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Well there's all those books and internet guides out "learn c++ in a week, 21 days, whatever insanely low amount of time here."
Can you actually learn c++ in 21 days and be able to effectively program with it? or whats the minimum you think it would take to actualy learn c++?
Thanks for your opinions! =D
Everything is relative.
It all depends how complicated programs you intend to do, and obviously, how talented, motivated, and dedicated you are. That said, I don't think, in most cases, anyone will feel like they really master any programming language after only 21 days of training.
You can find some opinions here (recent GD thread): http://cboard.cprogramming.com/showthread.php?t=67951
Cheers
I don't think you can ever learn a programming language because there is almost an infinite amount to learn. At first it's all about learning basic constructs and syntax. Then, you learn and become facile with the more advanced concepts like classes, polymorphism, and inheritance. Then, you can learn about program design and advanced program design, and the millions of things you can write programs to do, and you can become an expert in one area, but there are still thousands of other areas where you are not an expert, and it goes on and on.Quote:
or whats the minimum you think it would take to actualy learn c++?
I don't think the question is ever whether "you know C++". The question is more like: "how long have you been programming with C++, and in what areas, and what programs have you written, and have you worked in combination with other programmers to write apps, or do you develop apps on your own, etc., etc.
I have book called "Learn Game Programming in 28 days" which is sort of the same thing.
It is very hard to learn anything as complex as a programming langauge in that amount of time like the others said. It took me a year or so to learn BASIC, but I was only a lad at school then, and C and C++ were a little out of my leauge. For somone who had an imense IQ and really got the idea quick (not me!) Then maybe it would be possible.
I think you would be hard pushed to just cope with the syntax of c++ after 21 days. You would have no hope of using c++ even half-properly after just 21 days.
I feel that with something like a programming language where you can't learn EVERYTHING there is to know, it's best to learn what's useful for yourself and what you need to accomplish your task.
Like talking, you don't need to know every single word in the dictionary to communicate effectively.
the SAMS publishing learn * in 24 hours / 21 days actually state inside the cover, this is only a foundation in *.
in effect, nope, you get a grounding in the language, but you can't honestly say you are up to "professional" programming.
In 21 days ?
Learning C language core is possible but runtime library, API and advanced techniques is a different story.
I program in C/C++ since early eighties and still have refference books and helpfiles opened almost all time :)
My opinion:
Clearly, no one will ever know everything about a language, but there is a point at which the learning curve shallows out, and you can use the language with a decent level of proficiency. At this point, I think you can be said to "know" the language.
Of course, how long this takes depends on a) prior programming experience (expecially with similar languages), b) amount of time dedicated to learning, and the quality of learning (i.e. challenging one's-self but not overdoing it), c) some "innate" capacity to learn this type of thing (or previous experience with similar technical fields), and so on. So, I find it absurd to make any sort of claim regarding being able to learn the language in any specified amount of time.
The problem I find with these books is that they teach the language syntax. Sure, it is possible to figure out the syntax of C/C++ in under a month, but there is a difference between knowing the syntax and knowing how to make effective use of the language and its features (not perfect use, but effective use). This is much more likely to develop through working through much larger examples, looking at the design considerations other, more experienced programmers use, etc.
"You can teach a monkey to program, but you can't teach a monkey computer science." :cool:
Cheers
This guy has a suggested way to learn to program well, and I think that if you work at it hard enough, you could be decent at the end of his timescale. But it can't be rushed, and you have to work hard.
Those books don't mean 21 days as in you will know how to program well three weeks from when you start. They use "days" or "hours" to refer to individual lessons, and as has been said they aren't intended to provide everything you need to know to be an expert. Hopefully you will spend several days or weeks practicing with what you've learned in each lesson so that you commit it to memory better than if you just fly through the book.
You can be effective with C++ after only a few weeks learning the language, but that doesn't mean you'll be good at it. That would probably take years.
I didn't take C++ in college, but I'd say that you could completely cover ANSI/ISO C++ in 2 semesters. A book like Teach Yourself C++ in 21 Days by Jesse Liberty, will take you through the first 3 or 4 weeks of that process.
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And, Programming is HARD! I’ve come to this conclusion after realizing that professional programmers make more mistakes than any other professionals. Of course, they fix 99% of their bugs before anyone else sees their program... But, programmers do make mistakes every day. I find this ironic, because programming languages are very precisely defined, and really simple compared to human languages.
My $0.02: If you already know how to program in one or more other languages, you have a chance at learning C++ in 21, especially if one of those other languages is OO. The syntax of the language is not that challenging, but programming logic, algorithms, and OOP concepts can be.
Just figuring out character arrays, char pointers, and string literals will take longer than 21 days.Quote:
The syntax of the language is not that challenging