Books/tutorials for programming basics

[Lheimcro]

Hi

First of all, I'm new here and I have never written a single line of code. I recently have discovered this site and have really enjoyed the games posted here. I've always been curious about programming, but I have no idea where to start. If any of you know of a good resource for learning the basics of programming, of any sort (C, Java whatever) I would really appreciate it. I just want to see if I have the mind for it, or if it's too abstract.

I'm running in OS X if that is necessary information.

Thanks.

[borges]

This is a great introduction to C:

Eddie's Basic Guide to C Programming (http://www.iota-six.co.uk/c/default.asp)

There are even quizzes to gauge your progress.

[IBethune]

Good luck!

If you pick it up quickly, you could even enter the uDevGames contest next month!

And remember, the best resource for learning programming is this forum - you will be surprised at the sheer amount of knowledge and help you can get here. Just remember to ask nicely!

- Iain

[Duane]

Use the blue/red book.

Good luck!

If you pick it up quickly, you could even enter the uDevGames contest next month!

And remember, the best resource for learning programming is this forum - you will be surprised at the sheer amount of knowledge and help you can get here. Just remember to ask nicely!

- Iain

sorry, but I'm kinda doubting this. not only would you have to learn c, you would have to learn carbon and opengl. Good luck, though!

[Lheimcro]

Could someone point me towards a free or shareware C compiler? (for os x please)

Thanks

[Josh]

Go to http://connect.apple.com/ . Sign in or register. Download Xcode or ProjectBuilder (depending on your operating system) and InterfaceBuilder.

[IBethune]

sorry, but I'm kinda doubting this. not only would you have to learn c, you would have to learn carbon and opengl. Good luck, though!

Just to add that what you said is a load of rubbish - there are many, many good programmers on this site who do not use carbon or opengl.

Look around and find an API of your choice - I personally recommend using SDL www.libsdl.org, but there are many.

- Iain

[sam]

S/he could enter, but I doubt s/he could even be considered as a serious entry.

Good luck and I second the recommendation of SDL. It's easy and I seldom wish I had taught myself something else. I would just use SDL for input, windowing, sound, etc. Use OpenGL for drawing, You can do 2D and 3D with similar concepts. It also is faster than SDL's blit functions. However, If you go with the Obj-C route Cocoa looks really nice...

looking for Lheimcro's gender I noticed that that person has a G5. That is a really bad programming computer. You better send it to me. You can have my iMac, really, I'm not kidding, you can have it.

[Nick]

I have been busy working on revising some SDL Tutorials that were written two years ago for Windows. I just had to make sure the code worked and insert some parts about working with Xcode. I only have three of the six converted so far. You can download them here. I hope they help.

**NOTE**
You must right click (or control click) and save/download the files. If you just click the link it will try to read it and you will see some very interesting things in your browser.

Lesson 1: Getting Started With SDL (http://www.freewebs.com/simreality/Lesson 1.sitx)

Lesson 2: Loading and Displaying Images (http://www.freewebs.com/simreality/Lesson 2.sitx)

Lesson 3: Sprites (http://www.freewebs.com/simreality/Lesson 3.sitx)

[PowerMacX]

Good luck and I second the recommendation of SDL. It's easy and I seldom wish I had taught myself something else. I would just use SDL for input, windowing, sound, etc. Use OpenGL for drawing, You can do 2D and 3D with similar concepts. It also is faster than SDL's blit functions.

I agree 100%.

looking for Lheimcro's gender I noticed that that person has a G5. That is a really bad programming computer.

For a beginner, it is! Be careful about your game's performance: it may run pretty well on a G5, but be sure to test it on older/slower machines!

[Lheimcro]

So.
I looked at a couple of those tutorials you fine folks reccomended, but I ran into a couple problems. First of all, I don't understand exactly what I need in order to actually start. SDL? API? I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed. My other problem is that I have a god-awful connection and I could never even hope to download XCode. (600 megs at 4k a sec... hmm... that may take a while) Anyways, that is way too big for me to download, so is there something that I can buy that will cover all my bases?
So, to combine those two problems, is there some program or couple of programs that I can purchase that will be most of what I need to do just the barest essentials and use some of these tutorials? Don't worry about advanced things (3d graphics, sound, whatever) yet, or even things that you consider basic, but are not just the very base of what I need to learn.
Don't worry about cost for now.

Thank you

[Sohta]

Well, if you REALLY can't download XCode, and that includes at a friend's place, at work, or wherever you could burn a CD from. Your best choice, cost-wise, would be to buy a retail copy of OS X ( XCode is bundled with it ). :blink:

While it sounds ridiculous, at 129$, it's still your best cost-efficient solution, IMHO. :wacko: