Hey all, wanted to ask advice on Programming languages

[Haste]

Ok, so ive got about a year before i go to uni.

Im sending off my personal statements and different things to uni's now, to see weather i will be accepted.

Now admittedly im going into a "HOPEFULLY" 3d course, thats my number 1 option. Now i know that in that course i wont be doing allot of the coding side.

However, i want to have a skill that will give me a bit of edge over other people, so that i could show my work moving. Or ever making the very basics so that i could get some freelance work, or anything usefull. However i dont know which programming language to choose

Now i know html isnt exactly a PROGRAMMING language. However its part of my choices.

Currently im looking at ANY language.

Hoever favourites so far are C++ because i will be able to directly use any work i create, to then import. However i know its allot more effect than just "import" in the long run i could create small programmes that use work i make.

Html and CSS, because getting work for building websites can be very usefull if i ever need cash when im a student in uni.

I understand that some of you guys at lan are administrators, and i think ive even caught KF typing away at some language on his computer screens aswell.

So it would be much appieciated if you gave me a bit of a long winded reason for why a certain language. It will litrally be changing future choices of mine

THANKS GUYS

means a allot

[Kanonfodda]

ok, simple answer is to go for the programming language that compliments the 3d choice. So if there is a language used in the 3d area, that would be the first place I would look

Golem may be able to help more on the 3d/programming side of things

HTML and CSS are easy, so I would consider them an essential on top of any other language if you are going into web programming. I use PHP for web development as it sits nicely on the open source stack, but again it depends on what you want to do

C++ and php share a common ancestry, so going from one to the other shouldn't be too hard, although php is not as strict as C++

[Bobtastimo]

I have to agree with KF here.
If you're going for a 3D course then pick something that'll work with that.
For example, I'm doing an Animation Degree at the moment, and we mostly use a 3d program called Maya. Maya has a build in coding language called 'MEL' that's mostly used for automation and dynamics (things like physics).
And I do sometimes wish that I knew how to do more in Mel.

3D studio MAX has something similar, but can't remember what it's called.

Do some research into the courses that you're looking into. Find out what programs they use for teaching, etc. This should help you choose what language to look into.

Hope this helps

[Golem]

A capable guy like you can learn HTML and CSS without needing a course. Build yourself a site from scratch and learn that way, working through all the elements of both.

http://www.w3schools.com/html/
http://www.w3schools.com/css/

If you want to do more beyond flat web pages, which if you want to have the capability to build sites you will, than learning complementary languages like ASP or PHP, and JavaScript, will be a big advantage. Learn good amounts of HTML and CSS first, then consider if you want a PHP course (I only prefer PHP because, as KF said, it's open source, widely used, and I've been working with it for something like a decade!)

Again, you CAN self-teach yourself both JS and PHP as well, as KF and I have. If you need to know how to do something, just shout in the forums, there's enough of us with experience in both to lend some advice.

Regarding showing your work moving - I assume your 3D course will involve the use of modellers and thus I assume you'll be using something like Bobtastimo's Maya. I personally have just started using Maya myself (you'll see the results of my efforts next Friday... ) and, like any other such product I've ever used, you can produce animation, render it, and produce video files to show off your moving models. Is that enough?

Or maybe you actually want to produce game engines and import your polygons and textures into that, in which case I would most definately suggest the C route as you've already considered. As far as I know C is a language used to create a heck of a lot of game engines and it's a lot more in depth than HTML or CSS.

Or, rather than building your own game engines, is it possible to use the Source engine and produce 'mods' with custom models and textures that you make just to show off your work? It's a fine engine for such things.

[Haste]

Hey all. I would like to say a giant thank you.

I didnt expect a massive answer back to this. However i was very mistaken

Thanks ever so much. You have cleared it up for me, im defiantly going to be starting to learn Html and Css in my spare time while im at home.

Cheers for the links, and i was always planning on self teaching, because im only in college 3 days a week, so ihave allot of spare time. At the moment im playing away on a bunch of games, and watching tv. Much to my own expence, however i hadn't got things in order.

Html and Css defiantly sound right for me, i want to learn how to make my own portfolio website, and doing what you have just said will defiantly get me on that path. And when you say it can progress into PHP because of it being open-source it really caught my eye


You are correct in saying you can move and animate things, then render it out to a save file. However i much wanted the interactive game side of it. And yet again you was correct in the fact i could use the source engine, it being a very good engine at that. Or possibly even the Unreal engine, with the free UDK tools that have come out recently that i have been playing with..

Thanks a bunch guys, you have no idea how much you have just change a life Its going to be hard working for the next few months now.

Cant wait for lan, only 7 days well 6 since its 12:40

Going to bournemouth saterday for open day. Cant wait too see what im getting into.

Much appreciated.

-Rhys

[YaZoR]

/me wipes the dust off his bookshelf.
"Ah there it is! How to assembly program for the 6502."

I would say learn assembly if you're going to program. But it is archaic and other higher level languages are far more prevalent. C/C++ would be my honest answer. Or if you're interested in something a little bit different, Go.