EVE General Discussion

The vast (?) majority of the client is in Python. The server is a mish-mash of Python and C, with the devs aiming to port more and more into C over time.

As far as learning, don't learn a programming language. Learn how to program. (And how to think.) A good programmer can write good code in any language. A poor programmer, even if he's fluent in one or two or five languages, will never write good code.

The first programming language I learned was java. While you might not find many game development studios using java these days (Java has high amounts of overhead), Java has been invaluable to me. Learning about how to do modularity, GUI programming, and basically object-oriented designing has made it far easier to venture into other languages such as PHP and C++ than if I had started with, perhaps, C (As C is not object oriented). I currently develop Android applications using Java, and love it quite a lot, so Java is quite useful for learning as well as programming, with mobile devices being increasingly more common.

Personally, to someone that has little experience with programming, I'd suggest starting out in Visual Basic, then moving to C# and then to C++. Which is also in order of how much hand holding they do for you (regarding stuff like memory acquisition and de-acquisition)

I haven't really looked much into Python yet so I can't say much for it.

In the end you'll want C++ though, pretty much every PC/console games company uses it now a days.

Visual Basic... No, really.

My adivce, start simple. Learn the basics and expand.

TL;DR Java is a good place to start, transitioning into C# and working with a simple framework before you dip your toe in the cool pool that is C++ and all the different libraries/frameworks there are to choose from.

1. Java
This is good start, learning materials are abundant and the language is well supported and is very common. So even knowing only this language may help you get your foot in the door somewhere, probably not a games company unless its a mobile games company. (Though: Java FX2, a simple framework can now use GPUs for example.)


2. C# (XNA Framework)
This language is very similar in syntax and ideology to Java. (With some exceptions.
It is also fairly common, and a great thing that you get with it is the XNA framework, which can be used to write games and applications for the XBOX 360 and the Windows Phone platform. The documentation is decent and there exist numerous tutorials for creating simple games. So yet another useful tool to add to the belt, writing in the XNA framework will give you insight and experience in coding for games. Having learned OOP by learning Java will help you a lot here.

3. C++
The daddy of games programming, a very powerful language but can fail drastically if you have no clue as to what you are actually writing... pointers and whatnot. With great power comes great responsibility is a term that is often repeated about C/C++. Which is why its better to fail at the easy stuff first (in Java and C# which are much more forgiving) before jumping into C++.

Games programming is much more than just knowing how to code in a specific language. Its about knowing your OOP, Math and knowing the capabilities of the library/framework you've decided to use/your employer uses. Because lets face it... you aren't going to have the skills to write a whole code library/framework yourself in the first years of learning programming.

PS.

I myself am just at the C# level, started learning programming before xmas 2011 and today I am working on improvements to my second game made in the XNA framework with C# (Which I started learning in January), a 2D Dungeon crawler. Just to give a perspective how fast its possible to learn, this next semester I will be starting on C++. Another piece of advice I've seen people give is to not only focus on OOP languages but also learn maybe one functional language, perhaps one like Haskell or APL/J.

I also suggest checking out http://projecteuler.net/ for some problems to solve with programming/maths, be warned it can be addictive. :)

Good luck on your career.

Ugh no. Please do not start with VB. Horrible habits.

If you want to be a serious coder, learn C++ first, IMHO. (Spoken as a software engineer and hiring manager.) Java might be a good second choice, or second language.

Python and VB would be good to have in the long run, but since both are used by sys admins and scripters aren't the best teaching languages unless you get lucky with a good teacher or class.

C++ has been a staple for serious programmers for decades. Most C++ courses and texts assume you are trying to be a real coder and don't pass you off with script-kiddie style tips and tricks but instead will teach you good theory and practice. A good grounding makes all the difference.

English


Do I win?

Another game engine you might consider using for your experimentation into AI and programming in general would be Unity Game Engine. It's pretty easy to learn and you can program in either C# or Javascript and their documentation and community is pretty good. The basic version is free to download and has all the functionality to make a complete game.

To be frank, anyone that has had no experience with any programming languages will do well just to put a few weeks in learning any of the big programming languages (C++, Java, Python etc.) because you need to introduce yourself to languages and computer coding before you really know what anyone else is talking about when referencing other languages, the differences between scripts and Object Oriented, loops, logic and flow etc.

Python is very simple in terms of syntax and is a good place to start, but the same can be said for many programming languages. Once you get your feet wet though, you can look at a bunch of languages to see what looks like fun to work with and then take it from there.

Another person that said earlier its not just knowing the languages its the type of thinking you have, a logical flow to your program design, and knowing how to solve problems. When you get these down, you can program anything with just some syntax learning for a specific language. Also good because large projects or large companies use a variety of languages to do different things since there is no one language that is best for everything.

The best piece of advice that I can give is when you start learning programming, program a LOT. Practice practice practice practice. This will help you remember syntax and speed your scripting. Also, always cannibalize your older programs or script from libraries since it saves time - nobody starts a program from scratch once they get to a certain point. Most of all though, have fun doing it. Learning programming is hard work but if you enjoy it you will get very good in time.

I believe they have said the server engine only speaks gerbil. It only knows 3 words - "Feed Me" and "Oops".