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ironblade41
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ironblade41
516 posts
Shepherd

Does anyone know about some good programming languages to learn and how to learn them? I've always wanted to program a game and now seems like a good time to get a start.

  • 18 Replies
reside
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reside
9 posts
Shepherd

javascript or actionscript ?

Salvidian
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Salvidian
4,174 posts
Farmer

If you want to make games for AG, you'll need to learn flash. I personally like actionscript though.

I hope my guide will help you get started: Click this.

Salvidian
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Salvidian
4,174 posts
Farmer

@Sal: ActionScript is Flash, though, isn't it?


It's a part of it. It isn't the entire thing. It's like jQuery compared to JavaScript.
KentyBK
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KentyBK
567 posts
Nomad

It's a part of it. It isn't the entire thing. It's like jQuery compared to JavaScript.

Either way, if you write in ActionScript, it will be a Flash program, though.


Not quite. If anything, it's the Javascript to Flash being Eclipse or something similar.

Flash is an IDE. Action Script is a programming language.
BRAAINZz
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BRAAINZz
788 posts
Nomad

Well, if you want to make anything for AG, you have to learn Actionscript. There are tonnes of languages that you can learn though.
My school has me on a mix of Turing and C# and they seem pretty good to work with.

Darkroot
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Darkroot
2,767 posts
Peasant

So you can actually create something with ActionScript outside of Flash?

Adobe AIR, but I wouldn't recommend making game in it though.

Python is the best for learning the basics of programming. There are literally thousand of resources online. Just google "learn python" and you will find something.
boppins
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boppins
779 posts
Bard

here's a great tool to get started and learn the basics http://www.codecademy.com/ --

also: http://www.reddit.com/r/learnprogramming/ is a good resource

there are many programming languages, and aside from a few specific types of languages (logic, functional for instance), whichever one you begin with will translate very well into the rest. if you start with Java, you will have little trouble picking up C++, PHP, Javascript, Python, etc..

pirateplatypusgames
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pirateplatypusgames
38 posts
Nomad

So you can actually create something with ActionScript outside of Flash?

Yup, in addition to Air, as Darkroot mentioned, you can also use the Flex SDK. I prefer it to Flash. I just write my code in a text editor and compile it with the SDK's compiler. It can be a bit tricky to use if you're used to coding on the timeline or if you want to work with animations that aren't sprite sheets.

You can also use FlashDevelop. I haven't ever really used it but I've heard from quite a few people that it's their Actionscript IDE of choice.

I agree with Darkroot on Python. It's dead simple and really quite fun. I'd highly recommend "Learn Python the Hard Way" by Zed A. Shaw. It's a book that you can read online for free, or you can buy a copy in print and/or pdf. He also offers a Python class (I think on Udemy). The Python tutorial on python.org is really good as well.
PhsycoDragon
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PhsycoDragon
41 posts
Nomad

I would like to know how how Python compares to Java. I have had some experience with NQC.

Darkroot
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Darkroot
2,767 posts
Peasant

Java has amazing garbage collection and makes your life so much easier. I think working with larger projects is easier in Java and I believe it's also faster then python but not as much as C++ is.

ironblade41
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ironblade41
516 posts
Shepherd

I've wanted to learn one for a while, too. My friends say Lua is good.

ricvail
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ricvail
13 posts
Shepherd

I really really recommend you the book "head first Java" from o'reilly. It opened my eyes on a new world, it kinda "unlocked" my programming skills. If you want to start with other languages you might as well, but i have never found such a well-written and suitable-for-beginners guide about any other language. and once you know one (expecially one of the most complex and famous, Java or C++ to name two, but any other Object Oriented language is fine I think), you know them all.

Ntech
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Ntech
258 posts
Shepherd

I reccomend C#. With C#, you can build on top of Microsoft's powerful .NET framework. C# is OOP, and can be learned even by beginners. C# can be used to create desktop and mobile apps, though it can't be used to create FlashPlayer games. If you're interested in C#, here's some links for you:

1) (Powerful IDE for Windows environment) Visual Studio - a great fully featured IDE. Bonus: it's has a free trial version that has everything you need.

2) (C# Programming Guide) Microsoft C# Programming Guide

The reason I reccomend C# over the other C languages is because most other languages don't have official IDEs and as a result, pairing an IDE and a compiler can be quite hard for a beginner.

akshobhya
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akshobhya
5,065 posts
Justiciar

@ironblade41, if you want to look towards IoT projects, its better to start learning Python and json.

Rampage11
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Rampage11
6 posts
Nomad

I had experience with Python. Easy language.

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