Best first programming languages

[thegrandmaster]

Soo..
What's the best programming language to be learning at the moment?
Some say C++ is pretty good bet along with C and C#... Java I've heard would be a good one to know in these times.

What would be one of the best orders in which to learn programming languages? Where do you start?

[DarkCrusade]

C++ can give you a really hard time if you just started, mainly because of the IDEs which can give newcomers a hard time. Personally, I'd suggest Java. You learn about classes and how things are done, which helps you learning other languages easier.

[thegrandmaster]

I've heard the other way around :L
If you persevere through C/C++, then learning Java afterwards is much easier...?

[iDante]

Just pick one and learn it. It doesn't matter which you learn, just get a good book on it (or find one online) and write lots of programs in it. It's that simple.

[DarkCrusade]

Java is easier to learn in the first place. Sure, Java'll be easier after you've learned C/C++, but it's harder to get started with them - at least from my experience.

[thegrandmaster]

@iDante
Yeah I know what you mean. It's better just to get on with something while you have the drive for it!

@DarkCrusade
Ok. Thanks for the advice, I'll take it

[{LAW} Gamer_2k4]

Here's a second vote for Java.  "Real programmers" would argue that it holds your hand too much and keeps you from making stupid errors, but I think that's a sign of progress.  Furthermore, it's what a lot of colleges use in their programming courses, and I understand many businesses do as well.  About two-thirds of the coding done at my company is in Java, and the rest is in its (pseudo) derivative, C#.

[RafiPZ]

Yeah Java is pretty sweet, I use eclipse but netbeans is cool too.

[Foxconn]

None.

This is my opinion.

[VirtualTT]

Try learning assembly first, it will give you a solid knowledge of how exactly programs are executed and how features of higher level languages are implemented. Then you can switch to something more useful and productive, such as с / с++ and even to some specific framework languages, such as c#, java, python etc.
I personally regret that i didn't start with assembly, it seems that starting with any kind of advanced language is like building pyramid from the top...

[Espadon]

If you're teaching yourself you need determination.
If you have that determination, it wouldn't matter which language you start with.

[{LAW} Gamer_2k4]

Try learning assembly first, it will give you a solid knowledge of how exactly programs are executed and how features of higher level languages are implemented.

Perhaps so, but it's knowledge that is largely superfluous these days.  I know assembly, and each time I had to use it in school, it felt like it was making me run in circles to do the simplest things.  Higher-level looping, variable assignment, and functions are just fine as building blocks; knowing registers and subroutines will do little to add to that.

[Veritas]

Try learning assembly first, it will give you a solid knowledge of how exactly programs are executed and how features of higher level languages are implemented. Then you can switch to something more useful and productive, such as с / с++ and even to some specific framework languages, such as c#, java, python etc.
I personally regret that i didn't start with assembly, it seems that starting with any kind of advanced language is like building pyramid from the top...

You really do not need to know anything about assembly or how an OS works to start programming, and recommending someone start with the most arcane and difficult aspect of programming is pretty dumb

[jrgp]

Python.

[...]in Java, and the rest is in its (pseudo) derivative, C#.

C# is by no means a pseudo derivative of Java:
Yes, they both are interpreted and run under a form of virtual machine, but:

 - Java is *very* cross platform and that was a major design decision from the start; C# is mainly only for Windows as a ploy to get people too lazy to learn C++ to start writing Windows apps. Yes, there is the mono project that lets you use C# on non-windows systems, but I feel it's largely pointless

 - The two aren't even *that* syntactically similar

 - Upgrading to the latest .net framework takes forever compared to how long it takes to upgrade to the latest version of java

 - C# can't be used in web applets whereas java can

 - Due to java's multiplatform nature and extremely diverse library of built in functions/classes, it is more spread out and used than C# will ever be

In general, if you want to stay in the closet and are afraid of learning *real* useful programming languages and are fine with only making Windows apps and have no qualms for sucking the cock that is Microsoft, C# is the language for you! There's a reason why big powerful programs like MS Office, the Adobe Suite, and so many others are written in C++ not C#.

[{LAW} Gamer_2k4]

- The two aren't even *that* syntactically similar

This is the point I was going after (as it's the big thing that new programmers would notice), and yes, they are, at least relative to most other unrelated languages (Python compared to C, for example).  Yes, it's a simplistic way of putting it, but C# feels like C++ with Java syntax.  I've never done any actual study of C#, and I was still able to start coding in it right away because of how similar its syntax is to Java.

There's a reason why big powerful programs like MS Office, the Adobe Suite, and so many others are written in C++ not C#.

I imagine it has at least something to do with their massive code bases being written before C# existed.

[jrgp]

There's a reason why big powerful programs like MS Office, the Adobe Suite, and so many others are written in C++ not C#.

I imagine it has at least something to do with their massive code bases being written before C# existed.

C# appeared in 2001. In the amount of time that has passed since then, I'm sure the programs I mentioned might have gone through a rewrite or two. Just look at all the changes MS Office 2007 introduced. There have been numerous opportunities to port over the existing code to C#, and I'm sure one of the reasons for not doing so would be that it'd break mac compatibility.

[ds dude]

I recommend Python as well, because it's the only language I've come across so far that doesn't get me confused when looking at the first two lines of code in a program.


If you're really hardcore, go for Chinese programming.

[Veritas]

There's a reason why big powerful programs like MS Office, the Adobe Suite, and so many others are written in C++ not C#.

I imagine it has at least something to do with their massive code bases being written before C# existed.

C# appeared in 2001. In the amount of time that has passed since then, I'm sure the programs I mentioned might have gone through a rewrite or two. Just look at all the changes MS Office 2007 introduced. There have been numerous opportunities to port over the existing code to C#, and I'm sure one of the reasons for not doing so would be that it'd break mac compatibility.

Rewriting C++ code to C++ code is entirely different than to C# code, nor do companies completely rewrite programs in one go. There have been numerous opportunities is not the same as there have been numerous opportunities where it made good sense to port code.

And C# is pretty obviously derived from Java??

[jrgp]

And C# is pretty obviously derived from Java??

"derived" != "inspired by"

[Veritas]

And C# is pretty obviously derived from Java??

"derived" != "inspired by"

When one of your criteria for differentiating the two is

- Upgrading to the latest .net framework takes forever compared to how long it takes to upgrade to the latest version of java

rather than, say, a rooted class hierarchy where everything is an object, I question your standards