Tek-DrIv3

I'm am completely new to programming and sense I'm a teenager I would want to learn ALOT so when I'm older, I could work with a computer company. What is the best, not easiest, language to start out with?

Any help would be Rewarded with good Karma.
TeK

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Soulstorm

You started a thread in C++, so you may have already made a decision...

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jackabcde

PHP for web development........

grumpy

Personally, the first programming language I learned was Fortran 77.

Seriously, the choice of first programming language is not all that significant. The important thing is understanding the basic logic that computers work by, and doing things in a systematic manner (layout out code, breaking code into reusable pieces (i.e. functions and procedures, depending on your language), using suitable logic constructs for the job at hand, etc).

I would say the choice of first language should be a relatively simple one that helps you learn the basics of a systematic approach. There are several such languages around: Pascal is the oldest one, and is popular as a teaching language because it's a relatively simple language and it is very hard to program well using it without a systematic approach.

Scripting languages (Python, perl, etc) are also useful for learning. Perl is mostly suited to text processing and Python is more general purpose, but mainly used for rapid prototyping or as "glue" for connecting software components.

C# and Java are, increasingly, popular for learning because they are easy to use and have lots of features. I personally don't like them as teaching languages because the "easy to use" often translates into "tolerating stupid actions that programmers should not be allowed to get away with". C# and Java are most useful when the programmer is systematic, but they do too much hand-holding and too little to encourage a programmer to be systematic.

C++ has potential to be a good teaching language, but I don't really advocate it for beginners. The problem with C++, from a teaching perspective, is that it has many low level features (most inherited from C) that can confuse programmers unless they have already learned to be systematic. The potential advantage is that it also supports high levels of abstraction, both in the language and the library, but (unfortunately) most basic texts focus on the low level features.

Once you have learned one language in a disciplined manner, it is relatively easy to move to other languages. The choice of languages after the first should be based on the types of applications you intend to write, and some study so you understand what languages are suited to the type of work you want to do.

MiKuS

python

you should start with python to learn to concept of programming. Python is simple but also very powerful. you will start out learning concepts about programming and making simple programs, but you will end up making very elaborate applications. Because I'm a web developer I started with PHP but when I wanted to start making simple scripts to perform monotonous tasks I found myself learning python.

I would also recommend ruby, as much power as python but some say an easier syntax. Iff you want a harder language to learn than python or ruby I would recommend learning C mainly because C++ will give you too much rope to hang yourself.

Anyway at the risk of typing out another paragraph i recommend you read this top to bottom, and then decide weather or not python is worth learning:
http://openbookproject.net//thinkCSpy/


I'm also thinking we should make a sticky for these kinds of threads, detailing what has been outlined to other people seeking which is the "best" language to start with.

BstrucT

I started with C, then moved to C#, and am now looking into C++ a bit.

Have a read about the various languages first in the forums, then decide what you are interested in.

Then you won't go wrong with your choice.

>BstrucT

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Druid

I started with Basic I believe.

I was curious as to if I could remember the order in which I learned the various languages of my past... so here's a list, from oldest to newest. I'm certainly not fluent in all of them, this list is just a collection of languages that I've had to deal with.


Basica
Basic-A
Xbasic
Qbasic
Pascal
Fortran
Cobol
Visual Basic
C
Assembly
JavaScript
Perl
Awk
Sed
PHP
C++
Java
Ada
Visual C++
PL/1
Tcl/Tk
Modula-3
Lisp
Prolog
SmallTalk
VB.Net
PL/SQL
C#
Ruby
Python

Fall Back Son

Lol @ that list. Not fluent in all of them? You think? It would be nearly impossible to remain fluent in even a third of them, considering that requires constant practice.

BstrucT

@Druid.

That's hectic.
How long have it taken you to have met these languages?

Keep it up.

>BstrucT

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Freaky Chris

What these guys have said is very true, Simpler languages are good starting points. Due to the fact that hey allow you to understand programming concepts without getting confused by the laguage itself.

When i first started i began with C++, but this ment attempting to learn Programming Concepts at the same time as the syntax etc. I soon swapped to Python where i began to improve my Programming methods etc without having to worry to much about syntax etc since it is all relatively simple. As i look back on C++ now it is much simpler as i find myself being able to port alot of knowledge from Python across into C++ and just change syntax, as it is all based around simple techniques. Thus i am only learning one thing at once.

Chris

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