Software Development and Programming Careers (Official Discussion Thread)

[Mastamimd]

Never been to tutorialspoint. This is one of the best courses on SQL I've found:
https://www.udemy.com/the-ultimate-mysql-bootcamp-go-from-sql-beginner-to-expert/learn/v4/overview

If you are coming from a c++ background, look into angular 5. It utilizes typescript, which is a superset of Javascript and adds things like types, interfaces, etc. to the language. I think the key to programming is staying motivated and finding something interesting. Try making a game with the Phaser game library. www.phaser.io

I'll look into it man. Thank you.

Phaser looks like it's gonna be fun. Sweeeeeeeet.

 

[Rozay Oro]

I've done research and apparently Smalltalk is the best beginner friendly programming language but a bytch to work if you don't know shyt about compiling source code in Windows. I'm following this http://www.canol.info/books/computer_programming_using_gnu_smalltalk/ but to do it but I'm lost after I downloaded MinGW.
If anybody down to help, jump to Appendix A. Walks you through it on how to on linux then for Windows says theirs no installer but you can compile the gnu Smalltalk source code with MinGW. On the Linux instructions you can get an installer or compile the source code. Their terminal instructions only work for linux. How the fukk you do this on windows in the first place?

Spoiler: Apparently

Is Smalltalk the ideal language for newcomers to programming?

Absolutely. Smalltalk has the following qualities:

It was designed by Alan Kay for teaching programming to children. And yet, it’s an incredibly powerful language.

It has a minimalist syntax along with only a couple of major concepts (class-based OOP* and first-class functions) making the language very easy to learn.

Smalltalk code is very readable. In fact, it almost reads like natural language!

Smalltalk is the finest exemplar of classed-based OOP ever created. It’s the perfect language for learning OOP.

Once you learn Smalltalk, it is easy to pick up a second language such as Java, C#, Python or Ruby. All the programming fundamentals are there.

It’s the most productive programming language in the world, which is why it’s great for startups and for prototyping applications and new ideas.

 

[Obreh Winfrey]

I've done research and apparently Smalltalk is the best beginner friendly programming language but a bytch to work if you don't know shyt about compiling source code in Windows. I'm following this http://www.canol.info/books/computer_programming_using_gnu_smalltalk/ but to do it but I'm lost after I downloaded MinGW.
If anybody down to help, jump to Appendix A. Walks you through it on how to on linux then for Windows says theirs no installer but you can compile the gnu Smalltalk source code with MinGW. On the Linux instructions you can get an installer or compile the source code. Their terminal instructions only work for linux. How the fukk you do this on windows in the first place?

Spoiler: Apparently

Is Smalltalk the ideal language for newcomers to programming?

Absolutely. Smalltalk has the following qualities:

It was designed by Alan Kay for teaching programming to children. And yet, it’s an incredibly powerful language.

It has a minimalist syntax along with only a couple of major concepts (class-based OOP* and first-class functions) making the language very easy to learn.

Smalltalk code is very readable. In fact, it almost reads like natural language!

Smalltalk is the finest exemplar of classed-based OOP ever created. It’s the perfect language for learning OOP.

Once you learn Smalltalk, it is easy to pick up a second language such as Java, C#, Python or Ruby. All the programming fundamentals are there.

It’s the most productive programming language in the world, which is why it’s great for startups and for prototyping applications and new ideas.

Hang on, why are you trying to learn Smalltalk? It's probably only still used in line the deepest parts of the government in legacy systems from the 80s. You should be trying to learn a modern language like Java, C#, Python, or even C++.

 

[Rozay Oro]

Hang on, why are you trying to learn Smalltalk? It's probably only still used in line the deepest parts of the government in legacy systems from the 80s. You should be trying to learn a modern language like Java, C#, Python, or even C++.

Because it helps with getting down the fundamentals of OOP down quickly opposed to getting distracted with syntax and overwhelmed with IDEs.

 

[Obreh Winfrey]

Because it helps with getting down the fundamentals of OOP down quickly opposed to getting distracted with syntax and overwhelmed with IDEs.

I'm not entirely sure I follow on this. Java and C# are object oriented so you'd really have no choice but to learn the fundamentals. With Java you don't even have to use an IDE, you can do your compilation from the command line.

 

[Rozay Oro]

I'm not entirely sure I follow on this. Java and C# are object oriented so you'd really have no choice but to learn the fundamentals. With Java you don't even have to use an IDE, you can do your compilation from the command line.

I've read that it can take you from beginner to intermediate easily. Apparently modern languages and modern books aren't good at intermediate instruction. The book I'm following is only a 100 pages anyways.
Edit:
Poor wording

 

[Saiyajin]

is Ruby/ Ruby on Rails worth learning for someone looking to get into web development (freelance)

my goal is to basically learn how to make and maintain web pages (I have no coding knowledge ) and then find clients who need a web page for their business. What's the best route of learning the skills needed to do this in the most efficient amount of time?

should I offer a client a webpage and just use wordpress instead ?

 

[Obreh Winfrey]

I've read that it can take you from beginner to intermediate easily. Another reason to use it, is that modern languages and modern books aren't good at intermediate instruction. The book I'm following is only a 100 pages anyways

Strange. A book on Java should take you through encapsulation and polymorphism, introducing the concepts but not going into detail. But rarely does a book on a language actually do that. You'd normally pick up a book concentrated on OOP to go deeper.

To go back to your original question it sounds like you need to search for the Smalltalk compiler binaries for Windows.

 

[kevm3]

Got a couple of interviews today. If I get one of the jobs, could very well hit six figures or close to it if God is willing.

 

[kevm3]

is Ruby/ Ruby on Rails worth learning for someone looking to get into web development (freelance)

my goal is to basically learn how to make and maintain web pages (I have no coding knowledge ) and then find clients who need a web page for their business. What's the best route of learning the skills needed to do this in the most efficient amount of time?

should I offer a client a webpage and just use wordpress instead ?

Rails is a fantastic place to start learning about server-side programming and all of the concepts you'll need to become a well-rounded proggrammer in today's environment such as writing tests, github, deploying your app, working with an ORM, using the command line, etc. The rails community overall has the best tutorials for learning in my opinion. After you learn rails, you can always pick up another language later, but it's a great place to start.

 

[Rozay Oro]

Strange. A book on Java should take you through encapsulation and polymorphism, introducing the concepts but not going into detail. But rarely does a book on a language actually do that. You'd normally pick up a book concentrated on OOP to go deeper.

To go back to your original question it sounds like you need to search for the Smalltalk compiler binaries for Windows.

Downloading GNU Smalltalk | GNU Smalltalk
At the bottom it says they don't provide pre compiled binaries. I'm supposed to compile the source code via MinGW. Idk how to do that. Already have MinGW.

 

[Tr0yTV]

is Ruby/ Ruby on Rails worth learning for someone looking to get into web development (freelance)

my goal is to basically learn how to make and maintain web pages (I have no coding knowledge ) and then find clients who need a web page for their business. What's the best route of learning the skills needed to do this in the most efficient amount of time?

should I offer a client a webpage and just use wordpress instead ?

Do you want a job or a business? If the latter, read this:

GOLD! - How to Learn Code, Start a Web Company, $15k+ per month within 9 months

 

[Obreh Winfrey]

Downloading GNU Smalltalk | GNU Smalltalk
At the bottom it says they don't provide pre compiled binaries. I'm supposed to compile the source code via MinGW. Idk how to do that. Already have MinGW.

I don't have a Windows OS handy to do the steps but here's what I'm thinking. I believe MinGW includes some sort of command prompt. If that's the case they're telling you to use it to install from the files you download from them.

1) Open the MinGW Prompt
2) Type "gcc". Your output should be:

gcc: fatal error: no input files
compilation terminated.

If you don't get that then gcc probably didn't install so do what you can to get gcc installed.
3) Download a version of Smalltalk from here: ftp://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/smalltalk . I downloaded "smalltalk-3.2.5.tar.gz".
4) Extract the file you downloaded using WinRar, 7Zip, or similar.
5) In your MinGW prompt you need to cd into the directory you extracted to. That might look something like

cd C:\Users\(User_Name)\Downloads\smalltalk-3.2.5

If you have spaces in your username or directories sound the path in double quotes.
6) Enter

./configure

Let it do its thing. If you don't have something installed it'll probably tell you. On my Linux VM it told me I didn't have Gawk, so I downloaded that and reran ./configure.
7) Enter

make

Let it do its thing. It's doing a bunch of compilation and linking. If make doesn't work then it probably isn't installed. If that's the case I have no idea how to get it installed on windows.
8) Enter

make check

Let it do its thing. It's doing some regression testing to make sure the code works. I had a failure in "intmath.st". Probably not a big deal... it could be a big deal . Might take a while, I ran it on a not so powerful laptop with a not so powerful VM on top of it. Actually my shyt just hung so I killed the make process and skipped it.
9) Enter

make install

You might need to be running MinGW as Administrator for this to work.

That should install it for you. I don't know how to run the compiler or anything like that . Could always try this out Squeak/Smalltalk

 

[Rozay Oro]

I don't have a Windows OS handy to do the steps but here's what I'm thinking. I believe MinGW includes some sort of command prompt. If that's the case they're telling you to use it to install from the files you download from them.

1) Open the MinGW Prompt
2) Type "gcc". Your output should be:

gcc: fatal error: no input files
compilation terminated.

If you don't get that then gcc probably didn't install so do what you can to get gcc installed.
3) Download a version of Smalltalk from here: ftp://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/smalltalk . I downloaded "smalltalk-3.2.5.tar.gz".
4) Extract the file you downloaded using WinRar, 7Zip, or similar.
5) In your MinGW prompt you need to cd into the directory you extracted to. That might look something like

cd C:\Users\(User_Name)\Downloads\smalltalk-3.2.5

If you have spaces in your username or directories sound the path in double quotes.
6) Enter

./configure

Let it do its thing. If you don't have something installed it'll probably tell you. On my Linux VM it told me I didn't have Gawk, so I downloaded that and reran ./configure.
7) Enter

make

Let it do its thing. It's doing a bunch of compilation and linking. If make doesn't work then it probably isn't installed. If that's the case I have no idea how to get it installed on windows.
8) Enter

make check

Let it do its thing. It's doing some regression testing to make sure the code works. I had a failure in "intmath.st". Probably not a big deal... it could be a big deal . Might take a while, I ran it on a not so powerful laptop with a not so powerful VM on top of it. Actually my shyt just hung so I killed the make process and skipped it.
9) Enter

make install

You might need to be running MinGW as Administrator for this to work.

That should install it for you. I don't know how to run the compiler or anything like that . Could always try this out Squeak/Smalltalk

How do you open the MinGW prompt? It's GUI acts an installer. I'm guessing I have to go to C:/MinGW but idk what to do from there
Edit:
fukk this shyt I'm just going to fukk with C instead. This bullshyt doesn't even have good tutorials online. I'll read the book for leisure and maybe eventually do when I'm experienced with Linux. Thank you very much

 

[Obreh Winfrey]

How do you open the MinGW prompt? It's GUI acts an installer. I'm guessing I have to go to C:/MinGW but idk what to do from there

Getting Started | MinGW
MinGW for First Time Users HOWTO | MinGW