I'm sure this question has been asked so many times before but....How in the world do I begin learning a programming language. The only thing I can do on a computer is navigate the internet. Beyond that I am clueless as to the lingo and all that. Where would you direct me to go to learn how to program? In laymans terms only. Talk to me like I'm 4, please.
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I assume you want to learn C and C++ programming, which is not the easiest to learn but the most popular language.
First, you will need a compiler, which is a program that takes the program that you write and translates it into a language that the computer can use. Use Windows Explorer and navigate to almost any folder (directory) and you will see a lot of files with a .exe extension -- those were generated by a compiler.
There are a lot of compilers out there, depending on which operating system you have (Windows, unix, etc). A program compiled for unix cannot run on Windows and vise versa. So you have to get a compiler for your specific operating system. Two of the best ones are from Microsoft and Borland, but they cost a lot of $$$. One of the best free compilers is at www.bloodshed.net -- all you have to do is download it.
Second: buy an Introduction to C or C++ book from your local bookstore or online at www.amazon.com. The "Teach Yourself" series seems to be pretty popular. You can find free on-line tutorials but most of them are not that good. Here is one example:
http://www.strath.ac.uk/IT/Docs/Ccourse/
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: I assume you want to learn C and C++ programming, which is not the easiest to learn but the most popular language.
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: First, you will need a compiler, which is a program that takes the program that you write and translates it into a language that the computer can use. Use Windows Explorer and navigate to almost any folder (directory) and you will see a lot of files with a .exe extension -- those were generated by a compiler.
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: There are a lot of compilers out there, depending on which operating system you have (Windows, unix, etc). A program compiled for unix cannot run on Windows and vise versa. So you have to get a compiler for your specific operating system. Two of the best ones are from Microsoft and Borland, but they cost a lot of $$$. One of the best free compilers is at www.bloodshed.net -- all you have to do is download it.
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: Second: buy an Introduction to C or C++ book from your local bookstore or online at www.amazon.com. The "Teach Yourself" series seems to be pretty popular. You can find free on-line tutorials but most of them are not that good. Here is one example:
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: http://www.strath.ac.uk/IT/Docs/Ccourse/
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: Thanks! I'll check out some books. I did find a compiler from bloodshed. Though, I haven't the foggiest idea what to do with it! Also, what do I need to learn first? C or C++?? Does it make a difference? Thanks again!!
: : Thanks! I'll check out some books. I did find a compiler from bloodshed. Though, I haven't the foggiest idea what to do with it! Also, what do I need to learn first? C or C++?? Does it make a difference? Thanks again!!
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If you do a google search for "Dev-C++ tutorial" you will find some help. Here is one:
http://www.geocities.com/uniqueness_template/
You will ultimately want to learn c++. c++ language is a superset of C with a whole lot of new features and extensions. Anything that can be accomplished in C can also be accomplished in C++. So, I would suggest learning C first, then once you understand the basics of that you can move on to c++. Any c++ compiler can compile either language.
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That's true if you can afford the $900.00 or so. But its sort of a waste when just starting to program. Use the free stuff until you decide you actually like programming.
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: That's true if you can afford the $900.00 or so. But its sort of a waste when just starting to program. Use the free stuff until you decide you actually like programming.
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They used to sell a Students version of Visual C++ 6 for around $100. It would only use the MFC libraries as an external DLL, and it did not include the profiler. I don't think you can get it from MS anymore, but you might find an older copy around somewhere.
When just starting to learn the basics you don't need any of the 'visual' stuff. You need to learn the language before you learn to do GUI programming.
I recommend a command line compiler first because a) It gets you used to issuing commands at the command line and b) you haven't got any 'goodies' to distract or bemuse you.
I recommed learning C first then C++ as stober said but also it opens up more possibilities to you. I of course am doing it backwards. lol
Try these for free command line compilers.
http://www.borland.com/products/downloads/download_cbuilder.html <-- I use this.
http://gcc.gnu.org/
This is only my opinion.
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