Which programme language is good for non-programmer?

[dbbolton]

i've only made it to 'hello world' with javascript and c++, if that's any help to you.

[Masoris]

just out of curiosity why do you add an me to end end of program and use an s instead of z in organize?

is this a different english dialect or is english simply not your first language?

Both right. English is not my first language. And I'm learning British English now.
When program means about computer. program and programme both right spelling in British English.
But most time only programme is right spelling - when it not means about computer.
And -ize and -ise are both right spelling in British English as I know. e.g. 'organise and organize', 'realise and realize' and so on.

[troymcdavis]

A professor in my computer science department whom I respect very much claims that Turing is a great pedagogical language, but has no vocational value (it won't mean anything on a job application). I learned on Java, and it has its benefits, but I/O is madly complicated and Java overhead is killer, among other issues. I personally vote for Python, though.

[Tundro Walker]

A professor in my computer science department whom I respect very much claims that Turing is a great pedagogical language, but has no vocational value (it won't mean anything on a job application). I learned on Java, and it has its benefits, but I/O is madly complicated and Java overhead is killer, among other issues. I personally vote for Python, though.

LOL! I totally agree with this. When it comes to a resume, folks don't look for

- computer modelling
- system design
- software design
- relational database design

...the look for ...

- Java, HTML, C++, UML, SQL, Oracle, (etc)

I constantly get a kick out of this, because once you know the fundamentals, it's easy to pick up different "languages" which are simply sub-sets of a primary skill, or program/apps that make using the fundamental skill easier (like an IDE).

Some tech recruiting companies are actually getting smart, and don't just look for the latest "languages", since they've realized programming languages are like fads that change so fast. There's so many languages these days, and a lot of them do the same things (or at least have the potential to).

But, there still are tech recruiting companies that don't just want someone who can code Java...you have to know "NetBeans", because that's what the job hiring out will use. Pfft... There's a minor learning curve when using a new IDE, but most visually look the same these days, because programmers have gotten used to a standard look about them. Doing something drastically different then the norm is a good way to become obsolete.

EG: like a spreadsheet program coming out to compete with Excel (the current king), and NOT looking somewhat like Excel. If it had a totally different interface, etc, it'd be hard for folks to migrate. However, with a fundamental knowledge of what spreadsheets do and are for, it would be easier for some to pick it up. But, having a common interface makes it easier.

Yeah, it's sad. So, knowing programming fundamentals and good convention isn't a "marketable" skill for recruiters to pick up on and hire you over others. But, when you work with other folks who know what they're doing, they'll know it, and thank their lucky stars you know it. It's just one of those "intangible" things that you can't put on a piece of paper, or that's subjective and means different things to others, like "good work ethic", or "good problem-solving skills". Seriously, lots of people put that on their resumes, and some folks have it while others don't, so it gets ignored. For recruiters, it comes down to the latest "buzz" words you have on your resume that are repeated over and over so you pop-up first when their software is scanning resumes for "Java programmer". But, when you work with others, they'll realize if you have "good work ethic" or "problem solving skills", and those out-weigh just knowing Java. Because lots of people know Java, but just knowing Java doesn't make you a team-player or good worker. It's all the intangible skills that separate the good workers from the rest.

[Rob Alderson]

Going back a few years I learned Pascal & Cobol at college & self taught myself with Delphi. Once you know the basics of one language they're all pretty simple to migrate to.

[Tomosaur]

I'd say python for easiest to pick up. Here's a hello world program in python:

print "Hello World!\n"

Here's the same thing in Java:

class Hello{
  public static void main(String[] argv){
    System.out.println("Hello World!");
  }
}

[use a name]

Not as a serious suggestion, but if you want to know more about the internal workings of your computer, you can always do some linux assembly. It's real difficult, but it may put certain issues you run into (any language) in a different perspective.

[the.dark.lord]

http://tryruby.hobix.com/

Play with this ruby tutorial, its fun

I would recommend Ruby myself too.

[proalan]

I first programmed in basic like this

10 print "hello world"
run

it is shorter than in java, but java is helpful as Object Orientation goes hand in hand with modern software engineering principles. It may look ugly sometimes but its a solid disciplined approach to designing and coding robust and reliable software.

C++ is probably the most widely used, but java is easier to learn imho as the garbage collector deals with the memory management aspects, which can be difficult to spot when using C++ in the form of memory leaks. Java is also the most strictly typed language I know which in theory is supposed to make programs more secure for example java will ensure that if you create an array, you will only be able to access within the array where as in C++ this concept is not enforced and is commonly exploited to hack and break programs.

HTML CSS aren't programming languages, you can't use them to solve problems e.g. simple arithmetics 1+1 etc... They are intended to be used to present data.

PHP is another language similar to java/C++ which relaxes the type strictness and contains an extensive library of common functions, it is actually built in C++. I can't decide if PHP is a programming language or a scripting one as it feels like both.

There are many types of programming languages classified in the following categories

Imperative (C++/Java/smalltalk)
Procedural (C, Pascal)
functional (Haskell)
logical (Prolog)

are just some examples.

[steven8]

I would recommend Ruby myself too.

I did the 'Try ruby'. Very cool.