Hey everybody, I have been playing games for almost a decade now, and I would like to learn to program. The problem is I don''t know any C++ and very little BASIC. What would be the best books to help me learn? What are the best websites (aside from GameDev.net)? Here are a few things you should know about me before you make recommendations: 1. I am 15 years old, but I am very good at reading. The books can be complex, but they can''t be dull. 2. I know very little programming. I honestly would not recognize C++ if you showed it to me. 3. I have access to broadband, if that makes a difference. I really appreciate everybody''s help, and I thank everybody who reads this, even if you choose not to help for one reason or another. Thanks!

I would also like to program, so I am learning! I''m 14 and I still play games. The best books to help you learn. What compiler do you plan on using, any compiler works but Visual C++ has a larger community. I recomend C++ Primer Plus as a Good ANSI/ISO Standard C++ book, my other books are all too old and I havent even started readign them yet. You might want to decide on your compiler really though because a lot of books focus on a compiler, it''ll make it easier to choose books to recommend. If you don''t have ICQ maybe you should get it if you learn C++. I always have icq open when I program so if I can''t find something out I can ask one of my friends.

First of all, get a compiler. I would really recommend buying Visual C++, but you could probably download a free compiler on the internet though. Then download the DirectX SDK from Microsoft''s website. Get a book on C++ (Sams Teach Yourself C++ in 21 Days or C++ For Dummies are good for beginners, but I think they might require of knowledge of C) and possibly C as some books assume you already know C. After that, buy a book on the Windows API (Programming Windows 98, and Windows Programming from the Groun Up are good choices). Then, after that buy a book on DirectX or OpenGL. I would really recommend Tricks of the Windows Game Programming Gurus. Just take it slow and don''t skip anything. Also, do all the examples in any books you get.

For now focus on learning C++ without thinking about programming games. Just learn the language from the ground up.

The book I used to learn C++ was "Teach yourself C++ in 21 Days" by Jesse Liberty. But recently, while looking around, I saw a book on C++ by Dietel and Deitel publishers, and I forgot what it was called. Look on Amazon or Fatbrain for it... it seems to be the best C++ book around.

Most books nowadays come with Visual C++ Introductory edition, which is a toned down version of the compiler which is all you need. (in case you dont know what a compiler is, it is a program that you type your code into, it translates it into machine language, and it creates an .exe file out of it)

So like I said, just learn the language for now; surf around a book store to find what you need.

Good luck to you!

---------------------------------------
"When I lie, I am telling the truth"

Yeah, I''d have to agree with the others--learn the language first. If you don''t want to go with getting a book, you can try tutorials on http://www.cplusplus.com/ and http://www.cprogramming.com/. There are also some good tutorials that are hard to find...I used the Coronado tutorials as someone else''s suggestion, but the company that originally distributed them no longer does, so you may have to search on yahoo! for a while to find them. As for a compiler--you may be interested in getting Dev-C++ 4 (from http://www.sourceforge.net/ -- it should be in their top downloads section). Initially, for learning C/C++, and even for OpenGL programming, it will be useful, and then you can download another set of headers to go along with the DX SDK so you can compile DirectX with the mingw32 GCC compiler.
--


WNDCLASSEX Reality;
...
...
Reality.lpfnWndProc=ComputerGames;
...
...
RegisterClassEx(&Reality);


Unable to register Reality...what''s wrong?
---------
Dan Upton
Lead Designer
WolfHeart Software

im a twelve year old vb game programmer who just recently made the switch to c++ (yea, vb is the worst language for games, incredibly slow and not too powerful, even with dx!), and(unfortunately) i decided to skip the basics and start making games.. after i realized my mistake i went back and learned the language from the ground up. a nice site to do this is www.gametutorials.com. so learn the language first, then make games. =)

{}_{}
-[_]-
/ \