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> I would be hard-pressed to think of a worse first language than C. You want to introduce people to the concepts of programming, which means abstractions and
by vorg 13y ago
> I would be hard-pressed to think of a worse first language than C. You want to introduce people to the concepts of programming, which means abstractions and high-level thinking. C forces you to think in terms of the computer and its memory, which is just the opposite.
People should learn two programming languages at the same time, a very high level one such as Python, and a very low level such as C. Combining the top-down and bottom-up approaches to learning, simultaneously, yields the best results for most people. While learning Python, someone can begin to look inside the abstractions and get a feel for algorithmic complexity and such stuff. While learning C, someone can see how to use it to build an OS such as Linux.
- reuven 13y ago> People should learn two programming languages at the same time I find this completely impractical. Programming is hard for people to learn. They're juggling all sorts of new concepts and ideas. It's hard for them to remember the terminology, the data structures, the ways in which functions work, or even when and if they should use functions. Teaching them two languages simultaneously would be far more confusing than helpful. I'm all in favor of learning different approaches and different languages. But for someone without any background to learn two languages simultaneously would be making it more difficult, not less.
- ctrl 13y ago> People should learn two programming languages at the same time I agree with this. I think its a great way to understand how those new concepts and ideas work in two different universes. Its helped me separate and understand how core ideas and concepts work and how they can work different.