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thanks for the suggestions...will do my best to adhere to it...<br><br>> Date: Mon, 1 Oct 2007 09:15:00 -0400<br>> From: linux-5ZoueyuiTZhBDgjK7y7TUQ@public.gmane.org<br>> To: tlug-lxSQFCZeNF4@public.gmane.org<br>> Subject: Re: [TLUG]: Learning to Program<br>> <br>> Henry de Valence wrote:<br>> > Hi. I'm 15, and I started using Linux last February, and haven't looked back. <br>> > I started with Ubuntu, but then I switched to Kubuntu. Right now I'm running <br>> > Gutsy Gibbon, because Fiesty doesn't support my video card. Anyways, I know a <br>> > bit about Java and C++ (I have the basic stuff about datatypes, control <br>> > structures, functions and recursion, etc, and some OOP stuff.) What I know I <br>> > learned partly by myself and partly in a summer course I took (the Grade 11 <br>> > CS course, but according to my teacher we went beyond what we were supposed <br>> > to).<br>> > <br>> > Anyways, I'm looking for a good, comprehensive guide to learning about <br>> > programming GUI applications for KDE using QT, and I figured this would be a <br>> > good place to ask. Ideally, I'd like something that I can do a bit at a time, <br>> > because I have homework and other stuff. The other thing is that I'd like to <br>> > learn programming for KDE 4 applications, but right now I'm running 7.10, <br>> > which uses KDE 3.5. I thought this would be a good place to ask for <br>> > suggestions.<br>> > <br>> > Harry de Valence<br>> <br>> I can't make much of suggestion, being a perl-type myself. :)<br>> <br>> I did want to say "Welcome to the industry!" though. I am also entirely <br>> self-taught, and owe a *huge* debt to TLUG and other great mailing <br>> lists. Check the archives to see how often I ask questions, and the <br>> quality (and patience) of the replies!<br>> <br>> I have three general suggestions though;<br>> <br>> a) Whatever language you settle on (Python, etc), find a dedicated <br>> mailing list and join it. For example, perl being my drug of choice, <br>> Toronto Perl Mongers was the list for me. TLUG rocks, but sometimes you <br>> find a wierd quirk that you need to ask a dedicated community about.<br>> <br>> b) Write clean code. Period, full stop. It doesn't really matter what <br>> style you adopt, but stick to it and be consistent. It's frightening how <br>> quickly a great program can go to hell because of sloppy code <br>> formatting. My last job was working on a 9yo program that had never been <br>> properly formatted. I would lose upwards of an hour whenever I started <br>> for on a new file just cleaning up the code so I could follow the logic.<br>> <br>> c) Don't be a show off and write self-documenting code. As you learn, <br>> you will be tempted to use more and more complex code that incorporates <br>> new tricks you have learned... Don't fall into this trap! *Always* use <br>> the simplest, most obvious steps, tools and commands to accomplish a <br>> task. There is a true beauty in simplicity!<br>> <br>> The senior programmer at my last job showed me a short article on the <br>> progression of a programmer by showing a simple "Hello, World!" script. <br>> I wish I could find it again, but it went something like this:<br>> <br>> - Beginner:<br>> #!/usr/bin/perl<br>> print "Hello, World!\n";<br>> <br>> - Intermediate:<br>> #!/usr/bin/perl<br>> my @words;<br>> my $foo="Hello";<br>> my $bar="World";<br>> push @words, $foo;<br>> push @words, $bar;<br>> my $string;<br>> for (0..@words)<br>> {<br>> if ( $_ == 1 )<br>> {<br>> $string.=", ";<br>> $string.=$words[$_];<br>> }<br>> else<br>> {<br>> $string.=$words[$_];<br>> }<br>> }<br>> $string.="!\n";<br>> print $string;<br>> <br>> - Expert;<br>> #!/usr/bin/perl<br>> print "Hello, World!\n"<br>> <br>> <br>> Maybe someone here can find the original (much better written) <br>> example of what I am trying to get at, but hopefully you see what I mean. :P<br>> <br>> My $0.02!<br>> <br>> Madi<br>> --<br>> The Toronto Linux Users Group. Meetings: http://gtalug.org/<br>> TLUG requests: Linux topics, No HTML, wrap text below 80 columns<br>> How to UNSUBSCRIBE: http://gtalug.org/wiki/Mailing_lists<br><br /><hr />Connect to the next generation of MSN Messenger <a href='http://imagine-msn.com/messenger/launch80/default.aspx?locale=en-us&source=wlmailtagline' target='_new'>Get it now! </a></body>
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