Learning Languages

Coding is a completely different language. Like any language, it will take time to learn. How are you supposed to learn it? Babies learn their first language through repetition and copying. It starts with just making sounds. Then, they start to understand the context and use the right words for the right things. Then, they can start talking in more complex ways with proper sentence structure.

Code has many of the same elements. You need to understand the data types, keywords, and functions. How are those put together correctly with syntax? How do you create more complex behavior with logic? It’s not super scary. The first program that many people write is the classic “Hello, World!” It’s super simple but you’ll learn what a string is and how to output it in your program of choice. It builds little by little from there.

Which Language?

There are many different languages out there. If you know what field you want to get into, that would definitely help. JavaScript for web, Python for machine learning, etc. There are many different types because they each serve a specific function. There aren’t any that are necessarily better or worse. Languages are tools. Use the right tool for the right job.

Sooo, what if you don’t know what field you like? If your goal is to get a job, look at listings in your area and see which they’re asking for. I would definitely recommend JavaScript for anything web related. It’s built into the browser, so can be used by all sites. Python is another good choice if you want to go beyond the web. The syntax is a little bit more friendly and closer to English with less weird symbols.

My Experience

I started with C++ in high school and took a second class in Java. HTML scripting was a college elective. I picked up CSS to build personal portfolio sites from scratch and used a teensy bit of PHP for contact forms. Fast forward to Flatiron School. The new languages I learned were Ruby, JavaScript, and a smidgeon of SQL. Currently, I’m learning Python weekly with a local coding group.

Am I an expert at all of these or any of these? Absolutely not. I don’t remember all parts of all of them at the top of my head. Whichever language I’m working with currently is the freshest and easiest to write. But if I’ve learned it before, I can look at it again and pick back up where I leeft off.

A lot of people recommend learning a more modern English like language first to ease the process. I started with an older language. Learning the modern language felt easier because of this. Oh, you don’t need to set up all these steps to get one thing working? You don’t need braces? There are nice built in functions? <3

What It’s Like

It’s kind of similiar learning how to drive. It’s a new skill and difficult at first until you get used to it and learn how to handle all the different buttons and levers. Then you learn how roads and traffic work and how to get from point A to point B.

After the first car, learning how to drive a new car isn’t nearly as hard. You have the basics of the road system down and what certains buttons do. You know how to steer and accelerate. You just have to adjust to the the new placement and buttons and any extra features. If it’s an older language, you’ll have to deal with manual locks, windows, ignition, etc. Newer languages will have power locks and windows, ignition button, bluetooth, AC, air bags.

Happy learning!