Learning Programming. Where to start?

Faith

Faith

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Hey guys, I've been working with Photoshop for a long time and I think I need to expand my learning curve and dip my feet in the programming section.

What should I learn first? and why? also, how long will it take for me to that programming language fluently?
I kinda wanna go make some bots or go more on web design. But I just need some good ideas from the experienced.

Hope to get some good suggestion.

Thanks
 
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Many people here take VB as a good start. The grammar is more readable for newbie programmers, I think.
Grab a book and just make sure you practice enough. The more you program, the better you master it.
 
I'd like to point out that web design is the easiest way to get your foot in the door. It's extremely easy and it can give you a bit of confidence when moving on to "real" programming, especially if you focus on PHP.
 
well I started to dive into programming not too long ago, I started with HTML and then went on to PHP. can't code anything worthwhile "Yet" but soon I will.
 
Better building a house with a solid foundation ;) HTML, very easy and a simple markup language. Javascript, a simple programming language, bread and butter of client-side scripting (what gets processed and calculated by your browser, inside your browser) and with these two in your pocket you'll be able to at understand or build a solid page. Or automate it. the ubiquitous w3schools is killer, google it. Right after learn server-side programming, php as already suggested is a good choice. In the meanwhile or along learn something like vb.net or c# to put in practice the automation tricks and to learn building desktop applications. After all, learning something with a real application and -hopefully- for profit is way more fun! ;)
 
I am a designer at heart and just like you I wanted to learn more about development. I already knew HTML and CSS so if you haven't mastered those two, now is the time to do so. Since HTML5 and CSS3 is widely being fully supported by most modern browsers you'd be working backwards not learning that first. Three years ago HTML and CSS were simple enough but it is quickly becoming more complex because of smart phones and tablets. So get that out of the way since that should give you more benefit to start with. Then perhaps move into a server-side scripting language. I chose PHP and it took me 2 years to truly understand this language and the importance of Object oriented programming. So get yourself a book and sit infront of a computer with Apache running and be prepared to not only read, but to also write the code by hand as you go through chapters. This experience will also give you a taste in MySQL and how you can create dynamic content using a database. All this is possible and although difficult at times, you have to make yourself enjoy what you do to truly learn. After, I recommend a client-side scripting language and for that there is only one; and that's Javascript. Even just the basics and enough to understand extensions like jQuery.

Happy learning.
 
check out the video tutorials on Lynda.com .. can find them on torrent site (Piratebay)

If you make money down the line buy something from them so it's win win :)
 
Start with VB 6.0. I started with it and it help me a lot. After VB, you could easily move on vb.net, delphi and so forth :)
 
faithislove said:
Hey guys, I've been working with Photoshop for a long time and I think I need to expand my learning curve and dip my feet in the programming section.

What should I learn first? and why? also, how long will it take for me to that programming language fluently?
I kinda wanna go make some bots or go more on web design. But I just need some good ideas from the experienced.

Hope to get some good suggestion.

Thanks
Click to expand...

You should start by html, then c and c++ and java etc...
 
If you have no experience in coding, I have found http://www.codecademy.com to be very helpful, lynda.com is a great resource and finally, for free, if you have one, go use the public library.

Hope this helps!

Shawn
 
Best place to start is find a problem, and solve it. As you're solving it, you'll teach yourself programming. Once you have that problem solved, find another problem, and so on...
 
I will say to start with html, then go with php. HTML is very easy really, you should be able to make a html page in your first day ;) PHP takes some more time to master. I will suggest you to go to tizag or w3schools, the tutorials they have there let you learn the basics very fast too.
 
If you're going to start learning programming, start with Python. By far the most useful language in my opinion. Easy to create bots with, etc.
 
Here's my advice to you;
Start with learning HTML - yes, not programming but it will give you the basics of how coding works.
Move up to VB6 - yes it's from around 1995 - 2000, but it does a great job at teaching you how
to program software with it's innovative controls and you can find tons of tutorial on how to use it
on YT.
Then move up to newer versions of VB like 2010, and now, 2012.

After that you may want to dip your toe into C++ and C#, a bit of Perl, and so on.

But yeah, start with VB and see where that will take you.
 
I just finished the first course on udacity. The structure of the teaching is setup in a format where you're forced to practice instead of just watching. I felt it was very hands on, I recommend it.
 
Learning a new programming language is the same as learning an actual language. You have to learn the terminologies, the syntax, etc.

Start with VB.net. Learn how to create functions and subs, the use of variables, basic loops, error handling. Once you have mastered 1 programming language, it will be easier for you to move on to other languages. Make sure you select the right tool for the right job.

For win automation, I suggest learning VB.net or C#. For headless browser automation, I suggest you learn Java.
 
I started with python because I do lots of video and visual effects projects and thats the de facto standard. So for me, the easiest way to learn was to actually follow side by side on a project.

If you like computer graphics then python is the way to go. Adobe products are the exception to the rule. Just about all other image manipulation programs are python or have a python api. This makes it easy to learn because you can do many practical things based what you already know.

Google also has a free python class since the creator of the language works for them.

So I would say you will learn the fastest with python given you already understand photoshop. You can find tons of image processing tutorial that you can relate to. Photoshop and After Effects uses javascript and pixelbender but its easy to transfer that over when you learn python.

I also recommend you get a copy of a software package called Nuke. Its the standard compositing tool in the visual effects industry and is python based. Its god level software and all the big studios have programmers on staff to make scripts. This will skyrocket your programming ability and understanding.
 
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