Best code to get started with programming.

xtremeclowny · Apr 11, 2014

Hello,

In short, I am currently working a low wage job in order to go back to school at some point in the future. I'm a biology major, therefore, I am looking to learn some programming while I am off school.

I'm currently trying to make my way through the CS50x/Intro to computer science course on edX. However, I am not sure of which code/language to learn once I am through the course. I already know some html and css which I learned online a few years ago. I could go back and learn more about it but that is not something I really want to do. I'd much rather learn something new. What would you suggest? Should I simply pick one at random and stick with it or? My sister is a computer science major but she is more of a drop out than an actual student. She does have a few books though, such as java and C++.

Also, while having a look online I read that Linux is a good way to go about learning programming. To be honest, I am a bit more interested in learning such things over web design and the such. Currently, the only system I own is a "gaming" system. I was thinking about purchasing a simple laptop just for programming. Not for gaming or anything fancy. Could I get some help with this as well? What would be the minimal requirements to look for in a laptop if it is only to be used to learning and perhaps implementing some code? Actual, laptop suggestions would be great as well.

Thanks,

freakout918 · May 8, 2014

If you want to learn linux and are thinking of running linux alongside windows in VMware I think you should atleast have a not fancy but decent cpu like an i3 maybe and 4GB RAM(atleast). If you just want to do programming on windows anything would do. I used to code on a laptop that had 3GB RAM and a dual core processor and didnt felt much difference.

Pinhedd · May 8, 2014

xtremeclowny :

There's a world of difference between computer science and software engineering. Computer science is the study of algorithms and scientific computation; it's very abstract. Software engineering is applied computer science, and involves substantial amounts of programming.

Web design using HTML/CSS is not programming, it is document design and nothing more. Implementing dynamic browser content using Javascript or a dynamic web site using PHP/Python is closer to it, but a very poor place to start.

If you're serious about learning some good old fashioned programming, the best way is to start at the very bottom and work your way up. Get down on your hands and knees and play in the mud for a bit.

If your gaming PC is reasonably modern, purchase a copy of VMWare Workstation (you can get a student discount), it will be your best friend. If money is a bit of an issue, or you just want to test the waters first, download the free version, VMWare Player.

Install a free Linux distribution of your choice -- I recommend Fedora KDE edition for new users along with the necessary build tools (there are getting started guides out there) -- and start learning how to write good old fashioned C (not C++) using a text editor (no IDE yet) and command line compilation. Baby steps are key. C is tough to learn, but it forces you to learn the fundamentals of programming and adopt good coding style. It punishes you, but it's a narrow enough language that it's hard to get lost learning it.

Good luck

xtremeclowny · May 14, 2014

Pinhedd :

xtremeclowny :

There's a world of difference between computer science and software engineering. Computer science is the study of algorithms and scientific computation; it's very abstract. Software engineering is applied computer science, and involves substantial amounts of programming.

Web design using HTML/CSS is not programming, it is document design and nothing more. Implementing dynamic browser content using Javascript or a dynamic web site using PHP/Python is closer to it, but a very poor place to start.

If you're serious about learning some good old fashioned programming, the best way is to start at the very bottom and work your way up. Get down on your hands and knees and play in the mud for a bit.

If your gaming PC is reasonably modern, purchase a copy of VMWare Workstation (you can get a student discount), it will be your best friend. If money is a bit of an issue, or you just want to test the waters first, download the free version, VMWare Player.

Install a free Linux distribution of your choice -- I recommend Fedora KDE edition for new users along with the necessary build tools (there are getting started guides out there) -- and start learning how to write good old fashioned C (not C++) using a text editor (no IDE yet) and command line compilation. Baby steps are key. C is tough to learn, but it forces you to learn the fundamentals of programming and adopt good coding style. It punishes you, but it's a narrow enough language that it's hard to get lost learning it.

Good luck

Alright, thanks for the reply. I'll look into it.

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Best code to get started with programming.

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xtremeclowny

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