Beginner's Entry to Programming
Hey, everyone. I'll keep this straight-to-the-point.
Here are a few tips-and-tricks I will provide for you that hopefully will help you understand the logic programming, better.
How Should You Begin Learning?
Before we get started, you need to know what a programming language is. A programming language is a set of instructions that you tell a computer of any kind to do, and hopefully it processes your input correctly. There are also many different programming languages, each serving their individual purpose in our world.
The two types of programming languages are high-level languages and low-level languages. Don't be fooled; just because one language may be in the low-level category, does not mean it's any less powerful. In fact, most low-level languages are responsible for the creation of the high-level languages.
What is a high-level language?
A high-level programming language is a language that is not designed to execute on the operating system itself but rather on a backend server, database, website, flash program, and more. High-level languages mainly deal with interface and the networking of things. These languages are often considered to be easy-to-learn and much more quick to write in than low-level languages, which we will discuss, next.
(i.e. JavaScript, GraalScript, XML, Perl, etc.)
What is a low-level language?
A low-level programming language is a language that functions on the operating system or device itself. It is considered a "close-to-the-machine" language, in the programming world. Although these languages are much more difficult to learn, they are more powerful. These types of languages offer more control over the machine itself and its hardware components. Some low-level languages can double as a support to a high-level language on a server, somewhere.
(i.e. Assembly, C, C++, etc.)
Are there any other types of programming languages?
There surely are. All existing programming languages have a "type" of language; not determined by their "level" of usage. For example, Python is recognized as a Dynamic language, meaning that it is interpreted (constantly changing) and runs on-the-fly. This can heavily render its performance to be very slow. Then there are the Statically-Typed (or simply Static / Compiled) languages, which are pre-compiled and built before the program actually runs. This means that it will take slightly more time to initialize, but it will run much faster than Dynamic languages. Let's also not forget about the Scripting languages! These languages are used mainly for in-game or in-interface programming. Languages such as GraalScript one and two would be a prime example. Both versions of GraalScript are what make 90% of everything in Graal function the way we see it. Another notable Scripting language is Lua.
An Easier Way To Process Programming:
If you are having a difficult time trying to understand how you communicate with a system to do as it is instructed to, think of it as a chef providing a recipe to another chef, where you are the chef giving the recipe.
What are some things that a recipe has that a program has?
- Ingredients (Variables and Data Types)
- Cooking Instructions (Functions, Scripting, etc.)
- Final Touches (Tweaking, Debugging, etc.)
- End Result (Finished Program)
The reason why I related programming to a recipe is because the steps involved and end result are essentially the same. You could theoretically just throw stuff together without having any prior knowledge to what it actually does, which would make the final dish taste at least decent; or you could take the time to carefully plan the instructions, so that the final product is as best as it can be.
Which Language(s) Are Best For You?
Now that we've briefly gone over the levels and types of programming languages, it's time for you to decide what you want to do with your skills. Maybe you want to design websites and make the next Facebook or GraalOnline? In that case, you should go for one of the high-level languages, as they are designed for online usage. Maybe you want to make a video game or software that lets you do other things? In this scenario, you would be better off learning one of the lower-level languages. Nothing is black and white, in the programming world; there's countless ways to do one thing. You also might want to learn both levels, as well.
What would I recommend? Well, I took the time to learn both levels of languages because I wanted to be interchangeable and versatile with my hobby. If it's simplicity and quick-to-design work you want to do, I'd say shoot for JavaScript or another high-level language. If you're looking for performance and efficiency at run-time, definitely go for C or C++.
Finally, you more than likely will need to learn more than just one language in your lifetime, if you decide that this is a career for you. The reason for this is that parts of your masterpiece may require services that only the opposite-level language has to offer (i.e. GraalOnline has servers written in JavaScript or another language but have a client for all operating systems that are most likely written in a lower-level language). I thought that I would be okay with just Java and HTML, then I realized that I also wanted to have experience with the actual CPU and understand how it worked (for fun); that was when I picked up C and C++.
Hopefully this gives you an insight as to what programming is and where to go, from here!
