Which is best for me?

[Rezek]

Which programming language do you think is best for somebody who already knows HTML, PHP & mySQL, TI-BASIC, and z80 Assembly?

For my b-day my parents got me this laptop and 'C++ Programming for Dummies'. It came with the 'Dev-C++ Compiler', so I tackled C++. The result?

...

I can NOT do OOP. I just don't comprehend it. Give me speghetty code (spelled right :biggrin:?) anyday, but leave your poly-morphism at the door !

So I wanted your opinions. Which should I tackle? I'm looking for a language that is preferably free, relatively easy to learn (or middle), and can make a win32 executable fairly easily... should be able to do graphics ok as well, and lets see, that's about it... oh yes, I would prefer if it could do stand-alone executables (i.e compiled, but not neccessarily, like python, which is interpreted but can be compiled) ... and should be able to handle file input and output pretty well, and should not use character arrays, but strings. but that is a VERY light consideration. Basicly php jk.

So what do you reccomend? If you REALLY think I should throw myself at OOP, say so. It's just a matter of bashing it into my head ...


ps i'm only 14


Possibilites:
C (??)
C++ (OOP!)
Java (OOP!)
Delphi (??)
Visual Basic ($$)
Python (??)
BrainFuck*
x86 (I picked up z80 pretty well... but that is TI-BCALL z80 )
Something else? Tell me!

OOP = bad...
?? = I have no clue about this langauge
$$ = It costs money for a compiler / interpreter!

*just kdding!

[Arcane Wizard]

Try to tackle C(++) or Java anyway, it will pay off.

But if the OOP concepts are bugging you, try learning the OOP ways of PHP(5), since you already know PHP that should be much easyer.

Once you feel comfrtable with that kind of stuff, just go C or Java. (I prefer Java)

[DarkerLine]

Or you could learn C first, then move on to C++ if you feel you're ready for OOP.

[Rezek]

wow, thanks for the quick replys.

is C OOP btw?

[Arcane Wizard]

Somewhat, not fully compliant with modern OOP standards, that's about as specific as I can get since I never bothered to learn C, only C++.

[Rezek]

well I'm currently leaning (unwillingly !) upon bashing my head with C++. I'll wait another 5 - 7 days to see other members response...

[DarkerLine]

I think that you should learn C before C++, classes just make things confusing at first.

[JoeImp]

You learned all those languages and you can't sit down for a while and learn something new? It's really not that difficult, and is something really nice to learn, will help you out everywhere. Seriously, it's not that difficult, get to work! :P

[EDIT] - Wow, I'm member #9, didn't realise that.

[Rezek]

The point is not that I can't learn something new, it's that I want to know WHAT to learn before I start learning. A programmer once told me "It's better to be a master at 1 thing then be a jack of all trades and a master of nuthin'"... and I wanted to know what else was good other than OOP, which in my week of trying I couldn't grasp.

[JoeImp]

Well, I'd say jump right into C++, get it down cold, it really is one of the most usefull languages out there. You could start with C first, I suppose, but like Arcane Wizard, I never bothered, and just went for C++. That's my suggestion, C++ all the way.

[Arcane Wizard]

Just don't delve right into polymorphism or class inheritance, start with getting a good feel for how a console program looks, how to use functions (PHP uses practically the same way of declaring/calling functions as C so that should be a blast, C just needs you to declare the variable/return types as well) and do some little text game's like guess-the-numbar.

Then get at home with manipulating variables, how to use arrays, lists, and finally pointers. Maybe do some file i/o in between or afterwards, extend your guess-the-numbar game with a save-the-highscore feature. Don't bother trying anything OOP related in C/C++ before getting a really good grip on pointers. Pointers should be easy for you though, considering you have experience in assembly.

Then you should be comfertable enough with C++ to learn about classes, don't bother with how inheritance or overloading works yet, just get a good feel on how to make your own classes, and how to use it's variables, functions, and subclasses. Confert your guess-the-numbar game to use classes.

Now you should be far enough into C++ to just keep at it, learn the stuff you want/are interested in, program a couple of things, or delve into graphics. And for that you'll want to learn how to use the Win32 API, and then you may want to move on to openGL or DirectDraw/DirectX. But that's a long way off from now.

Also, learn the value of wikipedia.org, it explains more or less every programming theorem in excistence.

Oh, and don't let the buzzwords bite. Keep it real. Yo.

[Rezek]

wow- people seem to be REALLY all for C++... so I guess that's what my task is! Arcane Wizard, I really appreciate you laying out what I should do to learn it *shows respect*. About pointers- is they pretty much the same as, say, hl pointing to the address some_label? Just out of curiosity :P

Now, if only I knew some good C++ tutorials online... </subtle hint>

[Arcane Wizard]

Well, I prefer Java, because it doesn't have any of the ugly C++ ways of dealing with OOP practises, like pointers, but if there's any language you have to know it's C/C++.

About pointers, yes, that's exactly it. If we wanted iPointerVariable to point to iSomeFunction:
int *iPointerVariable = &iSomeFunction;

I don't think any online tutorial will be better than C++ for Dummies, but I think http://www.cplusplus.com/doc/tutorial/index.html is pretty good, and you can download the book Thinking in C++ for free.

[Rezek]

thanks for the link, i'll try it out. don't have time to focus on learning just yet, i'll probably start when school gets out (june 15th)

[wrigley]

I've never taken a course in anything computer related, and so I was wondering, where do/did/could you go to take these courses, and would you have to pay to take them? I checked some website here and the prices were somethinglike $500 a day, would that be standard?

[Arcane Wizard]

My advice:

Go to college and realise you can easily learn anything you want from wikipedia.org, some/that big math site, and free online tutorials.

Then either stay in college because degrees always come in handy, or leave.

[wrigley]

Sorry no college here , closest is university, but it is a different kind, as I have understood it. Like if you want to be a doctor you go to university, there is no medschool afterwards. Unless you decide to study litterature, there are no litterature classes, and if you do subjects such as computing are ruled out. Not that I wish to study litterature, just trying to state that you choose a direction in which to study and then all subjects will be about that.

But I don't like the fact that one has to limit oneself to one thing, cause what if you after 5 years (university here takes minimum 5 years) are all fed up with whatever you've been studying? or maybe you just want to take one class and not necessarily want to spend the rest of your life doing that thing?

If I have just described the spitting image of college please let me know...

And about tutorials, great principle! But still, I'm getting tired of them, and I thought perhaps taking an interactive tutorial in the form of a course somewhere would be a nice change. I wouldn't pay $500 a day I havn't got that kind of money, wish I did though

[Rezek]

[alexrudd]

[wrigley]

what on earth is a numbar?