If you had to take Intro to Java or Intro to "C" to transfer to your desired university, which would you choose and why? Keep in mind, I'm completely new to programming and just took an Intro to Programming course as a pre-req. Pic mostly related but Python isn't a choice...
>>53161969
If you're completely new to programming then go with C.
>and just took an Intro to Programming course as a pre-req
So, you don't really care about programming? Then go with Java, will give you way less headaches
C
>>53161969
>C/C++
WHY THE FUCK DO PEOPLE DO THIS
THEY'RE NOT EVEN THE SAME FUCKING LANGUAGE REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
>>53161969
> If I actually want to learn programming
C
> If I just need the class credit
Python
> If I just want a high-paying software job
Java
This >>53162046
C can be tedious to write but it gives a good foundation on programming-specific concepts.
Java is much more popular (in corporations, ie on the job market) and is definitely easier to get a grasp on if it's your first language.
If you learn C you can easily learn Java. If you learn Java you can learn C but it won't be as easy.
People here will say C is better, but IMO having a job is more important than the extra hassle of C.
If it's your first language, go with Java.
If not, C is fine.
Python will be the most pain free but will probably teach you bad habits. C++ will be an absolute pain in the ass with some things to start off but once you grasp the basics getting into either Java or Python will be a piece of cake. Java is a middle ground.
I'd go C++ if you have the time, Java otherwise. Personally started with Python and really wish I didn't
>>53161969
>C/C++
I'm triggered.
>>53162014
It's like fags saying "I think Java is a good language, I use Javascript for almost all my projects."
>>53162046
> If I just want a high-paying software job
Well, I want to shot myself every day though.
My practical job description at this point is "professional Java debugger". I spend all day long debugging the crimes of long gone Accenture consultants.
We are sending SOAP requests to our own servers because
> muh SOA
and creating one new @Entity requires 10 new classes & interfaces.
>>53162078
oh and dont know shit about C
>>53162213
>My practical job description at this point is "professional Java debugger". I spend all day long debugging the crimes of long gone Accenture consultants.
there are so many jobs id take over that goddamn how long did it take for you to lose your soul?
Haskell
>>53162003
I do care, I'm just a late bloomer. I wish I was one of those kids who started programming early, trust me.
>>53162014
lol. C is a pre-req for C++ at my community college. Yes, I'm in community college and 37 credits in. I saved the programming electives for later so their fresher when I make the transfer. Also, the Uni says it requires a C, C++, or Java course but recommend C++ over them all.
>>53162307
I should get into consulting. Pays really well and you can be half-brain dead and still do a good job.
>>53162367
so go into consulting, that could even be fun
>>53161969
unless you plan on programming in C you can learn everything about C that you need to know easily on your own and in much less time than it takes for a full course
I'd choose Java (and teach yourself C at the same time using any of the small classic books like K&R it's a very simple language) because learning Java is more about learning the massive library of tools already written for it than anything else and it takes years.
>>53161969
I think Java is a good compromise. It's both beginner friendly and teaches you to think at least a little about memory related concepts such as objects and their references.
I learned programming with Java as a first language and I'm fairly happy with that. I started learning C afterwards and I struggled with pointer arithmetic, sizeof and malloc for a while.
I'm not sure if programming with C from the get-go would have been fun enough to keep me interested in programming at all.
>>53162078
why should python be a bad starting point? MIT thinks it is a good place to start with
>>53162307
I worked 3 years as Java dev and IT errand boy, in my new job which I started 6 months go I can save over 1600€ a month and I am still going to college in the evening.
It's a government job and I'd have a hard time earning that much anywhere else.
Since I started I already lost 5 kg, my body refuses to eat in the morning. Working on that shitty job and going to college is messing me up.
Once I finished an assignment I keep going. There are infinite tasks.
Giving up is forbidden though:
> muh money
> muh CV
>>53162520
Same with my uni. I just ended up doing a lot without actually getting it because in Python you can really get away with murder because it's so flexible.
OP here. Thanks for all the replies. I think I'm leaning towards >>53162451 assuming I have free time.
Also, is the CS job market all over the US? I live in FL and the field doesn't seem very popular among students here.
Related to the last question, is getting a BA rather than a BS a killer when it comes to landing a decent job?
>>53162583
if you have free time now just learn C now. the K&R book is a classic, very short, and will teach you everything unique that you need to know about C that will give you a deeper understanding of programming than other higher level languages like Java will.
>>53161969
depends.
Do you want to learn how to program? (java) or
Do you want to learn how programming works? (c)
what is it you learn so much in C?
>>53162909
you can learn how to program anything with great effort in C
>>53162919
you are dealing with the bits and bytes of the computers memory so you learn about what you are actually doing with memory. also you dont have lots of things built into the language so you have to think about how to do things that are probably just a function call in a bigger language.
>>53162975
thanks you just gave me a summer project
C
>>53162014
you can take anything written in C and compile it as C++
>>53162520
its not a bad starting point.
People at Uni take a certain path and assume it is the best path.
In reality its as retarded as saying you got to learn driving a stick shift before you learn automatic.
>>53161969
Fuck that just go lean Assembly, very beginner friendly.
>>53162340
>late bloomer
How old?
>>53163586
exactly 1 day too old to learn programming anything more complex than hello world
>>53163304
no
most, but not all
there is some things that wont work in C++ mostly to things being keywords
C is the only way to learn how to program properly
>>53163606
learn lisp
>>53163304
That hasn't been true for 25 years.
>>53163586
Too embarrassed to say
it doesnt fucknig matter, its intro to programming. At intro level its all the same shit.
By the time its worth the bother of comparing the merits of different languages for different tasks, you are already familiar enough with your tasks and languages to not need a discussion about it.
I've have never had to take an Intro to X course as a prereq for my major. There are those courses offered but they're mostly intended to people with other/undecided majors trying out things. The first CS course in the major was about basic imperative algorithms, we programmed but most of the course was more abstract problem solving.
>>53162014
because c++ is backwards compatible for the most part with c
>>53162938
java will get you into the industry faster but with the consequences of not understand basic data
c will take a long time to learn and move from but will give you the best foundation for the future.
>>53163967
I'm transferring from a CC and I'm pretty much giving away my age now but I was completely out of schooling for over ten years for personal reasons...
If you have some time I highly recommend starting with C but only enough to get the core language and its principles well understood. Maybe a little bit of networking and threading to round out that knowledge. Don't worry about learning a C GUI toolkit as they are all fucking horrible and you don't use C for GUI apps unless you are insane these days.
If time isn't on your side then go with Java.
>>53162014
> hur dur I'm a l33t programmer and everyone is dumb
Stop being such a pretentious cunt. For learning the basics of programming, functions/data types/loops/comparing they are basically the same. Most programs written in C would work fine in C++
Get off your high horse and suck it's dick
>>53162213
>My practical job description at this point is "professional Java debugger". I spend all day long debugging the crimes of long gone Accenture consultants.
>We are sending SOAP requests to our own servers because
>> muh SOA
>and creating one new @Entity requires 10 new classes & interfaces.
I do almost the same thing. Don't fall for the Java meme OP. More importantly just don't work for a big business. You'll hate your life
>>53161969
Java. You can write it on your resume even if you don't want to later focus on it and most Universities teach Java as the intro language anyway.
>>53161969
Python, but in terms of usage, you'd probably get more out of JavaScript, because it's the language of the web.
>>53164112
kek
Any CS program with a damn will force you to take courses in Java AND in C later on.
>>53161969
>C/C++
REEEEE
C++ is literally the fucking worst thing to learn
worse than Java, but marginally better than python
C is among the best
You'll start out with a few questions like
>what in the fuck is a pointer
>why is everyone talking about stacks
>where is this 'heap'
>what's an instruction
Which will make it seem difficult to learn at first, but you WILL need to learn these things if you want to write and understand good code in any language
the questions you will get in C++ are
>how do I use this standard library feature
>what's the syntax for doing this
>what the fuck does this convoluted abortion of a program do
>why in hell did these dumb cunts use the greater than and less than symbols for brackets
which aren't going to help you do anything else, and aren't going to help you write good code in any language
Knowing low level languages like c/c++ will make java a breeze and give you plenty of insight as to why certain things are implemented the way they are. C will teach you stuff like Memory management, system calls, portability, network programming, etc. Plus it's a language which is impossible to dethrone at this point.
If you know c/c++, every other language is so easy that its a joke.
Think of it as knowing the history behind every part in your car and why it works like it does, how they all connect, etc. Knowing this makes it easy to fix issues because you know everything about it, instead of simply memorizing stuff and not understanding the details behind it.
That being said, if you know java and skip c then you can still make big bucks but you are still at a disadvantage and are basically stuck doing currynigger teir app programming.
>>53166178
>low level languages like c/c++
this desu senpai
C is just assembly++, and C++ is just C with classes, hence why people use C/C++ interchangeably.
>>53164950
>REEEEE
stopped reading there.
>>53161969
A language is a language really. Learn one and you can learn them all. Java would be more frequently used, imo. I rarely use any C or C variant anymore
C. Actually teaches you how to program correctly by not putting you in the fucking safe zone and making you learn responsibility for your code.
But learn Java eventually. There's no excuse not to learn every major language.
>>53166342
Agreed. The more you know, the more you can do
