HELP! - I'm having trouble getting started programming

[NESHunter]

Programming is fun for me, when I mess with things and change things I really enjoy it, but  I don't know a full fledged language... I really want to learn one, but i want it to be

 

The one that gives you that warm feeling inside.

which I feel when just messing around, but I've tried and just can't get myself to start it... Anyone have a fun way to learn Java/C++/Anything to get started?

[Manny Calavera]

Bernacules just started making tutorial videos. Check it.

[Clyne]

You can try Lydia.com and use LTT code to get a 7 day free trial.

[Tazman192]

Just use codeacademy, don't bother with any free trials and what not IMO.

[aricleather]

Personally, I started coding in Python at 11 years old or so. Am I good at it? No. I learned from very basic sites who incorporate coding into a GUI. Using it, you can kind of get a grasp of how to do basic things. One my favourites is here. You could probably find lots of tutorials on Youtube, as well.

 

EDIT: To impress family members, one of my latest projects was a basic text-based game where you chose a class and fought off monsters one-by-one with increasing difficulty. I refered to stack overflow alot, very helpful community there.

 

EDIT 2: Gaben is on code.org as one of those people who teach you concepts

[LukeTim]

Personally, I started coding in Python at 11 years old or so. Am I good at it? No. I learned from very basic sites who incorporate coding into a GUI. Using it, you can kind of get a grasp of how to do basic things. One my favourites is here. You could probably find lots of tutorials on Youtube, as well.

 

EDIT: To impress family members, one of my latest projects was a basic text-based game where you chose a class and fought off monsters one-by-one with increasing difficulty. I refered to stack overflow alot, very helpful community there.

 

EDIT 2: Gaben is on code.org as one of those people who teach you concepts

 

+1 for Stack Overflow... that place is a godsend even when programming is your job.

[Aho]

The problem with these posts is they never seem to state what kind of applications the OP wants to build.

 

C++, Java, and Python all pop up in these threads, but the best language to learn, IMO, is the one that will allow you to create applications that you want to build right from the get-go.

 

If you're interested in building web applications, for example, you wouldn't want to choose C++. Just about any language will allow you to build backend web apps, but few are practical. C++ web backends are limited to sites that require high scalability and experience requests in the hundreds of thousands or even millions in short periods of time.

 

Figure out what you want to build and find the languages suitable for the job. Look at the syntaxes, docs, see what you like. 

[Jupiter0026]

The problem with these posts is they never seem to state what kind of applications the OP wants to build.

 

C++, Java, and Python all pop up in these threads, but the best language to learn, IMO, is the one that will allow you to create applications that you want to build right from the get-go.

 

If you're interested in building web applications, for example, you wouldn't want to choose C++. Just about any language will allow you to build backend web apps, but few are practical. C++ web backends are limited to sites that require high scalability and experience requests in the hundreds of thousands or even millions in short periods of time.

 

Figure out what you want to build and find the languages suitable for the job. Look at the syntaxes, docs, see what you like. 

You also gotta factor in portability. I can't get behind C# .NET really....