How'd you learn to program?

twilight17 · Post by **twilight17** » Mon Jan 21, 2008 8:42 pm

Well, I just wanted to see how everyone here learned how to program, like what languages they learned first, and how they eventually got to c++,

also, if you don't mind, could you tell me the best c++ books, (I gotta learn a bit more)

Oh and btw, I first started with BASIC (lol, i know)... then I went on to VB.NET 2005... used it for about 6 months, then decided that VB wasn't goiing to get me anywhere. So then I decided to get a few C++ books from the library, and started writing little apps (such as hello world kind of things, and some math calcs, (just very simple stuff)... and now I'm here, (albeit trying) to learn Irrlicht

Thank you

JPulham · Post by **JPulham** » Mon Jan 21, 2008 10:14 pm

well...
[lifestory]
I wanted to make may own games so asked around. some one recommended C++ so I got an IDE of the net. Started with simple console apps and learnt the language. Got my hands on a commercial borland C++ builder 4. Then I entered the world of Open Source and the internet. In around 2 years i covered Win32, .NET, XLib, GTK, FLTK, my own library(s)

, DirectX, OpenGL and of course... Irrlicht

In this Time I read 'Game coding complete' by Mike McShaffrey. VERY good book for game development (not just coding but management as well)
[/lifestory]

twilight17 · Post by **twilight17** » Mon Jan 21, 2008 10:51 pm

wow! that's A LOT of things you covered, but one Q. Does that book cover C++ programming?
Or is it just about game design?
Thanks

bitplane · Post by **bitplane** » Tue Jan 22, 2008 12:06 am

Life story post.

Being a child of the 1980s home computing boom, my first programming book was First Steps With Your Spectrum, followed by a subscription to Input Magazine. I got an Amiga for my 13th birthday ('94) and learned AMOS and made many, many cool games with school friends. Pascal and C (Amiga, MS-DOS, XENIX) before becoming a college drop-out (broken heart, full time pot-head). Later did a VB6/SQL/OOP course, got a job in IT doing 3rd line support but also got to make VB apps, ,some PowerBuilder, plus automated testing with QARun and TSL. Got poached and became a coder among testers, did VBS for WMI, VB for Win32 API, lots and lots more WinRunner (too much to bear). In 2002/3 I got into performance testing, which meant C (LoadRunner) and C++ (Forecast) and learned a million useful things working with reverse engineers. Half-learned plenty of things along the way - enough Python and PHP to love them, enough Java and ASP to hate them, enough of everything else to get by.

So in short- programming since the age of 5, no higher education, a coder not a software engineer. Every day I learn something is a day it's worth getting out of bed, maybe another 30-40 years of this and I may be able to say I know something. Until that day comes I'll try to remain humble

twilight17 · Post by **twilight17** » Tue Jan 22, 2008 1:06 am

wow lol, im 13 ATM, and I thought I was starting young

twilight17 · Post by **twilight17** » Tue Jan 22, 2008 1:14 am

Oh: and another question...

What do you recommend I learn first, Irrlicht, straight up OpenGL, straight up DirectX, or something else?
thank you

wildrj · Post by **wildrj** » Tue Jan 22, 2008 3:32 am

Depends what you want to do really. Im currently 15 and ive covered alot so far. c++,java,php,html,opengl,directx,gtk+,wxwidgets,and irrlicht. Id say if your just starting out learn the basics of the language you want to learn. From there go with irrlicht till you get a hold on it. After that you will probley want to start work on your own game engine ethier using irrlicht or straight up opengl or directx.
So Take it at your own pace dont rush and rember have fun.

JP · Post by JP » Tue Jan 22, 2008 9:40 am

Here's my 2 cents.

I basically started learning programming when i went to University in 2003 to study AI & Computer Science. In the summer before going i did attempt to learn Visual Basic from a book but i didn't get on with it very well and was just copying what i read in the book into VB and seeing simple outcomes, until i started getting errors i didn't understand... i think because of an outdated book perhaps.

At Uni i spent my first 2 years being taught Java, pop-11 and prolog. The main focus was on Java though and i got on pretty well with it and did my dissertation in Java using Jirr (java binding for irrlicht) to make some AI enemies for an FPS game.

By my final year i knew that gaming was the way to go for me and after i'd graduated i realised i'd need to learn C++ if i had any hope of getting into the industry, so i did. I spent a couple of months learning C++, certainly with help from Irrlicht as it eased the transition, seeing as Jirr and Irrlicht have the same functions etc it was just a case of swapping out the Java syntax for C++.

After 3 months of searching for a job i found one at Sony and have now been here a year and so have a year's commercial C++ knowledge and also oodles of experience with OpenGL.

JPulham · Post by **JPulham** » Tue Jan 22, 2008 3:06 pm

twilight17 wrote: wow! that's A LOT of things you covered, but one Q. Does that book cover C++ programming?
Or is it just about game design?

the books code is written in C++. It covers basics of 2d,3d, pointers and resource management etc. The 2nd edition now out even covers networking. Graphics in DX I'm afraid but nothing you can't port.
Also, I did cover a lot. I didn't like every thing, but you've gotta look around and see what suites you needs/style. For a beginner I recommend learning C++ and Low-level API's so you get an idea of how it all works first. Oh.. and I was 10/11 when I started ... now I'm 18

.

Vsk · Post by **Vsk** » Tue Jan 22, 2008 3:43 pm

About the books I' have no idea becasue I learn with books in spanish. Alghtouh there were some in inglish very good and simples. Like "thinking in c++" (I don't remember the autor). This is for language (and simple).
Then you have all the way arond about "structurs and algorithms" that in english you have pretty and all good. That contemplates "multistructur", performance, sort alghoriths, short paht find.. etc.
Then you have the desigin sotware book that over the language but they are parading depenent, if you use OOP, take a look at Craig larman, Then Gamma. And ask people who know more, listen to they, they are "wisemen" to us.

About how I start programmin, I start in my school with Pascal (beautifull language and very powerfull), nexto to Modula 2, then to pure C then to C++ then Java, then assembler 8086 , assembler sparc , then wen to functional programming with haskell (what a interesting travel, I loved break heads paradigms). And later a litle from access, basic. I am realy lak in web langauges

. But I hope learning in few month a lot.
I choose Computer science for deafult and finished to loved them.
we, when do softare we have the power to create something from parts, and something usefull for you or others, it is somthing simple but amazing.

I hope it helps you.

twilight17 · Post by **twilight17** » Tue Jan 22, 2008 3:46 pm

Wow, all of these great responses!

Thank you all

And I realized I have to learn some more C++ (more advanced stuff, and more about classes, pointers, and polymorphism, (lol).

Then from their, or, while I'm doing that, I'll do the Irrlicht tutorials.

Next, Ill just make tech demos for myself to see if I fully understand Irrlicht, and can fluently program with it.

Then... I write a little game, maybe something Like this, as I've always lvoed this game, and wanted to do a remake for a while now... Wii Play, Tanks!

After that, I'll study OpenGL, or maybe DirectX...or both?

Maybe then, I'll learn WxWidgets, the Windows API, GTK+, and other things that'll improve my C++ capabilities.

Tbh.. I can't wait! What an adventure this is going to be

rogerborg · Post by **rogerborg** » Tue Jan 22, 2008 3:54 pm

I made a pact with Satan. I didn't mean to, but he said it was the last one in stock, and a real bargain, and I got a bit carried away.

JP · Post by JP » Tue Jan 22, 2008 4:05 pm

I forgot to mention that i don't believe in books very much for learning... In my first year of Uni is spent a large chunk of money buying the recommended books for my course and i never needed them once... Most of them i didn't even open once... So after that i didn't buy anymore for my 2nd and 3rd years and i got a 1st class degree so it goes to show that i didn't make a mistake in ignoring the books.

I think for some people books can be good and for others not so much... So i guess it's just a personal thing you have to find out.

But i think that programming books are a bit pointless in a way as there's so many really good tutorials on the net and it's much quicker to just wack a query into google than to search through a book for the answer...

MasterGod · Post by **MasterGod** » Tue Jan 22, 2008 4:16 pm

rogerborg wrote:I made a pact with Satan. I didn't mean to, but he said it was the last one in stock, and a real bargain, and I got a bit carried away.

twilight17 · Post by **twilight17** » Tue Jan 22, 2008 4:24 pm

JP wrote:I forgot to mention that i don't believe in books very much for learning... In my first year of Uni is spent a large chunk of money buying the recommended books for my course and i never needed them once... Most of them i didn't even open once... So after that i didn't buy anymore for my 2nd and 3rd years and i got a 1st class degree so it goes to show that i didn't make a mistake in ignoring the books.

I think for some people books can be good and for others not so much... So i guess it's just a personal thing you have to find out.

But i think that programming books are a bit pointless in a way as there's so many really good tutorials on the net and it's much quicker to just wack a query into google than to search through a book for the answer...

Yeah, I wish I could take programming courses, but like I said, I'm 13

, unless there's a way I could take online ones? And yeah the books are sometimes irritating, they sometimes are not precise enough to understand, other times, they just plain suck

Do you recommend any online tuts for C++?