C++ as a hobby. simple questions :D

[squal90]

hi! i am new to this forum and new to world of programming. I recently checked out a book at my local library "c++ for dummies". I am currently reading it and it is helping me a lot. I have also made some research on the internet. While surfing the web i have found people that started learning c++ at the age of 10!.. The library book mentions algebra a lot and i don't think a 10 year old can understand that easily. from what i know algebra plays a big role in c++. so how did this people started to learn at that young age?


thank you :)

[davidcpp]

do you know who is the youngest programmer in the world??? ... in 2007 or 2008 i learnt that the youngest programmer was 9 year old boy from Tailand .... and he had written games for i-phones :))) ... so everything is possible :)

[helios]

from what i know algebra plays a big role in c++.

Not really.
All the math you really need to know to learn the language is arithmetic. Knowing some mathematical notation helps, too, since most books don't really go into it. Like a+b*c==a+(b*c); knowing that would help with understanding precedence.
Any other math is not necessary for the language itself, but may be depending on the application you're working on. For example, knowing what a mathematical function is doesn't help with knowing what a C++ function is, except in understanding why the syntax looks like that and why they're called functions. On the other hand, you need to know what a function is if you're writing a program that graphs functions.

Boolean logic, however, is basic in programming, but beginning programming books do cover it.

[10oTURfi]

Wow.. 9 yr old programmer?
I tried to learn C++ when I was 13, but I just couldnt understand it...

[squal90]

thanks guys for you opinions. so any recommendations or tips for a beginner?

[zb0S216C]

squal90 wrote:

any recommendations or tips for a beginner? (sic)

Here's a few:

1) Don't jump ahead of yourself.
2) Read a recommended book, and avoid the books which give the impression that the writer had no idea how to program him/herself.
3) If you've learnt about something, capitalize on it by doing exercises (not sit-ups).
4) Progress at a rate that you can handle.
5) If you have coding troubles, try to solve the problem yourself before seeking advice on a forum.
6) If you run into information regarding something you've already learnt, read it anyway; you might learn something new.

_Wazzak

[squal90]

thanks for your advice :D

[ascii]

Also, from my personal experience For Dummies books are worse than terrible. I'd try to get something a little more "advanced" and recommended. I'd recommend either the The C++ Black Book, Ivor Hortons Beginning Visual C++ (2008 or 2010) or C++ Primer Plus. Not to say you should return your For Dummies book, but I'd recommend picking up one of these books because they have vastly more information and will be much more helpful to you in the end.

[erikn]

it helps me to read more than one book on it simultaneously. and read online tutorials too.
in doing that, it's possible to see the same concepts explained multiple ways by different people. also the more sources for your info, the better in my opinion for resolving discrepancies between any two texts. good luck!

[Zephni]

When you say algebra, maybe your talking about variables. Many tutorials begin variable tutorials with somthing like "Remember algebra from school", and then proceed to show examples like:

int a = 0;
int b = 1;

But just remember to start from the very beggining, as this may look like nothing to you right now.

[cnoeval]

thanks guys for you opinions. so any recommendations or tips for a beginner?

Get your ass to Thailand and find that kid!

Edit: Also, WRITE code at least as much as you READ about coding. The activity itself is more important than reading about it.