# Possibly Learning Programming...Visual C++,Visual C#, Visual Basic??



## Skiingguru1611 (Oct 9, 2007)

Sorry for long title.

I'm going to download an express edition of one of these for free from http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/express/aa975050.aspx

I was wondering which would be easiest to learn and most useful. I just want to see if programming is something I would like and if I could dedicate myself to it.

As for what I would make, I'm not sure. Probably just some useless stuff to get use to the coding in general.

My Question is...Should I download the Visual Basic 2005 Express Edition, Visual C# 2005 Express Edition, or Visual C++ 2005 Express Edition???


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## Snoopdogie187 (Jun 27, 2002)

I have only ever did a little it of C++ and Visual Basic.
Visual Basic is a lot easier to make GUI programs than is C++ (well i never made GUI programs with C++) but they are both easy depending on what you have to do. 

A more difficult program is Java but it is easier to integrate into a website. 

Personally for the easiest but also be useful i tend to pick Visual Basic but i do prefer Java over that, but Java may be harder to get the concept at first


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## Skiingguru1611 (Oct 9, 2007)

I think I am going to start with Visual Basic...what are some programs you could make with it???


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## Snoopdogie187 (Jun 27, 2002)

The last program i made with it for fun was a temp converter between C and F. In visual basic, i had the full version through my school, but at least in that one you can make it a stand alone application (.exe) where it can run on any computer without being complied. 

As far as what you can program just play around with it and see what you want to make, It is fairly easy once you know a little bit about it and The GUI does make it a little easier, I am not sure how far you can really get with VB but mostly simple programs like that is what i did


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## Guest (Oct 10, 2007)

I really dont have much experience in programming but I did program actually working programs in C#. I like that one myself a lot and most examples on Microsoft they give in this language or Visual Basic. I tried basic but I really don't like it that much. To tell you the truth mostly all the languages are the same so in C# you would use " . " to separate code while in C++ you would use " -> " to separate code.


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## Skiingguru1611 (Oct 9, 2007)

I went ahead and downloaded the visual basic...I followed one of their guides to make an EXTREMELY simple and basic web browser. I am very intrigued. I was wondering what some other basic programs I could make with it were so I could further understand the language?

I have not done much with the code yet, but I think I can figure it out.

All ideas are appreciated, Thanks.


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## Snoopdogie187 (Jun 27, 2002)

Well you can make something that you always have to go get a calculator for. That is originally why i made the Fahrenheit and Celsius converter since i was always wondering what a temperature was like in Celsius when ever i found it online. Or if you are in school, make something to help you study, almost be like flash cards or to help you outline, now that i have thought of it, i would like something that i can use like flashcards on a computer but I would need a computer for that first that i can download the program to create the code for it on.


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## Skiingguru1611 (Oct 9, 2007)

Flash Cards sound good...but I would have to enter all the text first wouldn't I?

I'm not quite sure how I would do that...can you elaborate?


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## Snoopdogie187 (Jun 27, 2002)

not totally sure, but use text boxes to enter in data from the user, with a next and finish button set up so the program knows when to stop asking for more info, then just have something to post one part of the input and mix the second part up with a bunch of other inputs, may take some time to code and figure out how to get the variables to be added over and over and save all the data and things like that but the questioning part should be easier

and sorry if this confused you, it almost confuses me and i wrote it


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## Direct Current (Apr 8, 2005)

Hay Snoopdogie187 & Skiingguru1611;:wave: I read you thread and was interested in VB to do something I need to do for my folks computer, hope you don't mine me Hijacking the thread for a few. Now I am not a programmer, but I was wondering what is VB and what it is used for? 

What I had in mine was, when the desktop screen came up, use VB to flash up a small block area for say 45 sec. with a message in it "Do not touch keyboard or mouce until OUTLOOK EXPRESS has come up Via Internet" and then go away. Then have internet come up and then OUTLOOK EXPRESS come up. My dad get lost, he has a touch of alzemhiers, this would make it is'er for him the read his EM. :smile:

Would that be possible? can VB be used this way? if so what do I need to get started learning and writing a program such as this? :smile:

ONe other question, what is GUI?:4-dontkno

GOd Bless DC


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## Snoopdogie187 (Jun 27, 2002)

Hello, well to start GUI stands for graphics user interface, i think those are the proper words, all it means is that it is not command based and you can see and interact with it, like with a mouse and such.

VB stands for visual basic. it is a program to help you make other programs. It tends to use more of a GUI so that way it is easier to make what you want. I am not sure of all the capabilities it has, i never got that much into it.

Now for the VB program. To make it start with the computer is easy. Just create the program and when you are down, make the program an exe file. That is easy to do and i know the message would be easy to create. As for getting it to appear on the screen, just have windows open that application when windows starts. For it opening the other two programs, i would tend to think it is easier to have them start the same way you had the program you made start. 

As for learning how to use the program, i am not sure. There is always Google but i learned through my high school mostly. 

You can try to get 

Sorry this is all I can offer you


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## Direct Current (Apr 8, 2005)

Thanks, that is a start to look at, now I have to get the green to get the program to try it out. UTC me friend. If you are lost for time, try the doctors off line thread for fun. Plenty of poppycorn to talk and eat :grin::grin:


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## Snoopdogie187 (Jun 27, 2002)

Your welcome. And sorry i do not know what UTC is. And i never have time as it is. I think i have to be up all night doing homework tonight, at least weekend soon


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## Snoopdogie187 (Jun 27, 2002)

I attached a sample program i made with VB for fun one day, it is a very simple one. I never completely worked all the bugs out, well there really is none, just would have liked to improve on it a little.


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## Direct Current (Apr 8, 2005)

thank you for the file, I save the file then tried to look at it in NotePad, Unfortunely, did not understand a word it said. It does work though. it supposed to convert Fairinhith to celcus, yes? and it does. 
Is there a VB program around some where?


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## Snoopdogie187 (Jun 27, 2002)

VB can not be done through notepad and that file is made from VB or it is already compiled and built and i do not think that you can backtrack it and look at it again. To look at any code for VB you must use VB to do so i think. java i know you can look at through notepad/wordpad and i know there is more but i do not know them.

And yea it converts Fahrenheit to Cecilius and also if you enter data into the Celsius text box it will output the value in Fahrenheit. 
The math in it should be accurate, i just used two math equations i found online. 

The only two things i would be to limit the input so it does not crash like it does if the value is too big. And also make it so when you click on the text boxes it highlights the numbers in there and maybe could have put in two numbers when you start the program. But it was a quick program. I think that took me not even 15 minutes to create and that was like at least 6 months after i stopped using VB. 

I can try to get the original code for the program if i still have it but it is on my old computer (if i kept the file) and that computer does not work and i am not fixing it anyway


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## MattBro (Nov 11, 2006)

In short:

Visual BASIC - Beginners.
Visual C# - Intermediate.
Visual C++ - Advanced.


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## Direct Current (Apr 8, 2005)

:smile:So what I really nead is the MS VB program to work with VB, Yes? 

I did a little search and found a tutorial VB "www.vbtutor.net" that seem to explain a lot about VB. Thanks a bunch you have been a big help. :smile:

MattBro, I have been trying to understand what you said for some time, The last time I tried programming was back in the days of Keypunch. Now I have time to catch up with the world and study the new stuff, been trying to find a graph that explain where to start and where to go like you said 
Visual BASIC - Beginners.
Visual C# - Intermediate.
Visual C++ - Advanced. 
It would be great to have something showing where to start and what would I need to lead me to X programing. Example If I wanted to learn Html, what would be the pre-requesit to learning html or javascrib or webpage building or building a forum on a webpage. 
Anyway you guys have help me out greatly, thanks God Bless


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## Snoopdogie187 (Jun 27, 2002)

yes you would need MS VB, not sure if another company makes VB though, so for now MS


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## MattBro (Nov 11, 2006)

> So what I really nead is the MS VB program to work with VB, Yes?
> 
> I did a little search and found a tutorial VB "www.vbtutor.net" that seem to explain a lot about VB. Thanks a bunch you have been a big help.
> 
> ...


Unfortunately I don't believe there is really any step-by-step guide to becomming a programmer. Personally, I started with Java (at the age of 12), and it confused the hell out of me. After a few months, I moved straight to C++ and haven't looked back since. After I had a grasp of C++, many other languages came easy. But ofcourse, this is just me, I find I prefer having a lean and mean view of how the computer works (not silly built-in language anaologies like you'd find in Java, or VB). Looking back, I think I would've been better starting off with assembly, and then again, that would probably have caused me to lose interest because it's very hard to accomplish even the most simplest of task's in Asm. Even VB though, these anologies it promotes help the novice understand things better.

So, there really are many conflicting ways to go about learning how to program, and I feel it's a personal choice of how someone wishes to go about it.

Almost all other programmers I know started with VB, so if anything I would suggest just that, then once you get a feel of how to go about things, how things get done, maybe migrate to C++.

Or, you could start with C (not C++), since although it's down and dirty (so to speak) there are minimal concepts you must understand, since it's a procedural language, you'll simply deal with: variables and functions. Or, "data, and the operations that manipulate it"


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## Snoopdogie187 (Jun 27, 2002)

A really easy language is True Basic, but it will give very basic concepts. The only bad thing with starting with True Basic is that it is so basic that you do not deal with anything really and do no get figure out as much as there is in other languages. 

But i found starting simple with C++ was really easy way to get the basics down, then move to VB where it just added more to what you have to know to be a programmer.


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## Direct Current (Apr 8, 2005)

Humm...... I think you both maybe right. I looked over some VB books tonight at Books-A-Million then put them back. think I am going to try downloading MS VB 2005, it is free to try out and use my turtorial Website and see where it goes. I have an old Bloonean C++ compiler so I might pull it out and get back into it. Maybe between the two I can kick start this programming stuff. Again thanks for the info guys. 

Look me up if you ever get on the offline doctors thread.:grin:


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## Direct Current (Apr 8, 2005)

Snoopdogie187/MattBro--->Is there a Doctor in the house???? I needs some good advice before my leg remotely runs off and does the river dance:grin:

Hope you guys are still working this thread. I have been trying to download the free VB MS 2005 Express Edition to doddle with it, but I have to use flashget to download or netzero drop me out. Can't seem to figure out how to get flashget to download it. Do you two know anything here about it?
God Bless Dcray::wave::smiler would that be HIJacking the thread?


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## Snoopdogie187 (Jun 27, 2002)

Hi, sorry, i would download it and see how it works out, but i need a few weeks before i get a computer. 
But can you just download it like any other thing you would download online. I have never heard of flashget before so i can not help you with that.

Sorry i do not know a lot (compared to some people here) about computers. I am just a person who picked up computers really well from playing with them, so most of what i know is all from this site over the five years. and particular in the being i was only like 14 or 15 when i first came here i probably did not learn that much.


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## Direct Current (Apr 8, 2005)

HijackThat is quick all right Snoopdogie187, I am 55, use to be a field service eng. with several computer companies but in the days when computers look like houses and programming was typing out IBM keypunch cards by the 1ooo's. You be supprized how many onions(Young people have taught me all over again). We are all the same age in virtual world, but you don't know until you ask and there is no such thing as a dum questions just unanswered one's to quote a top NASA scientist. You have a very Bless day my friend :smile: UnHijack


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## Direct Current (Apr 8, 2005)

Hay Snoopdogie187, I hay forgot to tell you in my hast. ............
"flashget"-- is a program that assist in downloads. When you have a slow download speed and you internet server drops you out because of a time limit. You then have to try again to download the info. With flashget, it speeds up the download, help hold the server open to the DN(download) keeping it from droping out and if it does, Flashget can pickup from where it left off when you dial the site back up, getting the rest of the DN. Take care.


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## Snoopdogie187 (Jun 27, 2002)

You do have a point that we are pretty much all the same age with computers, they change too fast sometimes. 

And thank you for explaining what flashget is. I might get it for the summers when i am home since i still have dial up there.


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