Hello.

Programming seems quite daunting to me, but I do want to do it. Im not exactly sure what I want to do just yet, as I don't know the subject well enough, but I like building things.

I'm really good at memorizing rather quickly. I can memorize 20 words in order in about 20 seconds for instance. It's not to brag, in fact im not at all quick to grasp new concepts, so it is sort of a trade-off. Memorization is not the same as learning, but it is the beginning, for me atleast. I have found that i learn better if I memorize a few examples first and then understand something from there, through practice. I know simply memorizing source-code won't help me, I'm not trying to take the easy way out.

I need to split something I want to learn into parts and do a little at a time so I feel like I'm getting somewhere.

I'm assuming game programming is a specific application of general programming.

My question is : For a general idea of how to program ( structures, order of priority etc ) what would you recommend as a rough list, and in what order ?

I read up some, and chose Python as my first language. I'll move on to C and C++ afterwards, but probably not very soon.

In order to learn Programming and more specifically Game Programming A Person has to also learn how to teach ( This part will come as you Progress )

Programming is acheived by breaking things down into Task. Then breaking those task down into instructions. When you first learn to make programs, program each task individually, this way that code is isolated. Make it work!! Then add it to other code/Task in a program and make them work together.

Make a notebook, because you will not remember everything. I always Print out my Small Task programs once they work and keep them organized in a binder for personal reference.

I suggest learning how to Display information on the screen, Getting Information from the user(you), & Saving that information on a Disk Will give you a good foundation to start.

Once you have progressed beyond "HELLO WORLD" . Program yourself an address book.

Learning how to program is really about learning how to think like a programmer. You break a problem down into smaller tasks and perform the actions which are best suited to complete those tasks. Once you get that first language under your belt learning a new language is mostly getting to know the syntax.

Programming games is quite challenging, so I would focus primarily on teaching yourself a programming language first - this doesn't have to take too long if you're willing to practice regularly. My recommendation would be to pick a language and then find a good book which will give you exercises to work on (do the exercises! Regular practice is the most important part)

I found the book 'accelerated c++' quite good - it's all in the console window so nothing snazzy but a solid foundation for your coding adventures. You might want to start with a language like java as it is a bit simpler but similar enough to c++ that it won't require allot of effort to switch over at a later date.

This is personal opinion, but don't bother with those "language X in 21 days" books. When you're starting out it's very important you understand the lines of code that you're putting in so pick a nice 600 pager and spend a few weeks with it. I hear "head first java" is quite good. Have fun!

Thank you for the replies.

Im working on a few different series of video tutorials in various languages at the moment. It would probably be best to go for a single language at the beginning, but the basic concepts of the languages are laid out quite clearly, and there are several example programs that are worked through. They should end up giving me a decent starting point to programming.

If anyone is interested, the videos can be found on this page http://thenewboston.org/tutorials.php under the computer programming section.

In order to learn Programming and more specifically Game Programming A Person has to also learn how to teach ( This part will come as you Progress )

Programming is acheived by breaking things down into Task. Then breaking those task down into instructions. When you first learn to make programs, program each task individually, this way that code is isolated. Make it work!! Then add it to other code/Task in a program and make them work together.

Make a notebook, because you will not remember everything. I always Print out my Small Task programs once they work and keep them organized in a binder for personal reference.

I suggest learning how to Display information on the screen, Getting Information from the user(you), & Saving that information on a Disk Will give you a good foundation to start.

Once you have progressed beyond "HELLO WORLD" . Program yourself an address book.

I love teaching, so that's definately a good motivator. I can see what you mean ( i think ) with how knowing how to teach is good for programmers, it usually also happens in increments, and you need to give clear reasons for things you tell the people you're teaching. The only way to really teach someone anything is to actually know what you're talking about.

I read something a while back about how teaching actually made you understand something better, seeing as you have to actually rephrase it, sometimes multiple times.

When i write my own code after the tutorials on the basics, il follow the incremental approach at first and see how it goes from there.

Learning how to program is really about learning how to think like a programmer. You break a problem down into smaller tasks and perform the actions which are best suited to complete those tasks. Once you get that first language under your belt learning a new language is mostly getting to know the syntax.

Programming games is quite challenging, so I would focus primarily on teaching yourself a programming language first - this doesn't have to take too long if you're willing to practice regularly. My recommendation would be to pick a language and then find a good book which will give you exercises to work on (do the exercises! Regular practice is the most important part)

I found the book 'accelerated c++' quite good - it's all in the console window so nothing snazzy but a solid foundation for your coding adventures. You might want to start with a language like java as it is a bit simpler but similar enough to c++ that it won't require allot of effort to switch over at a later date.

This is personal opinion, but don't bother with those "language X in 21 days" books. When you're starting out it's very important you understand the lines of code that you're putting in so pick a nice 600 pager and spend a few weeks with it. I hear "head first java" is quite good. Have fun!

Thank you for the recommendations. I learn a lot better with video tutorials than with books, at least when i begin on a new subject, so I'll give "accelerated C++" a try after those.

I agree, dumbed down books are usually dumbed down, not really a good idea to not learn the basics properly if you're learning something new, so no worries, I have never trusted anything making overly-bold claims.

Programming is more or less being in tune with machine constraints and thinking like a processor. My first programs were written in MS-BASIC but until I learned how the hardware effectively operated, I struggled with the basics of why a piece of code worked, or more necessarily, why it didn't fail. Learn some assembler. Write some simple code and look at the output of the compiler. Write a simple compiler for a simple language. Get dirty. Assassins know their weapons by the blood on them. Know yours.

I'll jump into assembler first time i don't understand what's happening.

If you like bitesized chunks of learning look at codecademy's python course, it's 5 min interactive lessons that are really easy to get into. Give it 15 mins and I'm sure you'll be hooked.

The people over at dreamincode seem to think codeacademy is over simplified, which really is a shame, since I love the interactive approach it takes. I can't really form a proper opinion of it at the moment, il have a look at it if the video tutorials don't work out.

Thanks again for the replies guys, got some interesting tips :)

I actually recommend just learning programming yourself.

Watching someone program does not make you a better programmer. You might remember the concept but if you physically do it yourself by reinforcing it, you get more out of it.

Game programming can be slightly challenging even with general programming knowledge but with enough passion and persistence on your part, you can make a game.

I watch the video, do the same things the guy does, whilst figuring it out, if I can't, then I google it.

I use the videos more as a general direction. I do the same thing with blender, so far it is my most efficient means of learning : watch, do, watch, do, etc... when I know at least some basics I can begin to think about it.

It doesn't matter whether it is through books or by whatever other means, it's usually through motor skills (physically doing) and then thinking that I learn best.

I don't know about you, but I did not learn to ride a bike without someone telling me how it works, and that speed helps you balance.