As an aspiring programmer, one thing you should always keep in mind is that programming isn’t a typical subject that you can learn by following your college syllabus or by making the same programs listed on the internet for decades.
Programming is a set of activities like evaluating, understanding, creating algorithms, verifying algorithms such as their correctness and resources consumption, and implementation of those algorithms in a target programming language.
As an aspiring learner of any programming language, you should have enough motivation, interest, and discipline. If you are open to gain new knowledge and ready to practice the acquired skills then you will succeed in learning that language.
In this article, I’m going to mention some important tips on how to learn any programming language easily, faster and be productive at the same time.
Contents
1. Pick up the right Programming language for your work
Computer programming languages include Javascript, SQL, Python, C++, Java, PHP, Ruby and many more. Each of these languages has its specific applications. Therefore, you will take a great step forward by trying to know your goal so that you will be able to learn the right programming language. Conversely, if you fail in setting your direction right, you will be beating the air.
2. Master the basics of that Programming language
Most aspiring programmers rush through the fundamental and head straight for the advanced programming concepts. Probably they assume that the basic concepts will waste their precious time.
However, this tactic usually ends up backfiring on them. They usually end up getting stuck on the advanced concepts which require some deep knowledge on the fundamentals. The learners are then forced to go back and study the fundamentals again. In doing so, they waste plenty of time. To avoid becoming a victim, take the fundamental concepts of programming seriously.
3. Choose the right tool
The main tool is, of course, a computer with the required configuration to run programming software. The software mainly includes IDEs, compilers, debuggers, build tools, disassemblers, interface generators, text editors and much more. However, the tools you need depends on the type of programming language you want to learn.
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Instead of using so many tools you can directly work on a good IDE for that particular programming language. An IDE software includes all important tools for developing specific software. Here is a list of the best IDEs for programmers.
4. Code as you learn
Make your learning process active rather than passive. Start juggling with the lines of code as you learn. Do not just sit back and watch tutorials or read notes hoping to implement what you are learning later. You will encounter many roadblocks that will be forcing you to go back and start learning again.
The earlier you start trying out what you are learning, the faster you will learn. In fact, your coding environment should be running concurrently as you learn. The most recommended way of learning is to build a project as you read through the learning material. This way you will be able to learn faster and in a systematic way.
5. Utilize online resources
There are plenty of online resources that you can use to accelerate the learning process. These resources come in different forms. They can be online tutorials, textbooks, and even online forums. If you feel that you are not understanding a certain concept, simply log into a trustworthy forum and ask members the question. You will be surprised by the plenty of answers that you will get. Video platforms such as YouTube can demonstrate for you how to arrive at a solution.
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The good thing about online resources is you can compare the solutions from different sources.
6. Code for a reason
Coding requires patience and time, if you think, you can learn it within a week and become a charm then you are fooling yourself. The more regularly you learn to code and practice the more likely it is that you’ll start developing skills and get frequent at using syntax. But the problem is, who follow this philosophy and wordings and who has that much time between working fulltime, seeing family, friends and life admin. When are you supposed to sit down and practice this “daily coding”?
The answer is, your reason, dedication, passion and where it will come from. It will come from projects. It is true that as humans, we have a lot of inertia. once you indulge yourself in coding and making things, see things working live, your interest will grow and this will push you to learn more. Then you don’t need to force yourself to code. So, develop a habit to carry out the task daily for about a month.
7. Take part in some coding challenges
When you are learning alone – the process may seem boring, but think of finding a like-minded people, or rather a community of people taking part in a challenge. There are challenges like 100HoursofCode, 100DaysOfCode, EastCanCode, CodeChef, Coderbyte and many others all over the web.
Recommended: Top Websites For Coding Challenges
In that case, you will definitely have the motivation of completing the challenge moreover, be the first in it! You’ll use all possible ways to be first, you’ll recall all the theory you’ve ever learned, books read, tasks completed, all for getting more and more scores in the challenge.
What do you mean by:
”7. Take part is some coding challenge”
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