There are a lot of people that want to learn how to code. Some even think that everybody should learn how to code. Most seasoned programmers like to recommend the language that they started with or the language that they love at the moment. However, they fail to point out that language really does not matter. What really matters is learning how to solve problems. I personally started programming with C++ but I won’t recommend somebody new to start coding in C++ because it could look too complicated and the person will end up frustrated and quit.
My advice to people wanting to code, especially web designers that have been forced by the market to be well-rounded, is to learn Pseudocode first. Pseudocode is easy to learn because you use your plain language (not only English, so you can use your native language to create pseudocode) to create an algorithm to solve a problem. After you have the fundamentals of Pseudocode and have solved basic problems using this technique, it would be much easier to jump into any programming language you want and learn it quickly. You can start by solving popular algebraic problems like solving linear and quadratic equations. They will help you to organize your thoughts by putting them on paper and solving the problem which is what you are supposed to acquire to learn how to code.
There are a lot of resources online that can be used to learn how to code. If you are doing this for fun, you don’t need to go to college. Thus, you can start with Khan Academy, Codecademy, or even Youtube videos.
Some programming languages are easier than others to learn. But, if you have the fundamentals, it is relatively easy to jump from one language to another. The easiest languages to learn are Python, Ruby, PHP, and JavaScript. The JavaScript programming language might be the most difficult of these four languages. But, it might be more marketable if the person decides to work as a web developer. In addition, as it is installed on the browser it might be a good entry language because you don’t have to even install anything before playing with it.
So, if you want to learn how to code, take a couple of hours learning some pseudocode because they help you to organize your thoughts and make the transition to a programming language with ease. Remember, pseudocode is not for the computer but for you to become a programmer and have an overall view of the steps taken to solve a problem.
