy.com. Enjoy

 

[carnageX]

I'm not saying they don't exist, but I'm not sure there's a language that ever died... If it was used in production at any point, somebody, somewhere is willing to pay you to do something with it.

COBOL was developed in 1959 and is still used in most financial software.

Yeah but more just maintenance than anything; eventually it'll have to be moved away from, and there isn't really anything "new" being developed in COBOL.

Great language to learn on as you can get the concept rather quickly. That's really the most important part is understanding the logical operators. Sure, every language will have syntaxical differences in the way the code is written. Main operations like logical loops, decisions, methods, etc is what you need to understand. From there it's just learning the different languages and how they use main operations and what objects they offer to build solutions...

This is the most important part. I started out with C/C++, and from there learned C#. Then when I got out of school, I learned more JavaScript, CSS, VB.NET, and a few other little things. It's just a matter of learning the new language's syntax...because logically, they're all pretty much the same.

Except CSS, that $*** sucks and needs to be uninvented and lost forever.
I disagree - CSS is super powerful and can be pretty awesome. I just wish I knew the more advanced stuff.
For example, this iPhone made entirely out of CSS, with a few calls to jQuery:
Imageless iPhone 4
https://codepen.io/fbrz/pen/vlrnd

The debate between C# and C++ for gaming can be summed up to memory management.

C++ is typically the preferred gaming code due to your ability to manage memory in so much more detail. Getting a memory leak in a game, and not being able to control/easily debug/modify behavior of it can be frustrating, to say the least.

C# is growing in adaptation with the new Metro platform, so if you're developing for tablets/phones, then C# would probably be your best bet, as you use the silverlight platform.

Developing a game purely in C++ or C# isn't what I was talking about though . The engine is written in C++ most of the time (in this case, true for Unity and Unreal). They however provide API's / wrappers which make it available for somebody to code in something like C#, where memory management isn't as controlled as in C++. But the engine has the calls exposed via the API to do all the necessary memory management.

Yes, doing a game in vanilla C# is bad since it doesn't run close to the hardware like C++, since it's on top of .NET Framework. But using an engine with applicable API's allows you to code in whatever language you're comfortable in...and like I said in my earlier post, I was providing C# as an example as that's what I'm most comfortable in .

 

[setishock]

So would all of you agree that choosing a language is akin to using a certain part in your computer? You find what is best suited for the job and use that. Close or no cigar?

 

[iPwn]

because logically, they're all pretty much the same.

Cha-ching! loop and decide boys, loop and decide.

I disagree - CSS is super powerful [...]

I disagree with your disagreeing with my disagreement. It was just a joke anyway there joker. I don't like CSS because I clearly don't understand it and I'm not a web guy.... and for some reason I'm working on a web project at work... when we have a web team.... and I'm a database guy.... and they have a whole team..... and don't document anything.....


yea... just a rant

So would all of you agree that choosing a language is akin to using a certain part in your computer? You find what is best suited for the job and use that. Close or no cigar?

I would say that's accurate enough. Any language can pretty much do any task, it's just that there are certain languages that handle operations better than others. COBOL is used in financial software (and yes, even new financial software) because it handles math operations much more accurately and easily than any other language... and I use 'easily' loosely there. Could you develop a game in it? Sure, why not? You will just have to go through a lot more to produce the same thing you could have done much more easily in a different language.

 

[carnageX]

So would all of you agree that choosing a language is akin to using a certain part in your computer? You find what is best suited for the job and use that. Close or no cigar?

Eh...yes and no. More like choosing the right tool for the right job.

You wouldn't (or shouldn't) use a wrench to pound in nails into a 2x4, right? Learning multiple languages (and learning them certain features/aspects of those languages), gives you more tools, so that you can use the right tool for the right job.

I disagree with your disagreeing with my disagreement. It was just a joke anyway there joker. I don't like CSS because I clearly don't understand it and I'm not a web guy.... and for some reason I'm working on a web project at work... when we have a web team.... and I'm a database guy.... and they have a whole team..... and don't document anything.....

Fair enough

I used to feel the same with JavaScript...and I'm working on a project at work that's SUPER heavy in JavaScript (jQuery/AngularJS with calls to web API services written in C#)...and now I don't mind JS as much as I did before. [/QUOTE]