Tough time learning how to code.

[zenix12]

Guys... i'm having a hard time grasping programming. I've set a goal to know how to code by the end of december and i'd like to meet that goal. So with that said, any suggestions and tips?

[Snickerzz]

depends on what programming language your'e learning. right now im learning html/css on codecademy, ive understood it all for the most part

[WereCat]

Supposedly the best way to learn it is to do it on the go.

What language are you learning?

[Guest]

I've started learning Js from Kahn Acdemy, and I have to say their stuff is really professional, and I'm actually learning.

[jezza39]

Yeah, I reckon trial and error, especially using stepped code running will show you what exactly the code does at each step to help you see any errors or bugs

[Enderman]

I've set a goal to know how to code by the end of december and i'd like to meet that goal.

This makes no sense. There is no particular point where you know how to code, or not know how to code.

 

If you just care about knowing how to code, then just do this:

print ("Hello world.")

And you're done. Now you know how to code.

 

If you're trying to learn more than just how to code, you will never finish. Even professional programmers who have been programming for 30 years are not done learning how to code, because of the infinite amount of material there is to know.

 

So you might want to rethink your goal and maybe set something a little more specific, like making a program that will play hangman or something. Something more realistic.

[Arphenyte]

^ This.

[ZeferiniX]

Hmm rethink your goals, that's quite broad. Are you having a hard time because of the syntax or the way you put your logic?

 

If it's the latter, you'll need some good problems with that, try ProjectEuler, still doing it until now. More on math challenges which means lots of algorithms == lots of logic involved. I learned to appreciate data structure and speed because of that site, there are a lot of good problems there.

 

If syntax is your problem, you might wanna read the book you're using to learn the language and understand it especially pointers/references. Try not to skip also the problem challenges if there's one. I'm self-taught and I used the "Jumping Into C++" book and there are problems that will make you think and scratch your head (well, hard because I was still learning that time) on every end of the chapter that can/will be reused in the future chapters so you can appreciate and see the differences of the techniques you can use like Inheritance, Polymorphism, etc...

[House]

I'm with @ZeferiniX on this one.
Maybe this will help:
tip. You can get the book on amazon for more detailed info.It worked for me Learning Python

[Jaybird]

You have to do it to understand it. It's like learning a second language. You have to speak it I order to speak it. That said. I can read code just fine but as far as recreating it I can not.

[Heisenbleurgh]

1. What are you trying to learn?

2. Narrow down your goals to be more measurable. Picking specific topics from a programming language, for example.

3. Practice constantly.

4. Watch videos on the language.

5. Read blogs discussing the language.

 

Get the basics down and then do steps 3-5 as much as you can.

 

I'm currently learning front-end and back-end development between now and January but I've separated monthly large topics (like html, css, javascript, ruby, rails) and then weekly sub-topics (html5 layout, css3, sass, jquery, etc). Be organized and expose yourself to the subject in as many ways you can: videos, blogs, books, interactive tutorials, quizzes, the internet is filled with options.

[deviant88]

OP is joking right? by december? you are not learning basic cooking.programming takes years to "Know how to code" which means you could write any type of program anytime,without asking yourself what the hell am i doing when you have to do a new project.

So i wrote a simple program myself in C# with WinForms interface that does lots of registry changes and installs tweaks,that would mean i already know how to code and im a programmer right? hell no not even close,and it took a lot of time to understand.

[KillerOfPie]

I would suggest starting with c# or java. They are quite similar and give a nice foundation for anything you put on top of it. For c# just go on YouTube and find Barnacles' Codegasm series. they're nice and should get you started quite well. for java just try and find some good videos on YouTube. Once you get those down learning and building upon them with other languages should be significantly easier.