I got my first computer, a Commodore VIC-20, when I was in the sixth grade. Back then, all I wanted to do when I grew up was be a computer programmer. I got pretty good at BASIC, writing a few space-invaders type games that were really not that much fun to play, but I spent hours, days, weeks, writing them and having a damn good time doing it. After that I graduated to the Commodore 64 and Simon's BASIC, and then got further along in school, and college, where I ended up instead studying things like philosophy, and journalism and kind of forgot how much I enjoyed speaking to computers in their language and getting them to sit up and beg, a little.
I want to start learning this again, but it's been so long I don't know where to start, or what to start with. I want to learn the basics of object oriented programming and maybe, eventually, go back to school. But for now, I was wondering if anyone could give me some pointers. Where should I start? Java? C++/#? .NET? HTML or XML?
I was pretty good with BASIC, back in those days, I picked it up pretty easily and was 100% self-taught. I just don't know where to start now, to get back into it.
I'm looking for recommendations--if you had to choose two or three books to start with, what would they be?
I appreciate any advice any of you pros out may have.
Thanks!
-=S
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6 comments:
i'd go with python. pretty simple to start but powerful too
I haven't worked through it, but you can check out this one How to Think Like a (Python) Programmer (it's free).
It might sound silly, but seeing as you mentioned HTML as a candidate, I would suggest starting with JavaScript. No software other than a browser is needed, and if you find that modern programming has become boring, you still will have picked up enough to add some interest to a web page. There's a book from O'Reilly called "JavaScript The Definitive Guide", that can get you started, and provides a lot more depth than many scripters realize is even available.
Flash/Actionscript. Programming games is fun.
try Ruby - pure OOP language and easy to learn.
Thanks, everyone, for the tips--this is exactly what I was looking for. -=S
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