The basics of code/programming

I would like to learn, always have wanted to. Does anyone have any good links/guides/textbooks where one could start without going to college?

 

Learncodethehardway.org, codecademy.com, and codeproject.com

 

i think khan academy has something to offer, check it out, normally they have great tutorials.

 

http://www.tutorialspoint.com/computer_programming/computer_programming_tutorial.pdf
http://home.iitj.ac.in/~ramana/pds/intro_comp_programming.pdf

 

Lynda.com has some great tutorials. I've learned what little coding I know from them. And I only say little because I haven't pursued it further, but when I finally do, I will grab some more tutorials from them.

This is actually a nice little run down of the basics to get you started, and also includes a list of where you can learn to code online.

 

Take this: Introduction to Computer Science and Programming Using Python

You can temper it with the resources above.

 

Use W3Schools Online Web Tutorials as reading material to learn the basics.

There are three distinguishable Computer Languages called Markup languages, Scripting Languages, and Programming languages. There are more than those three, but it's important to know the differences between those three before moving on to others.

Markup languages use a tagging system which is interpreted by web browsers or other clients, the most known mark-up languages are HTML and XML.

Scripting languages can be thought about as simplified and weaker version of programming languages that follow similar human-readable syntax. They are typically interpreted by a client rather than compiled.
Ex. JavaScript, LUA, PHP, and Python.

Programming languages are used to communicate with a machine. A programmer is a translator between humans and the computer, designing complex behaviors with algorithms the device can compute to produce a result.
Ex. C, C++, Java

My suggestion is to start with understanding the tagging system of HTML via w3schools and try to include a little bit of CSS which is a style sheet language. Create a few web pages on using Sublime Text or Notepad++ using HTML and CSS before moving on to scripting languages.

Once again, you can learn scripting languages and basic concepts on W3Schools; but someone mentioned Lynda.com up above. That is an incredible resource for any upcoming developer. They have high-quality tutorials that will increase your speed of comprehension. I would recommend starting with JavaScript or Python.

JavaScript because it would allow you to expand on your previously created websites with practical knowledge of web programming.

Python because it forces you to use elegant syntax grammar that most people follow for clarification when future readers (including yourself in the future) will read the code.

Once you understand the syntax of JavaScript or Python, then you're a novice programmer. At this point you're going to realize you need to take a step back and decide what you're most interested in the development world. In our modern age, there is a million different concepts to understand as a programmer; but you should focus on a few interesting topics. Start with deciding if you're interested in web development or application or mobile development.

Find a udemy.com or lynda.com tutorial series to help you learn an Integrated Development Environment (IDE) associated with your topic of interest. You will then begin working with a bunch of new concepts like database queries and server administration. It can truly become overwhelming at certain points, but stick in there. Take your time, and a year from now you will be considered an Intermediate Programmer and have an opportunity to freelance or enter a career.

 

You can find free C+ guides on thepiratebay

 

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