Ide

[MATThematical]

Hi, all!

Can anyone recommend a good IDE for Ubuntu that supports multiple programming languages? I'm just starting to learn programming and in particular, I'd like to have an IDE that supports both BASIC and C, as well as other languages.

[Simian Man]

BASIC is very rarely used as a general purpose programming language any more. C is still commonly used, but isn't a great choice for beginners because it makes certain things much more challenging than other languages. Is there a particular reason you want to learn those two?

[flick]

Eclipse seems to be a popular IDE.

[MATThematical]

BASIC is very rarely used as a general purpose programming language any more. C is still commonly used, but isn't a great choice for beginners because it makes certain things much more challenging than other languages. Is there a particular reason you want to learn those two?

I was reading a book (Beginning Programming for Dummies) and it said that BASIC is a good starting point, as well as C. Do you have any suggestions for a good starting point?

[Yes]

How old is that book?

I'd say start with something like C, but I'm sure there are going to be tons of people who will disagree with me. I don't know if anyone would suggest starting with BASIC though.

[Simian Man]

I'd personally suggest Python. It's a very powerful language with a nice syntax and without a lot of the dark corners that C has. It also is used for a lot of Linux software so there are plenty of libraries and support available.

[maximinus_uk]

I don't think anyone will suggest starting with Basic. Personally, I would learn with Python because it's got lots of libraries to do the hard work for you and a tone of resources on the internet to get you started.

[surfer]

i strongly support the python advice given above! very nice and powerful language, simple to learn and yet a good starting point for C.

aaand if your as mathematical as your name suggests, python is the language used by sage (http://www.sagemath.org).

[wkhasintha]

C or C++ is a good choice , for an IDE Code::blocks (http://www.codeblocks.org/) is recommended ,

[RobertL]

Forget BASIC if you're past kindergarten. I agree that Python is a good choice. If you decide to learn Python get the book "Python Pocket Reference", 4th Edition, by Mark Lutz, published by O'Reilly. It's a concise and handy reference to keep next to the keyboard. You'll also want a tutorial book to guide you though the concepts.

[Dragonbite]

Basic, Visual Basic and VB.NET (Visual Basic .NET) are all probably the least supported language in Linux. If you really want to use Basic or VB, then I would suggest looking at Gambas.

If you are looking for general programming, Python is well supported in Linux and in multiple IDEs.

You could always try Java, which is cross platform, and has a number of IDEs available for it. Eclipse's original focus was for Java, and I have found NetBeans to be the most Visual Studio-like IDE for Java. Also NetBeans can include Swing graphic user interface making it easy to build an included GUI (or so I've read).

If you are looking for web programming, then PHP is also a good language to look into. Actually I use NetBeans for PHP.

Vala I have seen being used for a couple of programs, the latest of which is Shotwell, the up-and-coming Photo manager program.

[PabloH]

In addition to using Python, I would recommend that you choose a different book. That one sounds dated. Regardless, I don't see the appeal in a book that says it is written for dummies-- a book written for the uniformed, perhaps. A book written for dummies? No.

There are plenty of web tutorials available for Python that are geared to beginners (google python programming tutorials), so you don't have to buy a book anyway.