On Thu, Mar 22, 2001 at 04:32:44PM +0530, sukrit wrote:
> ...So i was just wondering why *Jay* wanted to learn *programming* (which
> if i might be allowed to add is how this thread started, until it became
> programming = C (don't flame me on this one;-))
Search google giving phrases "first language" and "programming" and see
what you get. There are many articles/papers discussing different
programming languages including C, C++, Java, Perl and Python.
Pascal was my first language learned in the first year of
engineering. And it still remains the first language in most
curriculums.
Though it might be difficult to pick up a "good" first programming
language (for a person with specific background, interests, and
intentions), it is easy to eliminate some. Personally, I wouldn't advice
one to plunge into C++ or C for the first time.
I think, a first time learner should concentrate more on expressing
algorithms in the chosen language. The emphasis should _not_ be on low
level issues (e.g., char* p = (char *)malloc(10 * sizeof(MyType))) nor
on high level, paradigm issues associated with some languages (e.g.,
typedef basic_ostream<char, char_traits<char> > ostream; -- what the
heck is going on?). Of course, Java has its own bundle of issues as
well. And so does Lisp. ...
I would vote for Pascal. Of course, if one decides to go ahead with a
different language, it would be advisable to have a mentor who can
choose an "appropriate subset" of the language.
Regards
Sankar
--
Sankaranarayanan K. V. | [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Motorola India Electronics Ltd | http://www.mot.com/miel
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