How Long and How Much?

how long will it take a total noobie like me to learn c++ off the net and be able to program a game with graphics like, ragnarok online?

Also one last thing is programing a game with online capablities extremely hard?

thanks

73 years.

'nuff said, now start trying to learn.

serioiusly how long do you think it would take, and where should i got to learn.

the tutorials on this webpage seem kinda breif.

plz help.

Have you ever seen a newborn win the olympics in sprinting? Didn't think so. Learn to crawl, and then learn how to walk first.

This site contains a LOT of tutorials on C++. You're going to need to make Hello World and Tic-Tac-Toe and all that other stuff before you make Doom. You might want to try getting a book as well. Oh, and $5 says that you don't need to ask which books are good...look around on the board a bit if you think you do.

thanks for the humorous reply and not getting ........ed at me newbity. thanks alot.

Quote:

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Originally posted by loki_cmr
how long will it take a total noobie like me to learn c++ off the net and be able to program a game with graphics like, ragnarok online?

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Depends. Are you a fast learner? Will you be able to understand everything? What type of game will you be making?

Quote:

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Also one last thing is programing a game with online capablities extremely hard?

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Depends.

to tell the truth im not a total noob. i took a c++ class a year ago and got the hang of it really well. i fully understand everything up untill about functions i get kinda iffy there, but if i were to learn pretty quickly, like "ooo just finished reading that 30 min tutorial and i fully get it", how long will it be untill i learn how to put some decent graphics into my programs?

I belive he was just trying to give you, the new programmer, a much needed reality check. It took me two years to get the firm understanding of C++ I have today (still not complete). Now, it is quite true that not all aspects of C++ are extremely important for game development, but I personally belive that it helps quite a bit for graphical game development to know the language well. The time it will take you will depend upon how much programming you already know, and how much C++ you want to know.

The fact that you have set your goal to be something around Ragnarok online leads me to belive you really don't understand the game development process very well. There is a good chance you will NEVER be that good. Now, that doesn't mean you can't make a game, or even something like that. It just means that it takes a great deal more time, patietence, and skill than you might think. You just might be able to get to a basic C++ 2D game in Direct Draw in a few months. Have faith! :)

Now, where to go to learn. This site's tutorials are nice, but a bit basic. I orginally learned C++ from www.cplusplus.com . I suggest you take a look at it. I can't say whether or not it is accurate anymore, because I haven't been there in a while.

After you do that, I suggest you code for a few months to get a feel for the language, and then move on to windows programming, and then finally to games.

As you can see, it takes ALOT of dedication. Best of luck to you! :)

>>i fully understand everything up untill about functions i get kinda iffy there,<<
In a few hundred hours of reading and studying, you'll be at the point that you're starting to get good. Right now, you've just got part of the really basic stuff down.

>>I belive he was just trying to give you, the new programmer, a much needed reality check.<<
Yup

>>The fact that you have set your goal to be something around Ragnarok online leads me to belive you really don't understand the game development process very well.<<
Another thing I tried to point out without saying very much ;)

>>It just means that it takes a great deal more time, patietence, and skill than you might think.<<
Now double the revised figure for how much time, patience and skill it takes. You're getting closer.

>>You just might be able to get to a basic C++ 2D game in Direct Draw in a few months. Have faith! :)<<
Hahaha, no you won't. No, I'm not being an $$$$$$$; you won't. At least, if you do, you will have stolen most of the source code from tutorials and you won't understand a line of it. Let me revise that, actually: You won't be doing 2d graphics with Direct Draw in a few months unless you're planning on learning/coding 20 hours out of every day and spending the rest of the time eating and ingesting caffeine. SDL or Allegro in a few months is feasible, though.

>>This site's tutorials are nice, but a bit basic.<<
No they aren't; they're antiquitated (referring to the ones for learning C++. The others are okay, and the ones by Denthor of Asphyxia have a note explaining that they are not current)

>>After you do that, I suggest you code for a few months to get a feel for the language,<<
Make that a year or more, preferably including an API like SDL or Alllegro and a complete program. If you want to make games, try a Pong or Tetris clone using one of those APIs.

>>and then move on to windows programming,<<
But don't stay there longer than it takes to learn the basics, unless it (for some sick and twisted reason) interests you. You're going to discover that once you start using the Win API, everything takes 20 times the code it took to do in console.

>>and then finally to games.<<
With a library like OpenGL or DirectX. You might want to stay at the step with SDL and/or Allegro for a long time. It's not a bad place to be, and will get you a lot of experience.

>>As you can see, it takes ALOT of dedication.<<
Don't lie, it takes more dedication than that :p

>> Best of luck to you! <<
Agreed. We're here to help, as long as you remember to Google first and occasionally even RTFM and run a board search (before you post a question).


Zoalord, sorry for kinda ripping apart your post. It gave me a nice way to organize my thoughts without trying too hard. Oh, and loki_cmr, you're still a total noob, but that's okay ;) If you're willing to stick around, you'll learn. But be prepared to put some time into it...before long, you'll be typing pages of code.

After you learn C++ and maybe the STL I would suggest the book Tricks of The Windows Game Programming Gurus by Andre LaMothe. I am currently reading this book and it is very informative. Chapters 1-7 are very well written and it is just a blast to read! I must note that game programming may not help you develope the best coding style as it seems a lot is sacraficed for the purpose of optimization.