Starter Programing language?

Question

I was wondering your opinion on a good programing language to learn. I've only used basic and not very much of it. I was thinking about either C++ or Lua. I thought C++ because its used in gaming a lot (but is it good for other things?) and Lua because I wanted to make some mods for garrysmod. Somthing different perhaps?

Answer 1

What exactly do you want to program? Web pages? High end games? General applications? No idea?

What type of platform are you programming on? Windows? Linux? Macs? Want to write for all of them?

I don't recommend starting with C++. It's an amazingly great language, but it's not beginner friendly. The learning curve to get to a basic intermediate level is pretty long (a year or two) and that's only learning C++, not how to program. That is, if you learn from the correct resource. So many resources are becoming obsolete, are just plain wrong, teach C instead of C++, and so on.

I don't recommend Lua either. It's an excellent glue language, but it's niche is really small scripts, especially embedded scripts. For a beginner, you want a language that allows you to have good practice with computer science concepts and is sufficiently mainstream. Wait until you get some experience before you try to use Lua.

If you just want to get into programming, without any specific idea of whereyou want to go, pick up a high level language that is also mainstream. Mainstream languages ensure that you can easily find resources and help. Moreover, learning them will be useful, as you can actually write decent programs in them. High level languages make it easier to express your abstract logic as opposed to dealing with the machine. For a beginner, you want to focus on computer science and being able to tackle arbitary problems.

I recommend Python and Ruby highly. They are versatile languages, mainstream, and are good for both beginner and professionals. You can also find good learning resources for free online.

C# and Java are solid languages as well although not as high level.

If you go the C++ route, pick up either C++ Primer by Lippman or Accelerated C++ by Koenig (find them on Amazon). They are beginner level books that are actually accurate and teach you C++ properly.

Answer 2

Choose a programming language. Pythonand Turtle Graphics are good starter languages. they are very straightforward and easy to learn. Also, there is a module called Pygame available that makes handling windows a breeze. Another programming language for a beginner to try is Kids Programming Language, or KPL's new version, called Phrogram. Don't be put off by KPL's name! Once you learn the basic concepts of programming, you can then take those ideas into any programming language you choose. Be aware however, that KPL and Phrogram are tightly integrated with Microsoft Windows, and therefore not very practical for teaching portable programming techniques. Perl is also very good for learning programming, and it's really useful.

Answer 3

I think If you're looking to start off, you could start with C. It's easy to pick up and easier to get used to other languages once you know it. When you're used to C, then you can jump to C++ and take a look at the object oriennted features it has to offer. That gives you a good foundation to branch off into more specific application oriented languages to get into gaming or anything else. What's important is the base you have so i think Basic, C and then C++ should be the way to start off.

Answer 4

Would probably start with C to get a good foundation in programming.

Answer 5

start with C++ or JAVA