dacs.doc electric

I know that some of you, being interested in computers, probably would want to know how to program. The hardest part of doing anything is knowing how to get started, and that’s what I’d like to help you with in this article.

If you want to learn to program today you don’t have to work with antiquated languages like Basic or Fortran. It would be hard, if not impossible, to create a Windows or Macintosh program using the languages of 10 years ago. So throw away your copy of DOS Basic (if it even came on your computer).

I spent my college years learning every programming language that Western offered: C, Lisp, Pascal, assembler, Prolog, and even Cobol. Each language has it’s own strengths and weaknesses, but they all basically work the same. You type in a series of instructions, compile it, and then (if it works), you run it. You spent most of your time writing complex functions to do simple things, like draw a line on the screen or open a database. This made programming the realm of the serious programmer.

This has all changed with the invention of the Rapid Application Development tool, such as Visual Basic (Windows) or RealBasic (Macintosh). These tools are designed to let you prototype your program quickly, in a few hours or days. You work visually, spending most of your time designing the layout of your screen, using drag & drop to add buttons, list boxes, and other interface items. To add the code behind a button, you simply click on it and you will be automatically prompted for the code that the button is supposed to perform. It’s a lot simpler than it sounds.

Microsoft used RealBasic to prototype their new browser, IE 5.5 for the Macintosh, saving development time by being able to see what a program would look and act like before they spent hundreds or thousands of hours programming in the C language. Most serious software today is prototyped in an RAD tool, and then sent through usability testing, sometimes before the programmers even write one line of code. This early testing makes sure the program is easy for customers to use before expensive development occurs.

There is a cost to using RAD tools. They are great for prototyping, but lack the execution speed of using normal programming tools. So while they’re fine for writing a small program, quick application, or even a front-end to a database, if you’re going to be writing a fully featured word processor, I would eventually write the program in C or C++.

This doesn’t mean that the majority of us, who will never write huge commercial software (such as Microsoft Word), should give up on programming! I believe that anyone who wants to learn to program can quickly get their first few programs up and running in a few days. You only need to get Visual Basic or RealBasic, a book, and spend some time playing with a project that interests you. I highly recommend a class, such as the ones offered by Naugatuck Valley Community Technical College, where you can learn the basic concepts in just a few classes.

If you decide that you like programming, you can advance to C or C++, and even start writing commercial software. It’s a lot easier than it was 10 years ago, and you can get started for as little as $100. Not a bad investment in your future if you’ve always wanted to learn how to program.
Next month I’m going to take a look at RealBasic. We’ll create a simple program, and I’ll show you how to do it yourself.