There is nothing wrong with Java. It is probably not an ideal first language though. It is an ideal OO language - very nice for business modelling, especially in a distributed environment. I have played with many languages over the years, starting the CBM/PET BASIC (when I was 12 years old). I have had a healthy interest in programming ever since (self taught actually) and I can honestly say, that if you can master C++, there are few other languages that will give you much trouble. So, my recommended course of action is: If you primarily use UNIX, learn: Perl --> C --> C++ --> anything you feel like learning if you use Windows primarily: Jump right in and learn C++ - work with MFC. Avoid playing with RAD tools like Visual Basic, PowerBuilder or Delphi or the Visual Age products on UNIX or OS/2 until you have become proficient in at least C or C++. If you do, you are likely to learn too many bad habits that you will find impossible to break. True, you might not use C++ professionally (then again - you might - I do), but if you truly learn it, you will become a very marketable asset. Why do I recommend C or C++? Simple. You are forced to learn more abstract concepts than any other language. You have the ability to get very close to the native level of programming (assembly). You learn how do handle pointers (and with C++, references) and manage resources, memory in particular. You learn how to find bugs that simply appear to be "magical" (much like the feeling that a Video game is cheating). Simply put, you learn to "understand" what you are doing instead of simply doing what you have been taught. You learn to think [logically] about a problem and solve it with code. I think that in the end, it all comes down to the way you think. If you have a strong problem solving ability (remember the word problems in secondary school), you will have a much easier time of it. Tom Veldhouse veldy at veldy.net ----- Original Message ----- From: Cook, Justin S. <jcook at k-lug.com> To: <tclug-list at mn-linux.org> Sent: Wednesday, September 13, 2000 12:46 PM Subject: Re: [TCLUG:21269] Beginning - Language Perl or Python? > java bad, c/c++/insert any other language here, good. > </shot_at_java> > > Justin Cook > Themes.org Staff > mailto:jsc at themes.org > http://kde.themes.org > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: <Nick.T.Reinking at supervalu.com> > To: <tclug-list at mn-linux.org> > Sent: Wednesday, September 13, 2000 12:25 PM > Subject: Re: [TCLUG:21269] Beginning - Language Perl or Python? > > > > I learned to program in Perl, and it is by far my favorite > > language - but I don't know if I would recommend it to start out. > > > > Sure, there are some fantastic books (Camel book, Learning Perl), > > but I've found that I'm somewhat spoiled on it, making it very > > difficult for me to easily program in other languages. Really powerful > > things you can do in perl (like a hash of hashes) are much harder to > > do in other languages. I'd recommend learning Java first, so you know > > a "real" programming language - and then move onto Perl. > > > > Nick > > > > > > > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- > ---- > > > > --------------------------------------------------------------------- > > To unsubscribe, e-mail: tclug-list-unsubscribe at mn-linux.org > > For additional commands, e-mail: tclug-list-help at mn-linux.org > > > --------------------------------------------------------------------- > To unsubscribe, e-mail: tclug-list-unsubscribe at mn-linux.org > For additional commands, e-mail: tclug-list-help at mn-linux.org > > --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, e-mail: tclug-list-unsubscribe at mn-linux.org For additional commands, e-mail: tclug-list-help at mn-linux.org