Hey guys

Im a programmer, but so far I have only learnt VB6. So got a question -> What would be the next best language to learn, next year im taking C++. A buddy of mine knows alot of php, but not being able to compile that to test it stinks I think. So do we have any code guru's who can maybe teach me some C++ or the next best language??

VB6 is not a language

lol yes it is a programmer language
my father works whit VB6 too in a firma as programmer

and if you don´t know if it is a language or not DON`t say anything what not be true

i think the next best language is c# or php
idk how much are your skills

I think he said "VB6 is not a language" because it is pretty lousy for a languange.
And you could learn the syntax of C++ by using C; Perl and PHP use similar syntaxes too, but both are interpreter languages.
Why go for the "next-best" anyway, start with C++

I used to "code" (term used loosely, heh) in VB (4, 5 & 6) until a friend told me to "learn a real language and stop playing about". From there, I started to learn C++ using Borland C++ Builder as the techniques are somewhat similar to VB (start with a form, "draw" components, enter code in the event handlers etc).

PHP is IMO, a different kettle of fish and is more comparable to the likes of Perl than a compiled language, not that it's not useful.. it's ideal for web development for example and some cmdline scripting (you can use it with GTK to build GUIs, but it gets messy pretty quickly).

If you're looking for the next step in compiled languages, I'd definitely say C++



Regards,

Ian

Or the next logical step, which would be VB .NET

Quote from BurnOut69 :

Or the next logical step, which would be VB .NET

So you can create 20k binaries, but require 200Mb+ (installed) of .NOT dependencies? doesn't seem that logical to me



Regards,

Ian

Well in fact I find it very logical when you know how .NET works, but thats not the point of the thread The guy asked what to learn next and IMO VB .NET is the best shot if you have no other programming experience.

Quote from Ian.H :

So you can create 20k binaries, but require 200Mb+ (installed) of .NOT dependencies? doesn't seem that logical to me

Regards,

Ian

You seem to have an immense urge to post your opinion whether or not it has anything to do with the discussed topic.
I think the .NET suggestion by BurnOut is a very logical one, looking at the OP's question (ie. regardless of what you think about "M$" or ".NOT").

Quote from traxxion :

You seem to have an immense urge to post your opinion whether or not it has anything to do with the discussed topic.
I think the .NET suggestion by BurnOut is a very logical one, looking at the OP's question (ie. regardless of what you think about "M$" or ".NOT").

How was that an opinion that had nothing to do with the topic? IMO, that's quite a relevant part.. regardless of the language, requiring everyone that is a potential user of any apps you code have over 200Mb of dependencies on the off chance that you might use 5Mb of those, isn't too clever and shirley something to take into consideration when choosing your next language, as a comparison.. much like deciding on ASP or Perl / PHP for web dev.. one's restricted to a windoze server (to make use of certain functions anyway, such as accessing the filesystem), the others will run on any server.. again, depending on how you plan to deploy applications, this should be a major factor.



Regards,

Ian

I moved on to VB.NET after a few years experiences with VB6. VB.NET is a completely different language, but with pretty much the same syntax. I think it's the easiest way for you to get the hang of OOP.
After that I moved on to C#.

At work I code PHP now, learned that in 4 weeks.

Quote from Ian.H :

If you're looking for the next step in compiled languages, I'd definitely say C++

I'd agree. If you can get a good handle on C++, you won't have any problems adapting to any other C-style languages

I'm looking to switch from VB6 to RealBasic (rather than going down the .NET route) for my home projects. I share Ian's disapproval for most of what they've done with .NET. VB6 has too many weird quirks as well, being aimed at beginners too much makes some more complicated matters additionally complicated and weird to code for. Multiple instances of forms, for example. /grates teeth

At work I'm using C++ and Python. Python has some surprising similarities to VB, shares other features with C++, yet in other ways it's very distinct from both. Makes for a interesting mix IMO. The interpreted nature has it's own benefits and drawbacks.

I'd say if you want to learn another language, it's more useful to learn one that's quite dissimilar, that way other languages slot somewhere inbetween and you can see things in common with different languages you know. Learning a similar language means you're not getting as much experience and variety as you could be.

Since C++ is just one of those languages you should really get familiar with (and arguably the earlier, the better), so I'd add my vote for that being the next language to start toying with.

I recommend Python, probably the most enjoyable language I've worked with. Python just seems to work the way you think a language should. It's very easy to learn and can do pretty much anything.

The only downside (which can also be an upside) I've found for Python is the dynamic data type casting. Don't be strict with yourself and you can do some floating point maths, output it to a form, read it back in and export into a database and suddenly you have a database full of strings. At least they're easily converted back, so long as your fancy GUI doesn't insist on inserting commas every three signifcant figures, which then breaks the float() opertion. :|

I want to say C(++).
I want to say PHP, but I wont.
I want to tell you I like Python, but I don't.

In the end mate, it's up to you where you go. TBH, any language you pick these days (Outside that of PAWN aka SmallC, or any other obscure programming language) is going to do what you want it to do as long as you learn how to make it dance.

Quote from Bob Smith :

The only downside (which can also be an upside) I've found for Python is the dynamic data type casting. Don't be strict with yourself and you can do some floating point maths, output it to a form, read it back in and export into a database and suddenly you have a database full of strings. At least they're easily converted back, so long as your fancy GUI doesn't insist on inserting commas every three signifcant figures, which then breaks the float() opertion. :|

Well, that's the same with any dynamic language really. Just because the language is dynamic, doesn't mean you don't have to think about how you use and treat the types. In my experience Python is less prone to these sorts of errors than other dynamic languages such as PHP, as Python is actually strongly-typed, it's just that the type-checking is done at runtime. If you miss-use a type then it will raise an exception. If you are getting an unexpected type back from a method or function, then that's an API issue, rather than a language one.

C++/C and Java are the two most popular languages, so if you want to work in the coding business better start learning one of them, preferably both. C++ is a bit harder to learn, because it has more direct handling of the memory.If you just want to program as a hobby, it doesn't matter what language you choose that much.

I would probably recommend trying out C# too. Yes, you have to install that 200MB package to run .NET programs, but is quite nice language to program in.

Also if you choose C++, VB or C# get Visual Studio, it is the best tool for coding. You can get the Express versions for free from http://www.microsoft.com/express/.

Thanks to all that replied
+1

I think I am going to go with C++ as it seem to be industry standardized and I can use my Programming teher;s website for the C++ course Im taking next year.

Thanks again
Bobby

Quote from ThaBobsta :

Thanks to all that replied
+1

I think I am going to go with C++ as it seem to be industry standardized and I can use my Programming teher;s website for the C++ course Im taking next year.

Thanks again
Bobby

Great choice, I should really buckle down and take to an environment but for some reason, no matter how hard I look, I never quite fell like I am at home when I write C++ Code.

Quote from ThaBobsta :

Thanks to all that replied
+1

I think I am going to go with C++ as it seem to be industry standardized and I can use my Programming teher;s website for the C++ course Im taking next year.

Thanks again
Bobby

Good luck jumping from a 4 stroke kart to a F3000 with no TC. Beware of unmanaged memory walls and tail-happy pointers.

You may want to reconsider .NET after the 3rd or 4th serious headache, specially considering you're coming from Vb6

Quote from BurnOut69 :

Good luck jumping from a 4 stroke kart to a F3000 with no TC. Beware of unmanaged memory walls and tail-happy pointers.

You may want to reconsider .NET after the 3rd or 4th serious headache, specially considering you're coming from Vb6

I went straight from VB6 to C++ (had been coding in VB for a few years, although nothing _really_ to write home about) without too many headaches.

I can now code much more advanced apps (although still no pro ) in C++ than I ever did in VB. It's also helped me understand enough Delphi to port some Delphi stuff to C++ as the syntax is similar, just reversed for some things (useful as there's some good Delphi components around), likewise with Pascal (used for scripting the installers I build).



Regards,

Ian

The thing is that even if some people can be succesful to some extent in making the change from VB6 to C++, what we are discussing here is if its the best thing to do.

Facts are that unmanaged memory and cryptic syntax (to name a few) arent the best things to deal with when coming from a permissive language like VB6.

Following my previous comparison, is it possible to race a F3000 coming from karts? Sure. Chances are you're gonna end up against a wall, though.