Interested in Programming?

If you're interested in programming then there are multiple different languages to choose from and different software packages. This post should help you know what options are out there...

C/C++, C#, XNA, Direct X, Visual Basic & F#:

If you are a hobbyist then the best program for you is Visual Studio express 2010, however if you are a student at university you can get the professional version from a website called Microsoft Dreamspark.

These languages can be used to make PC & Console Games and Software.


NB: Please note that if you are planning on using XNA 3.1 or lower you will need to use Visual Studio 2008, since Visual Studio 2010 is only compatible with XNA 4.0.

Java:

There are many platforms out there for Java and I find that the best one is eclipse, which has options to download many additional content from a GUI creator to a UML toolset, which can help you with your projects. Unfortunately some of these you will need to buy a licence for if you plan on using them.


There is another one called BlueJ, which might come in useful to you if you are new to OOP (Object Oriented Programming). This program shows the classes you create as objects and also shows which classes you have connected together.

This language can be used to make simple PC & Old Mobile Phone Games. It is mostly used for Software Deveolment though.


XHTML/HTML, JavaScript, VBScript, JScript, ActiveX etc.

The best program for this is unfortunately only availible for a price. This is Adobe DreamWeaver, the reason why it is the best is because it has a WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) Screen, which can speed up your web design dramatically.

If you are looking for free option though there are 2 good programs out there for download. These are context and Notepad+. The reason why these are good, even though they don't have a WYSIWYG Screen, is that they colour code the text for the language you are using, which makes it easier to use and to edit your text. You can also use notepad, but I wouldn't recommend this for big programs.

These languages can be used to make Web-Based Games and Static/Dynamic Web Pages.