Programming language

Pecker · 09-28-2006, 11:16 PM

A little while ago I decided to learn some coding. I am trying to decide which programming language to use to learn some stuff. I am not sure whether to start in C++, C#, C, or Java. Any input would be appreciated.

shuuhen · 09-29-2006, 08:40 PM

I recommend starting with C. C++ is a superset of C, so your skills will transfer nicely (you even have access to the C libraries from C++). Java and C# are a lot easier, but learning these first makes it a lot harder to go back and learn C. One of my programmer friends is going crazy because he only knows C# and is now trying to learn C++.

All of the languages you mentioned use C-style syntax, so it will be easy to start learning the other languages later. Many more languages use either C-style syntax or a very similar syntax. It will be much easier to learn these languages after learning the one they based most of their syntax on!

There is also the conceptual part of learning these languages. C is a procedural language, while C++, C# and Java (of course many others) are object oriented. It will be easier for you to understand and appreciate the object-oriented model if you know what C (or possibly other procedural languages) are like. I've had co-workers at internships that learned Java during one of their first years of high school that were going crazy that they didn't have certain object oriented features in MATLAB.

All of the languages can be used on many platforms. Java is good for web apps and quick networking programs, but not great for long term programs (generally bad for performance reasons). C# is multiplatform, but currently is mostly common on Windows as Microsoft's implementation is the most complete (since they came up with C# and .NET). Some of the *nix compatible versions of .NET I've looked at are going in a good direction and will be fun to play with after they are a little more feature complete.

VincentWong · 09-30-2006, 12:19 PM

While shuuhen is offering some really good advice, there are other things to consider. What is your goal for learning a computer language? If it is to make a career out of it, I would jump straight into C# or Java since these are the skills that are in demand by employers. IMHO, most business programs of the future will probably be built in these languages.

If you have a genuine interest in programming, then go with shuuhen's advice and start with the basics like C. At least start with C++.

shuuhen · 09-30-2006, 04:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VincentWong

While shuuhen is offering some really good advice, there are other things to consider. What is your goal for learning a computer language? If it is to make a career out of it, I would jump straight into C# or Java since these are the skills that are in demand by employers. IMHO, most business programs of the future will probably be built in these languages.

If you have a genuine interest in programming, then go with shuuhen's advice and start with the basics like C. At least start with C++.

The reason I don't recommend jumping into C# or Java is learning C makes you more versitile. If you know C, you can learn C# or Java or whatever you need. If you only know C# or Java, it will probably be harder to learn C (there may be some people that don't find it harder, but the ones I know do). C# is currently in high demand, but it wont stay that way. If you stay in the programming field, you will probably learn at least one new language every so often due to change in demand.

I find C# and Java to be limiting. C# is generally a good language, but so far is mainly used on Windows. If you want to start programming for Mac OS X, Linux, FreeBSD, Solaris or many other operating systems, C and C++ will be of more benefit. Java is good for quick programs, but would you want to build programs for HPC systems with it?

If you are going to jump into a career with it, you could learn C and make a few programs in addition to whatever your tutorial/book has you do, then jump into C# or Java (I think C# is in more demand right now).

09-28-2006, 11:16 PM	#1 (permalink)
Pecker Registered User Join Date: Sep 2006 Posts: 1 OS: Windows XP	Programming language A little while ago I decided to learn some coding. I am trying to decide which programming language to use to learn some stuff. I am not sure whether to start in C++, C#, C, or Java. Any input would be appreciated.

09-29-2006, 08:40 PM	#2 (permalink)
shuuhen Manager Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Colorado Posts: 988 OS: Mac OS 9.1, Mac OS X 10.5.8, WinXP Pro, FreeBSD 6.0, Gentoo Linux My System	I recommend starting with C. C++ is a superset of C, so your skills will transfer nicely (you even have access to the C libraries from C++). Java and C# are a lot easier, but learning these first makes it a lot harder to go back and learn C. One of my programmer friends is going crazy because he only knows C# and is now trying to learn C++. All of the languages you mentioned use C-style syntax, so it will be easy to start learning the other languages later. Many more languages use either C-style syntax or a very similar syntax. It will be much easier to learn these languages after learning the one they based most of their syntax on! There is also the conceptual part of learning these languages. C is a procedural language, while C++, C# and Java (of course many others) are object oriented. It will be easier for you to understand and appreciate the object-oriented model if you know what C (or possibly other procedural languages) are like. I've had co-workers at internships that learned Java during one of their first years of high school that were going crazy that they didn't have certain object oriented features in MATLAB. All of the languages can be used on many platforms. Java is good for web apps and quick networking programs, but not great for long term programs (generally bad for performance reasons). C# is multiplatform, but currently is mostly common on Windows as Microsoft's implementation is the most complete (since they came up with C# and .NET). Some of the *nix compatible versions of .NET I've looked at are going in a good direction and will be fun to play with after they are a little more feature complete.

09-30-2006, 12:19 PM	#3 (permalink)
VincentWong Registered User Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 39 OS: xp	While shuuhen is offering some really good advice, there are other things to consider. What is your goal for learning a computer language? If it is to make a career out of it, I would jump straight into C# or Java since these are the skills that are in demand by employers. IMHO, most business programs of the future will probably be built in these languages. If you have a genuine interest in programming, then go with shuuhen's advice and start with the basics like C. At least start with C++.