Complete Newb.
Author
I am a newb at game programming, and any simple code, I dont understand. So let me ask a few questions..
All I do know is the names of the of some programs, like C, C++, Java, etc.
Whats the easiest program to use, for somebody that is a newb.
Or does anybody know some sites that can teach me the basics?
Quote:Original post by Random NoobieThose aren't actually programs, they're programming languages. To use a programming language you need certain tools; generally the minimum is a text-editor and a compiler (or interpretter) for the language you're working with. Generally however you'd have an IDE or Integrated Development Environment which includes both of those along with some extra tools and features to make things a bit easier.
All I do know is the names of the of some programs, like C, C++, Java, etc.
Quote:Whats the easiest program to use, for somebody that is a newb.You've got a few options there.
Firstly, if you just want to make games there are some tools out there that will allow you to do most if not all of the work without programming, or only needing the use of a simpler scripting language to carry out more advanced tasks. A couple of examples include Game Maker and Adventure Game Studio. These types of programs can actually create some very good games, and are well worth looking into; there are many more that are suited to a huge range of different games out there, I'll leave it to you to search around some more if you're interested in that sort of thing.
Secondly, you could consider modding existing games. This is often a sort of halfway point between authorware solutions such as the ones mentioned above and developing a game from scratch yourself, and will often require a small amount of programming. Again, you can create very good games this way, with the caveat that they must generally be fairly similar to the original game you're modding and that you'd have to own the game you'd like to mod. I don't know what sort of games you'd like to create or what games you own, so again I'll leave it to you to do some searching for resources on whatever games you own if you'd like to try this.
Lastly, you can learn to program. This is the most difficult and time-consuming option on this list, but it's also very rewarding and gives you the most control over the final product. For this one you'd have to pick a programming language, find some good learning resources and tools, and knuckle down to start learning. If you want to follow this path I'd personally recommend starting with Python; if you'd like to try it let us know and we can point you in the direction of some good resources (the same goes for if you choose to learn a different language btw.).
Hope that helps a bit. [smile]
Python, ruby, C#, Java, C and C++. You could randomly pick any language from that list to use as a starting point to learn about programming. It doesn't really matter how easy each one is to acomplish a particular goal, since initially you will mainly be learing how to think like a program and just to organize your thoughts clearly enough to make a computer do what you want. Once you have that basic knowledge (usually gained over 3-12 months depending on dedication) then the langauge / platform you choose to progress on will start to matter, because you will be trying to acomplish more interesting goals.
I think C is an absolutely great language to learn how modern computers work, but if you don't want to take thetime to learn programming from the ground up, you might choose a more advanced language.
Java and C# are nice because they have fairly consistent libraries to help you with tasks like putting buttons on the screen, dealing with files, data, etc.
Python and ruby are nice because they are "dynamic" languages where you don't have to tell the computer as many details up front.
So the static languages (C, C++, Java, C#) help you by pointing out certain types of common mistakes before you run your program.
The Dynamic languages (python, ruby) help you by not requiring much housekeeping code to get everything working.
I like the language ruby.
The official website: http://www.ruby-lang.org
A great windows download with helpfull tools: http://rubyforge.org/frs/download.php/12751/ruby185-21.exe (which I found by clicking the "download" link at the main ruby site and then picking "Ruby 1.8.5 One-Click Installer Stable version (recommended)" right in the middle of the page. The installer comes with the language (ruby) as well as programmer's text editor (SciTE), and registers the .rb and .rbw extensions so that double-clicking on ruby files will run them like programs. Also the link it makes in the documentation folder "RubyBook Help" is the electronic version of the ENTIRE BOOK that I used to learn ruby about 4 years ago - free.
A really nice programming intro that uses ruby as its demo language: http://pine.fm/LearnToProgram/ you can skip the intro and start with chapter 0. I highly recommend you visit this site, even if you don't choose to learn much ruby, its just got some great basic programming stuff that will help you start out.
I think C is an absolutely great language to learn how modern computers work, but if you don't want to take thetime to learn programming from the ground up, you might choose a more advanced language.
Java and C# are nice because they have fairly consistent libraries to help you with tasks like putting buttons on the screen, dealing with files, data, etc.
Python and ruby are nice because they are "dynamic" languages where you don't have to tell the computer as many details up front.
So the static languages (C, C++, Java, C#) help you by pointing out certain types of common mistakes before you run your program.
The Dynamic languages (python, ruby) help you by not requiring much housekeeping code to get everything working.
I like the language ruby.
The official website: http://www.ruby-lang.org
A great windows download with helpfull tools: http://rubyforge.org/frs/download.php/12751/ruby185-21.exe (which I found by clicking the "download" link at the main ruby site and then picking "Ruby 1.8.5 One-Click Installer Stable version (recommended)" right in the middle of the page. The installer comes with the language (ruby) as well as programmer's text editor (SciTE), and registers the .rb and .rbw extensions so that double-clicking on ruby files will run them like programs. Also the link it makes in the documentation folder "RubyBook Help" is the electronic version of the ENTIRE BOOK that I used to learn ruby about 4 years ago - free.
A really nice programming intro that uses ruby as its demo language: http://pine.fm/LearnToProgram/ you can skip the intro and start with chapter 0. I highly recommend you visit this site, even if you don't choose to learn much ruby, its just got some great basic programming stuff that will help you start out.
what kind of game are you trying to make? maybe we can point you in a positive direction
tetris, pong, a 3d game, a first person shooter?
or dare i even ask..........a MMORPG?!
tetris, pong, a 3d game, a first person shooter?
or dare i even ask..........a MMORPG?!
Well as paulshady said it all depends on what you want sort of game you want to make.
If your looking to make a web based game, maybe a simple MMORPG, or even an advanced MMORPG i'd start out by learning HTML. (Thats if you don't already know it). HTML is generally just for making web pages. Then to acctually make the RPG (MMORPG) or whatever i'd learn PHP.
But if your looking to make high tech graphic games with 3D and 2D technology i'd either go for; Blitz, DarkBASIC or C++. If you choose C++ then you'd need to use a progamm like DirectX for the GFX side.
Anyway hoped this helped =P
If your looking to make a web based game, maybe a simple MMORPG, or even an advanced MMORPG i'd start out by learning HTML. (Thats if you don't already know it). HTML is generally just for making web pages. Then to acctually make the RPG (MMORPG) or whatever i'd learn PHP.
But if your looking to make high tech graphic games with 3D and 2D technology i'd either go for; Blitz, DarkBASIC or C++. If you choose C++ then you'd need to use a progamm like DirectX for the GFX side.
Anyway hoped this helped =P
Edit
Sorry for the double post, i've run out of broadband for this month so it's gone onto dial up and it's really screwing up.
[Edited by - Zelnen on October 9, 2006 1:05:39 AM]
Sorry for the double post, i've run out of broadband for this month so it's gone onto dial up and it's really screwing up.
[Edited by - Zelnen on October 9, 2006 1:05:39 AM]
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