Thread: After C Primer Plus... for fun

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    After C Primer Plus... for fun

    I am almost finished with this book at ch14 now. I picked it up because I love computers, and I always wanted to learn a bit more about programming, and due to a furlough from my profession now I had the time to finish a book on the subject.

    But what now? Obviously I realize I don't know how to program in C just because I have read the book. Perhaps I could do more exercises. Or I could read C++, but that somehow does not really attract me. I would like to do something that is a bit more interactive, hopefully more entertaining and C++ seems it is just more C but different syntax and some new ideas. Also it would be nice to do something at least remotely useful (to me at least). i.e. I would love to write a little program that logs into my company's ra site, downloads my schedule and emails it to me. There is like 3 logins, one after the other to get access to that portion of the website, and it is a major pain in the butt. PHP would fit the task, also it seems PHP can be quite interactive since everything is web oriented lately. May be I should read a book on that language.

    On the other hand it would also be cool to learn about some GUI (for windows... like API32? I think) that I can connect to C. Doing anything in the console is just not that fun.

    One thing is sure. Now that I have spent 2.5 months with this book, I would like to keep up what I have learned. Any ideas are welcome.

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    why dont you give C# a try ?
    its elegant easy to code, and because of dot net frame work , its a beast .
    ----
    i think the reason you cant program is the lack of interest ,you cant be a programmer overnight! just reading through a book wont help , you 've got to go out and search the internet for tutorials on the language you learned (here c) and see what the possible projects are that are 1.doable by your newly gained information
    and
    2.interesting !
    you know there is alot of difference between learning a programming language syntax and structure and using that in a way you want to create some thing .
    i think the best way is to go practice as you, yourself mentioned .
    and because you are not a programmer , i would recommend learning C# , which is a great language with an outstanding libraries and support on the web .( you don't have to reinvent the wheel , when there is one ! just use the one unless you have to do .)
    Last edited by Masterx; 02-25-2010 at 09:41 PM.
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    Quote Originally Posted by Masterx View Post
    why dont you give C# a try ?
    its elegant easy to code, and because of dot net frame work , its a beast .
    ----
    i think the reason you cant program is the lack of interest ,you cant be a program overnight! just reading through a book wont help , you 've got to go out and search the intenet for tutorials on the language you learned (here c) and see what are the possible projects that are 1.doable by your newly gained information
    and
    2.interesting ! you know there are alot of difference between learning a programming language syntax and structure and using that in a way you want to create some thing .
    i think the best way is to go practice as you, yourself mentioned .
    and because you are not a programmer , i would recommend learning C# , which is a great language with an outstanding libraries and support on the web .( you dont have to reinvent the wheel , when there is one ! just use the one unless you have to do .)
    Thanks for the recommendation. For a while I was between getting a book on C# or go a different direction and get on on PHP.

    Now that that I am done with the C Primer book, I think I will order the C++ from the same author. Initially I figured C++ would be boring because it is just more C. But now I keep hearing it is more challenging than C and suddenly I have this interest in grasping this object based thing that I have no clue of. :-) As long it is fun.

    I was actually looking at C# before and if I am going to finish the C++ book, and if it will still be fun, C# will be next. I can't believe I am doing textbooks, for fun. I wish I had this motivation 20 years ago in college.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Huncowboy View Post
    Thanks for the recommendation. For a while I was between getting a book on C# or go a different direction and get on on PHP.

    Now that that I am done with the C Primer book, I think I will order the C++ from the same author. Initially I figured C++ would be boring because it is just more C. But now I keep hearing it is more challenging than C and suddenly I have this interest in grasping this object based thing that I have no clue of. :-) As long it is fun.

    I was actually looking at C# before and if I am going to finish the C++ book, and if it will still be fun, C# will be next. I can't believe I am doing textbooks, for fun. I wish I had this motivation 20 years ago in college.
    your welcome well you know , the most precious thing that you have , is the time you are spending , so don't waste it . i think you are not a hardcore programmer , just some one who desires to learn programming for fun and not for business ! that said , you really should see what you are after not what you think might come in handy ! C# is great for everyone and ideal for beginners , because grasping the concept in c# is a lot easier to me compared to c++, c# is object oriented and has everything you can ever imagine. just make sure you don't waste your time on sth you wont be using much. im saying this because all of the hard chores you need to do in C++ to make a working application,most of the time is done easily in c#, (choose c++ unless you plan to work on driver/os programming unless go c#) trust me before going for c++, have a taste of C#, if you didnt like it go learn C++.
    by learning C# you can develop windows based application
    by learning C# you can develop web based application
    by learning C# you can utilize silver light !
    and etc
    (and oh , yes its true that you can also code cross-platform application in C#, how ?, just go make a C# app using dotnet framework and then compile it under your linux distro for example , as easy as that )
    c# gives you the power of going in any direction whenever you wish to ,as you can see you by learning C# you can get really productive in terms of programming , you wont regret it .

    i sincerely wish you success and hope you make the right decision !
    Last edited by Masterx; 02-25-2010 at 10:00 PM.
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    "...a computer is a stupid machine with the ability to do incredibly smart things, while computer programmers are smart people with the ability to do incredibly stupid things. They are,in short, a perfect match.."
    Bill Bryson


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    Quote Originally Posted by Masterx View Post
    your welcome well you know , the most precious thing that you have , is the time you are spending , so don't waste it . i think you are not a hardcore programmer , just some one who desires to learn programming for fun and not for business ! that said , you really should see what you are after not what you think might come in handy ! C# is great for everyone and ideal for beginners , because grasping the concept in c# is a lot easier to me compared to c++, c# is object oriented and has everything you can ever imagine. just make sure you don't waste your time on sth you wont be using much. im saying this because all of the hard chores you need to do in C++ to make a working application,most of the time is done easily in c#, (choose c++ unless you plan to work on driver/os programming unless go c#) trust me before going for c++, have a taste of C#, if you didnt like it go learn C++.
    by learning C# you can develop windows based application
    by learning C# you can develop web based application
    by learning C# you can utilize silver light !
    and etc
    c# gives you the power of going in any direction whenever you wish to ,as you can see you by learning C# you can get really productive in terms of programming , you wont regret it .

    i sincerely wish you success and hope you make the right decision !
    Those examples you have mentioned are interesting.

    And yes I am definitely a hobbyist. I am killing time in a temporary job, while waiting for my profession, and old job to call. Instead of watching a DVD I feel productive doing mental gymnastics.

    All I ever wanted to write was simple programs that help my life out with tiny things. But nothing real world (other than those textbook examples) seems to be simple. I.e. I figured I would write a proggy that reads my schedule from a PDF file, and filters data, then sorts it the way I want. I had no idea that understanding PDF files is a science. Then I figured I write something with a GUI. Learned that winapi is not just one missing chapter from the book I did. Next I figured I'd try and write a program that logs me into my company's RA automatically. Ohhh boy... So I am far from being able to do anything other than those practice examples. But the good thing is there is no pressure. I can walk away and take a break whenever.

    All that you wrote seems appealing. So I will definitely reconsider. Any C# book recommendation? I see there is a C# Primer Plus. I did like the C Primer Plus a lot.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Huncowboy View Post
    Those examples you have mentioned are interesting.

    And yes I am definitely a hobbyist. I am killing time in a temporary job, while waiting for my profession, and old job to call. Instead of watching a DVD I feel productive doing mental gymnastics.

    All I ever wanted to write was simple programs that help my life out with tiny things. But nothing real world (other than those textbook examples) seems to be simple. I.e. I figured I would write a proggy that reads my schedule from a PDF file, and filters data, then sorts it the way I want. I had no idea that understanding PDF files is a science. Then I figured I write something with a GUI. Learned that winapi is not just one missing chapter from the book I did. Next I figured I'd try and write a program that logs me into my company's RA automatically. Ohhh boy... So I am far from being able to do anything other than those practice examples. But the good thing is there is no pressure. I can walk away and take a break whenever.

    All that you wrote seems appealing. So I will definitely reconsider. Any C# book recommendation? I see there is a C# Primer Plus. I did like the C Primer Plus a lot.
    i think ,now that you learned sth about C, you can read online tutorials on c#, and then if you needed any help go buy yourself a book .
    here check this out CSharp Practical learning



    again i just recommended you c#, because those jobs you wanted to program for can be done easily in c# compared to C++, when learning C# , you will notice that in order to make a great working gui or web application you dont have to be guru in programming .

    and oh by the way check this too this is one of the greatest beginners tutorial on visual c# , you wont regret it .i saw the videos and they were absolutely great . i really enjoyed them .


    Good luck and have fun
    Last edited by Masterx; 02-26-2010 at 11:25 AM.
    Highlight Your Codes
    The Boost C++ Libraries (online Reference)

    "...a computer is a stupid machine with the ability to do incredibly smart things, while computer programmers are smart people with the ability to do incredibly stupid things. They are,in short, a perfect match.."
    Bill Bryson


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    Thanks a bunch!

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    Quote Originally Posted by Huncowboy View Post
    I am almost finished with this book at ch14 now. I picked it up because I love computers, and I always wanted to learn a bit more about programming, and due to a furlough from my profession now I had the time to finish a book on the subject.

    But what now? Obviously I realize I don't know how to program in C just because I have read the book. Perhaps I could do more exercises. Or I could read C++, but that somehow does not really attract me. I would like to do something that is a bit more interactive, hopefully more entertaining and C++ seems it is just more C but different syntax and some new ideas.

    ...

    On the other hand it would also be cool to learn about some GUI (for windows... like API32? I think) that I can connect to C. Doing anything in the console is just not that fun.

    One thing is sure. Now that I have spent 2.5 months with this book, I would like to keep up what I have learned. Any ideas are welcome.
    Coincidentally, I'm also in chapter 14 of the same book right now. I love computers as well, but I specifically decided to study C so that I could create my first computer game, which will be a "simple" text adventure. I have other aspirations down the road for my new hobby, but for right now, I'm keeping focused on my first goal of a playable game that doesn't entirely suck. When I say simple, I realize it won't be simple for me to code at all, since I'm completely new to this stuff.

    You mentioned incorporating a GUI for your program... I must admit, I was originally going to only utilize a console-based, ASCII-graphics format for my game, but since I happen to be using an OLD copy of MS Dev Studio, I've recently decided that I will create a Windows version instead, with simple interface that gives me more control over the appearance of my text, such as TT fonts, etc.

    So, my best response to your quandary would be: what about creating your own computer game?

    Best of luck to you in your programming, and have fun!
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