A BUNCH of questions about computer/web programming?

Question

A BUNCH of questions about computer/web programming?

Answer 1

What's that? Can't hear you, lean way over. Re question: Strictly minor-league stats. Guess which mutual friend woke up with 54 in their box this morning? Think we have a new record holder.

Answer 2

1. There are pros and cons to both, but offhand I'd suggest Java, since it has a wider range of applications in both the desktop and web platforms.

2. PHP is specifically a web-based scripting language for creating dynamic web pages. SQL is a relational database query language which, while often is used in PHP, has a far-wider range of uses and is used by many, many other languages (including Java and C++).

3. Dreamweaver is a website creation tool...it doesn't have a direct relation to Java (altho afaik you can include Java web applets in Dreamweaver-created sites.)

4. A bit too much here to even try and cover briefly...

5. That's pretty tough at your age...as a minor, not only are you limited as to the number of hours weekly you can work (both by school limitations and labor laws), there's not a lot of jobs past minimum wage available to you. However, if you DO get adept at programming, then there's the possibility of doing freelance work. Since you're basically working for yourself, labor limitations don't apply and if you could complete one project weekly, $1000/month is possible (altho keep in mind that, besides taxes, you'll probably have to split 10-15% of the gross with the freelancer site(s) you work thru to find your clients.)

6. Debugging is the process of testing and fixing problems in your code...other than the simplest applications, you rarely get it all right the first time (I've been at it over 30 years and I seldom do.)

Compiling is the process of taking the code as it makes sense to humans (source code) and converting it to something the computer understands (machine code.) Since computers made by different manufacturers differ in their machine code, compilers (or interpreters, which are similar but do it on-the-fly when the application is executed) have to be computer specific...machine code for a PC probably won't run correctly (if at all) on a Mac.

Answer 3

1. Start with Python, it's a much easier (but still very powerful) language. This will allow you to focus on writing modular and good programs. A nice (free) book to start with "How to think like a computer scientist".



2. SQL is a language used for querying a database, i.e. retrieving items from it and stuff. PHP is not really related to SQL, except that programs written in PHP can use SQL to look up information in a database.



3. Dreamweaver is used to design websites, not programs.



4. I don't know about the programming industry. I do know that colleges don't care about 8th grade, lol.



5. You can't at your age. I'm 16 and I make €216 ($305) a month delivering newspapers in the early morning Mon-Sat.



6. Compiling is turning the code of your program into a file the computer can run. Debugging is finding errors in your code and fixing them. The book I mentioned in 1. explains all of this.



How to think like a computer scientist: http://openbookproject.net/thinkcs/python/english2e/

Answer 4

1. If you have little to no programming experience, I would say start with Java. It frees you from some of the annoying C++ stuff, like memory management (no pun intended). You will likely be less frustrated if you go with Java first.



2. I'm not terribly familiar with either one, but my impression is that SQL is a separate system that can be integrated with PHP or possibly some other environments such as ASP.



3. Um...what? Last I heard, Dreamweaver was a WYSIWYG web editor. It is not a Java IDE.



4. I don't know much about this.



5. Or this.



6. Compiling is when a computer takes the source code for a program and produces a new set of data representing the translation of that source code into some executable language (typically machine code). Debugging is when a programmer has found something wrong with a program (a bug) and takes measures to figure out where the problem is, what is causing it, and how to fix it. Both of these are fairly basic concepts and anyone learning programming will become familiar with them very quickly.

Answer 5

1. just search google for anything you want to learn. it can be hard to understand exactly what it all means at first, especially if you just read descriptions. to really get a better understanding of php and sql and how they're both used, search for a tutorial on how to make a simple program with both of these (setting up the environment to just get a simple program running can be half the battle). just copy the code they provide and run it. then try adding different things to the code to see how you can affect it when it runs. or find more involved tutorials to learn more about what you can do with the language.



by the way, in my view, being a programmer isn't about knowing a lot of different languages or language syntax, etc. it's more about just knowing how to program in general, or how to figure things out in general. if you have a good understanding of the basics, and learn them in just one language, such a java, you will find that the same things pretty much apply to other languages like c#, and it will be easy for you to quickly pick up new languanges you've never used before. you never really remember all of the functions and how to use them; i'm always looking things up at work, even things i've done many times but just can't remember.



3. i haven't done any java programming since college. in college i was crazy and used a simple text editor called vi to program. i'm sure dreamweaver is a lot better. at work i use visual studio with the languages like c#, c++, and wpf/silverlight.



4. colleges only care about high school. if you're thinking about all of this already, you're way ahead of everyone else. in my view the school you go to doesn't really matter much, they all probably provide similar computer science degrees. what mattered most to me was going to college in the same state i'm a citizen in, because it's a lot less cheaper--also, the state you're in might provide scholarships so you can go to college for free if you do well enough in high school and on the s.a.t., etc.



6. when an application runs, thousands of lines of code run every second. when you test your program by running it, you will often see it doing things that you don't want it to, because it's hard to always get the code perfect. so this is when you run whatever development environment you're using (such as visual studio) and debug the code. when you debug the application, you can slowly step through each line of code as it is running. this way, you can see the code as it is running, which can help you to locate the cause of the bug and fix it.



when you compile your project, it creates the application EXE (or DLL or whatever type of project you set up in visual studio, or whatever environment you're using) out of the project code. if the compiler is able to determine if any of the code is wrong, it will tell you that it couldn't compile the code and list all of the errors, which you will need to fix to get the code to compile. once the code compiles, you can run the application and test it to see if it's working the way you want it to.

Answer 6

Answers to your question one by one in detail :



1. Start with C++, being in 8th grade you will find things difficult to understand but dont loose hope keep reading the books things will become more n more clearer as you drill down the book.

But if you still find things difficult I will recommend go through few initial pages of C language, this is the first language that every programmer starts with.



2. PHP is a web programming language and SQL is related to Database. They both are completely different thing. To easy to understand I will say PHP is for front end and SQL is used for backend.

Programming in PHP results in display of web pages along with the buisness login.

SQL It is used at the backend to store user information and configuration parameters.



3. Dremaweaver is for Web pages development. For Java various IDE (Integerated Development Environment) are present Eclise. IntellijIdea and many more. I prefer Eclipse



4. Career aspect are very good in this filed. As everything is going online now a days ranging from paying bills, social networking etc. Some designation that you will achieve is PHP developer, Senior PHP developer, Software Engg, Senior Software engg, Developer, Senior Developer, Web Programmer. Some organizations consider your grades before calling for an interview. But most of then recruites on the basis of presence of mind, logical ability, aptitude and knowledge of technology.



5. How? is going to b tough for me to answer. But yes organizations demands experts , more expertise more money ;)... along with Programming language they also need domain knowledge.

For example : Operation Support systems, Buisness support syste, , CRM, BRM , ESS and many many more.



6. No its not at all confusing. Once you will be in the game, everything will be clear to u.

Debug : its a procedure to find out errors in your source code. Error can be of any type i.e Logical error to a spelling mistake.

Compile : This is a procedure through which you can convert normal source code to machine understandable intermidetary language.



Hope things are more clearer to you now.. :)



All the very best..!!!!

Answer 7

5.I would go to my parents and ask them to help you find yards to mow,babysitting or dog walking.Most adults will go out of their way to help a kid with a mission.Put the word out.

4.There are thousands of jobs that involves computer skill,so find one you are interested in.You have plenty of time.



If you have that kind of gpa,you know how to get the answers on your own.Good luck!

Answer 8

1. Java is based off of C++, and C++ is much more universal. It is the language you can write applications for Apple's iOS platform in, and that's a lucrative business. Java is run in a virtual machine and takes up more processing power for same-size and same-function programs. It is what Android is written in, and coding for Android is not a very easy business to get into.

2. PHP uses SQL, so learn SQL first. This isn't my primary focus and I know little about it, so google "PHP vs SQL" and you'll find quite a bit.

3. My favorite program for writing Java is the Eclipse IDE for Java Developers. It's available on Linux, Mac, and Windows! I have it on my old Tiger mac, so it's very easy to get for older platforms too.

4. Best colleges are usually ones with CompEng programs. CE is better than CS because CS focuses solely on software, whereas CE focuses on hardware as well. Any college with a good science and math program is going to have an alright computer program. Colleges don't care about 8th grade, but it's good that you're focusing on colleges this early! I'm a senior this year (in high school) so I know how you're feeling.

5. I just made $230 this week working doing AutoCAD work, and that was only 4 days. It's not too hard, but you have to get a job first and work for almost 8 hours a day. You can't really do that at this young an age while trying to maintain a focus on school, and there are child labor laws :) but I'm sure if you're this into programming you'll get money in no time.

6. Compile basically means run code you've written. You write in the language in an editor, compile and run it, and then you will either get errors (which you'll need to use debug for; more on that later) or your code will run smoothly. Debug basically means compile the code step-by-step to see what each variable and method does, in order to know what went wrong and where so you can fix it. It's complicated.



Programming is addictive, fun, and a huge timesuck.



It's SO worth it. Have fun, don't get too frustrated, and try to take a class on it. Teachers are so good at introducing things in a way conductive to learning.



If you're this interested now, get stared and by the time you're in high school, you might have an app published! Good luck.

Answer 9

1) start with C++



2) sql and php both are different



3) may be



4)





5)beome a freelancer start programming for others



6)correct your code

Answer 10

Most people interested in learning programming actually approach it the wrong way.



There are two ways to learn how to really program:

1 - Come up with a simple project and research every element required to get it operational.

2 - Learn how a computer works from the ground up (without necessarily understanding all the tiny details).



If you start by learning a specific language abstractly, you won't apply any problem resolving skills which will be essential in any computer related work.





SQL is a language designed to do queries on a database. These queries allow you to insert, search, update and delete entries in tables.



PHP is a structured programming language aimed mainly at providing a web page output. That said, I personally use PHP in batch programs too as it is sometimes much easier to use than more classic languages like C (even though I have 12 years of professional C development experience).



Dreamweaver is nice but not as good as many make it seem. Its main feature is for web design, which is kind of pointless in Java.



The computer industry is not what it was 10-15 years ago and it's much more difficult to find sectors where you will easily get a good job.



Making 1000$ part time in a month is huge for someone with no experience. You shouldn't set yourself such high goals right now.



Debug means to trace a program's execution step by step to understand how it operates in details.



Compiling means to convert the source code language in machine language (0s and 1s).