How can I develop programming skills?

Question

People out there....lemme explain my prob in the first place...i've just started to learn C language....I referred a lot of books and online tutorials....I am able to follow wat they r saying...but I find tat their views r tooooo bookish and not practical...so I find it extremely difficult when it comes to creating my own program...please suggest and help...

Answer 1

Depending on your current level of understanding of C, you may find useful adopting different strategies (not necessarily in this order):

- Find templates and examples of .c files on the Internet: there is virtually everything you need, just go to Google and search. You may want to start from school/university sites, there's really a lot of stuff.

- Try to translate in C your own ideas, something you already understand in abstract but never put into practice. This exercise will force you to organize your thinking process according to the programming needs and discipline.

- Install Linux on your PC. Linux is the natural working and programming environment for C.

Answer 2

Being a skilled programmer is not just about reading a book or knowing the syntax or dropping the latest acronyms and buzzwords. You need to solidify basic skills and complement that with experience.

Here's how you can start:
1. Strengthen your programming logic. Consider everything that goes on around you and see if you can break it down into steps or processes or even objects.

For example, how would you go about programming how a soda machine works? How about making ATM transactions. If you were to do a program that will shave or wash the dishes, how would you go about it?

This will allow you to see the steps involved in accomplishing something, what things get done repeatedly, what things have in common, etc. It will hone your logic skills and will get you started in paying attention to details, a skill that every good programmer should have.

2. Practice. Start by coding in the language of your choice. Program a soda machine dispenser or maybe something that will validate if an e-mail address is in the right format. Start by doing things that you believe is easy, then move on to those a bit harder or larger, then move on to things that you think you'll actually use. By the way, checking a valid e-mail address can be done easily on many languages by using Regular Expressions, but that will come later ;-)

Oh, and after you've coded something and it works, try to see if you can make it leaner or faster or using less variables or statements. Play around with it, it's your code.

3. Read other people's code. You might discover that they tackled a logic issue differently, in a way that you didn't consider before. Or maybe they did something, that while you can not use yourself, you know can be applied elsewhere. Remember back when you were just starting to read and write. You probably didn't just read what you've written, right?

4. Get involved in a project. It can be with other people or as a volunteer or maybe even a paid programming project. The point is, make the whole thing rewarding on your part. Money, of course, or even just a sincere thank-you will go a long way in helping you strengthen your programming skills. It will validate all the work you've done so far.

5. Expose yourself to other languages. Start with those similar to what you're familiar with. C++ or Java would be good. Then after you've gone through the syntax for the new language, start with step 1 again. In time, you'll see that you spend less and less time with steps 1-3 and just rip through step 4.

I'm not going to bother with links to sites, you can easily find that by using a search engine, but I'll tell you one thing: you're in the right frame of mind already because you asked and you want learn and you want to improve.

Good luck!

Answer 3

Figure out something you want to program and do it. It could be a game or a screensaver or a checkbook program. It doesn't really matter what it is - the point is to pick something that is interesting enough to you that you go figure out what you need to know in order to build it.

Answer 4

You need to get creative, and write your own programs. A book can only tell you syntax and stuff, practice is what makes a good programmer.

Answer 5

Copy others. Review lots and lots of code. Learn the rudiments and practice.

Answer 6

Go to school and take a class.

Answer 7

take a class at community college.

Answer 8

Click on the following link then you will find what you want to learn

http://www.microsoft.com/learning/training/developer/vsnet.mspx


http://www.cs.cornell.edu/degreeprogs/ugrad/uevents/ProgrammingLanguages/index.htm

Answer 9

try to take a programming course