Programming

[Reclusion]

I recently switched majors from Computer Engineering to Public Relations/Sociology.

Like all these other guys have said, REALLY make sure this is what you want. I spent two years in high school thinking engineering/programming was going to be the best thing since sliced bread for me, but it couldn't be farther from the truth. Thought I'd come out making the big bucks, plus I wanted to prove to myself that I could do it (even if I didn't like it).

Between becoming a total recluse (minus seeing my study group), lack of sleep, and not enjoying doing any of the circuit stuff, I was about ready to drop out of college and beg for money near the liquor stores here in Lubbock.

I'd suggest a language, but the only one I'm the least bit fluent in is C++ (and not really THAT fluent).

You might want to look at what you do in your spare time or for extracurricular activities. If there are any things you do that you really enjoy (i.e. I competed on the speech team in high school, and probably will next semester in college), you might want to find a major that might incorporate these strengths.

Basically, it boils down to doing what you're pasionate about. Don't let money, etc. be such a driving factor.

[IceStorm]

I used to be in it, did 3 years of it but recently changed to something better and higher paying

-Epi

Which is?!

[ConcreteSchlyrd]

Man-whoring.

[IceStorm]

I need a low size java compiler.. aka sdk. The last java sdk i tryed to download took forever

[BLeeN]

Try this book
Design Patterns by Richard Helm

[SEAL]

I can read code like hell i could find errors and identify everything easy.. Now i just need to practice making up my own. Do you guys have any links for tutorials for java or anything that would assist me?

there are many things to try to start with.
maybe ya own address book or a alarm clock
slightly more complicated, but kinda fun to make: the game of life
(http://www.math.com/students/wonders/life/life.html)

[Vertigo5]

Personally, I like the book "Thinking In Java" by Bruce Eckel http://www.mindview.net/Books/TIJ/. It's available free in electronic form, and it will give you a nice introduction to Java and object-oriented programming.

Downloading the latest Sun Java SDK and the documentation is gonna be about 70Meg in total, so i'd leave it overnight if you're on dial-up. You're not going to find anything smaller that's actually useful for compiling Java programs.

I started off learning BASIC on an Atari 65XE (writing simple games and such), followed by C when I eventually got a PC. On my CS course, we were taught Scheme (lisp) as a first language (http://www.swiss.ai.mit.edu/projects/scheme/) but I wouldn't recommend this as a way to start.

[Miku19]

Quite a good C++ site, covering all the basics and the more advanced stuff:

Game Tutorials

EDIT: I started with C++, went to Java for a bit, and now I'm back to C++ again. The basics of C++ are pretty easy (iostream and stuff)

[Rob Dougan]

OK, this is only my personal experience programming so you may come away thinking me as a freak.

I first learned BASIC on an Apple ][c when I was five (got sick for nine weeks and had nothing better to do). Since then I've been fascinated with programming. I personally enjoy the theoretical side of computer science and as such enjoy learning as many programming languages as I can.

Here are the languages I consider to be a must if you wish to be fully functional in any language that you come across: (Now in the order in which I think they should be learned)
1. Pascal - Everyone has to start somewhere and this sure as hell beats BASIC. Yes, you can learn Delphi but that throws in a bunch of OO stuff. The main goal of learning Pascal is to understand procedural programming. Learn this one first. The language is amazingly simple in the fact that it teaches you the easy concepts in a straightforward manner.
2. Java - Dock> said it and I'll repeat it. Java is a great language to know. Of course, this is one of the most verbose languages you will ever see. Granted, Java has a weird view on the object-oriented paradigm (for true OO, check out Smalltalk...I'll admit that autoboxing has brought Java closer, though...but single inheritance and all you give me in return are implementations? come on), however, it solves a lot of the problems C++ has (multiple inheritance and templates...I hate you forever). The really nice thing about Java is that it's a true compile once, run everywhere language. If you use Java to make a cross-platform GUI app, as long as you run the program under some window manager, it should work properly.
3. C - If you want to better understand how a computer works, C is a wonderful language to know. Nothing like having a program segfault on you
4. Lisp (Scheme) - One of the most powerful languages you'll ever come across. You'll need a really good editor since this is considered to be a "parentheses bomb". However, this language has features that you will find in no other language (macros anyone?) that can significantly change the way you approach problems and increase your productivity.
5. Perl - Ok, this one is highly debatable and I know it. This is considered to be a line noise language since it uses a lot of symbols and weird operands. In terms of the programming language design and theory, this language offers little to nothing. So why am I recommending it? It's an amazingly powerful language in that it offers things such as regular expressions (not the same as those presented in discrete math since it can backtrack) as well as symbol table manipulation (not as advanced as macros in Lisp). On top of that, it's a useful language to know. CPAN has over 2Gb's of readily available modules to do anything from creating a webserver to helping look for sequences in DNA (ala BioPerl).

Ok, now for some languages to learn mostly for fun and profit: (In no particular order)
1. Prolog - Nothing like first-order predicate calculus.
2. Haskell - Really fun language. Very strongly typed language. In terms of paradigms, falls into the same category as Lisp (functional).
3. FORTRAN - Still used in quite a number of places. However, most in the engineering and mathematics worlds have switched to Matlab or Mathematica.
4. COBOL - Compileable English papers. If you thought Java was verbose, you haven't seen anything yet. I'd call it pseudocode but pseudocode isn't as specific and this will actually compile. Also, it's a nice blast from the past. Now also comes in an OO flavor.
5. C++ - Comes in handy if you want to write a serious GUI-based app in Windows.
6. SQL - Not really a programming language (ANSI-92 isn't turing complete although some implementations can have views that select on themselves...ie DB2). However, this is the language of most databases and if you want to write a program that handles any amount of data, this is what you need to know. Each database has its own dialect and none of them follow ANSI-92 exactly. Note: Many will recommend MySQL but PostgreSQL is closer to the ANSI-92 spec than MySQL (if you're at all interested in SQL and having an easier transition between the different databases). If you learn PostgreSQL first, MySQL will piss you off with the features it's missing. So choose whichever you want
7. PHP - I'll never be a fan of the language. However, I can't think of any other language that allows you to write a simple web-based app as quickly. Note that I said simple. If it gets deeply complex, then I'd opt for a different language (ie Lisp (orbitz.com actually uses it...as I said, amazingly powerful), Java (especially if multiple developers are involved), Perl (if you don't like Lisp), or C/C++ (if you need the absolute fastest solution and time and money are no object)).
8. Python and Ruby - These are considered to be the more sane alternatives to Perl. I happen to prefer Ruby over Python, but that's just me (I HATE forced fixed indentation). Both offer an alternate view of what an OO language should be.
9. Smalltalk - The first OO language. I don't know anyone who develops with it....besides me (even then, only so I don't forget the syntax).
10. VB - This one's purely for profit so do as you will.
11. C# - Pretty darn close to Java if you ask me.

That's about it. I don't know if any of this helps. If you read nothing else, read the rest of this paragraph (I guess I should have put this at the beginning or something, eh? ... damn Canadians). I can honestly say the more languages you expose yourself to, the better you'll be able to pick up any other language. All I can tell you is that each language is like a tool in a toolbox. No tool is appropriate for every problem. Also, once you learn a language, do not become a nut and just stick with that one language. In your research of different languages, you'll come across a lot of flame wars over which language is best. Every language has its uses and just because it doesn't do X very well doesn't mean that it has no merits at all.

Sorry, that turned out much longer than I expected

[Variable]

If you become a programmer, it does not mean you will spend every day writing code, sure there might some casual days when you write 5-6 hours of code straight.
You sit in meetings, talk to clients, make docs, read specs, code, test, update docs, go to project meetings etc. This is all based in stories of several coders who do it for a living, and the wage atleast in here for a middle class coder is about 2000-3000€ /month, so i wouldnt complain. If i remember correct 60% of the whole project is thinking how to do the shit, meet clients, do tests etc and the 40% is coding, and that is based in the book i have to read for my university entrance test.

[Epinephrine]

If you become a programmer, it does not mean you will spend every day writing code, sure there might some casual days when you write 5-6 hours of code straight.
You sit in meetings, talk to clients, make docs, read specs, code, test, update docs, go to project meetings etc. This is all based in stories of several coders who do it for a living, and the wage atleast in here for a middle class coder is about 2000-3000€ /month, so i wouldnt complain. If i remember correct 60% of the whole project is thinking how to do the shit, meet clients, do tests etc and the 40% is coding, and that is based in the book i have to read for my university entrance test.

Aye, he's right. My brother's been in the field for almost 7 years now. He does computer systems consulting with a big 4 firm though, and most of his time these days isn't about programming. Although he programmed insane amount (12 hour days) in his first few years, now he's mostly meeting with clients, working with them to develop a system, designing that system and managing a team to create that system for the clients. Overall he doesn't do too much strict programming anymore although I guess he does some.

Unlike graduating with a programming degree at a community college, or one of those new fangled 'IT' degrees at some universities (or at least from the ones my friends have taken), a serious computer science degree (B.Sc. in Computer Science) at a reputable university should land you a pretty good job. If you're actually smart and hardworking you could easily make 70k/year within a few years without too much in the ways of updating yourself and constantly reading about new programming techniques on your own time (as opposed to company time).

-Epi

[Fallen Angel]

If you become a programmer, it does not mean you will spend every day writing code, sure there might some casual days when you write 5-6 hours of code straight.
You sit in meetings, talk to clients, make docs, read specs, code, test, update docs, go to project meetings etc. This is all based in stories of several coders who do it for a living, and the wage atleast in here for a middle class coder is about 2000-3000€ /month, so i wouldnt complain. If i remember correct 60% of the whole project is thinking how to do the shit, meet clients, do tests etc and the 40% is coding, and that is based in the book i have to read for my university entrance test.

Very true. Programming is not just about writing the code.
Infact, like I said before, the design of an application takes up most of the time. Most hours are spent in endless meetings with management and employees, analyzing a companies business logic and creating neat little diagrams and models. Once you've got everything mapped and the client agrees on every single point, then and only then can you start coding the application. 60-40? Personally I'd say more like 70-30...

[pv=nrt]

this is one of the oldest posts i could find

[Mr. Peanuts]

If you play your cards right, you could go into the games industry as a junior programmer for £250,000 per year.

[Nockm]

Heh typo, right?