Programming

[The Wizzard]

What do i need to learn in order to create my own programs, like you download and install on your computer? I probably sound like a n00b, but thats cuz i am at that stuff, not Web Development, i have never looked into programming... Does this involve C++?

Can someone please guide me. Thanks!

[Spookster]

It all depends on what language you wish to write in. If you are fairly proficient in Javascript then both Java and C++ will be a little easier to learn as the syntax is quite similar. I learned Java as my first language and it was much easier as I was proficient in Javascript. If you wish to write standalone programs then C++ would probably be a better choice than Java. Java is much more portable across different platforms but creating standalone programs is more difficult. C++ is not easily portable across platforms but is easy to create standalone programs. They key to learning any language however is to try and focus more on the main concepts behind programming such as loops, conditional statements, variables, methods/routines etc. The main concepts exist in just about every language in one shape or another. Once you have those down and figure out what you need then it's just a matter of looking up the syntax of a particular language and filling in the blanks. I could go on and on. But whichever language you choose just ready through some tutorials or books and start out with just simple progams such as the traditional "Hello World" program in which you simply print out to the screen Hello World. Don't try to dive into something big to start with. Build up to and learn step by step and actually practice each step by writing some code.

[The Wizzard]

Thanks Spook, I have another question...

What is Visual J++ ? Is that what you were talking about, Java and C++ ?

Thanks!

[Spookster]

Java and C++ are both programming languages. Visuall J++ is a visual development software for creating programs written in java. There are other development software such as Borland JBuilder or Sun Microsystems Forte. Forte is actually pretty nice and ironically it is written in Java by the company(Sun Microsystems) who created the java language.