Quote Originally Posted by loganwm View Post
If you've got some time, go to cprogramming.com and go through both the C and C++ tutorial sets to see some of the differences and test some code in each.
As a rather new programmer myself[1], I heartily endorse this suggestion. Programming, like Linux, has a community that (in my experience) is quite willing to welcome and accomodate others, provided that the newcomers are there to learn. Because of this, at least one tutorial website exists for any given language. In addition to the numerous resources listed in this very forum [check the "sticky" subjects on the forum main page], I've learned about several languages simply by entering "learn [language]" into my search engine of choice. For example, I've never heard anybody mention the language Haskell outside of this forum, yet "learn Haskell" provides dozens of helpful websites.

Re: Learning multiple languages:
As others have stated, I believe that it's easier to learn additional languages than it is to learn the first. When learning the first language, you need to learn several other things as well: syntax, the importance of commenting, what header files and libraries do. You also need to learn to think like a programmer, that is, to break problems down into manageable tasks, then provide the computer with orders that accomplish those tasks. Once you've done that, learning a second, third, or tenth language is much easier.

-- A.
[1] My story