For those who have decided to choose the profession of a programmer, this question arises de facto. However, the profession of a programmer is something narrowly focused. There are many directions in programming. Therefore, before deciding on a language, you first need to choose the direction in which you want to develop as a professional. There are many sources of "best language" statistics.

Stackoverflow developer survey

Over 56,000 developers in 173 countries completed the 2016 Stackoverflow Developer Survey. Here are the most used technologies:

* JavaScript - 55.4%

* SQL - 49.1%

* Java - 36.3%

* C# - 30.9%

* PHP - 25.9%

*Python - 24.9%

* C++ - 19.4%

* AngularJS - 17.9% (JavaScript framework)

* Node.js - 17.2% (server-side language written in JavaScript)

* C - 15.5%

The poll also asked what developers liked the most:

* Rust - 79.1%

* Swift - 72.1%

* F# - 70.7%

* Scala - 69.4%

* Go - 68.7%

* Clojure - 66.7%

* React - 66.0%

* Haskell - 64.7%

*Python - 62.5%

* C# - 62.0%

And what the developers were most afraid of:

* Visual Basic - 79.5%

* WordPress - 74.3%

* Matlab - 72.8%

* Sharepoint - 72.1%

* CoffeeScript - 71.0%

* LAMP - 68.7% (Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP)

* Cordova - 66.9%

* Salesforce - 65.4%

* Perl - 61.3%

* SQL - 60.3%

Technologies that developers are interested in learning:

* Android - 15.8%

* Node.js - 14.8%

* AngularJS - 13.4%

*Python - 13.3%

* JavaScript - 11.9%

* React - 9.2%

* Swift - 8.7%

* MongoDB - 8.1%

* Arduino / Raspberry Pi - 8.0%

* C++ - 8.0%

Surprisingly few. The results are interesting, but often conflicting, and data collection methods are limited:

1. Search engine results can help older, more problematic, or more common languages. Few expected VisualBasic to come over JavaScript.

2. Online surveys are limited to a specific audience. StackOverflow is filled with fairly knowledgeable developers who have run into issues with popular languages ​​and frameworks.

3. Historical usage patterns do not necessarily indicate future trends. Node.js didn't exist ten years ago. In the mid-1990s, Perl or C were the most viable options for server-side development.

For example, all surveys rank Java over PHP. Java is often used for learning and is used for application development command line, desktops and Android apps. However, WordPress powers 27.3% of the web and is written in PHP. PHP is used on 82.4% of web servers compared to 2.7% for Java.

PHP was designed for the web and has a wider use across the platform. There is nothing wrong with Java, but if you want a career in web development, PHP is a better fit. Probably. Depending on where you live and work. And the industry you work in. And what are you doing.

Other developer opinions

Everyone has an opinion and that's great. But everyone is wrong. No developer has experience in all languages. Some of them will be well versed in several, but no one can offer an unbiased choice. Any language a developer chooses and uses on a daily basis becomes their first choice. They will passionately defend this solution because if they cannot, they will switch to something else.

Other developers may offer lessons learned from their experience. This is useful information, but it is unlikely that you will have the same aspirations. To internalize this, seek opinions from developers who have been forced to use a certain language or framework: most will hate this technology. Why let someone make the decision for you?

There is no better language

If you learn to drive a car, this knowledge can be applied to driving a bus, truck or tractor. Likewise, most programming languages ​​implement input, output, variables, loops, conditions, and functions. Having learned the basics of one language, learning another becomes much easier. All the difference is mainly in the syntax.

You cannot select the "wrong" language; All development knowledge is good knowledge. Perhaps choosing COBOL for an iOS game isn't the best choice, but you would quickly find it was impractical and learn something about the language that was useful elsewhere.

The hardest part of any learning process is getting started...

Are you asking the right questions?

Those with programming experience know where they ran into problems. The gaps in their knowledge are more obvious:

1. If you spend too much time manually manipulating data in a spreadsheet, put some effort into learning the language you use to do it.

2. If you're designing a website and you're unhappy with the layout, improving your CSS knowledge is the obvious next step.

3. If you are developing a server application and need to store data, learning SQL or a NoSQL alternative is a logical option.

Those who ask "what language should I learn?" are probably new to the programming industry. A relatively vague question would be, "What clothes should I wear?" No one can answer until they evaluate your age, gender, size, taste, preferences, country, local weather, customs, laws, etc. It is impossible to suggest a language without knowing:

* Are you really interested in programming

* What problems do you want to solve

* What equipment and systems are available to you

* What training time and opportunities do you have

* All variables associated with the above factors

No one wakes up and decides to start a professional development career without programming experience. If you're genuinely interested in development, pick a small project, pick a language, find some tutorials, and go!

Then keep learning

1. If you are a front-end developer first, try your hand at the back-end. Try PHP, Node.js, Ruby, or any other language, then add SQL to your skill set.

2. If you are a software developer first, learn HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Browser APIs and data formats such as JSON are also useful.

Frameworks don't count!

Learn the basics of the language first. This knowledge will remain invaluable to you, regardless of the ever-changing whims, opinions, and toolkits used by the developer community.

You may not want to become a full stack developer, but at least it will help you appreciate the work of others and contribute more effectively to your project.

Good luck. Stop procrastinating. Stop reading articles like this one. Just fucking start coding!

As it usually happens, all arguments about the discussion of programming languages ​​often turn into real wars, where each side not only stands up for its favorite, but also tries to humiliate the opponent. If the authors of languages ​​knew this in advance, then they simply would not have created half of their creations.

Having set out to consider which programming languages ​​are the easiest to learn, the question is transferred to a different plane - which of them are more valued, and this is not quite the same thing.

A simple programming language must meet certain basic requirements, such as:

• It is possible to learn a programming language from scratch without knowing about programming at all.
• A programming language should support broad functionality, yet have a simple syntax and set of rules.
• the time to learn a programming language should not exceed two weeks - this is in the general case.
• a programming language should be useful.

It immediately becomes clear that web-based languages ​​cannot be considered self-sufficient, as they rely on a foundation of servers and platforms that is difficult to learn. Those that are used for the general purposes of creating programs remain.

The easiest programming languages ​​to learn

• Fortran
• Basic
• Pascal
• Modula
• Lisp and others.

In principle, each of them can be mastered fairly quickly, but this often depends on the skill of the teacher and the ability of the student to absorb new information.

But many experts are convinced that in order to learn a programming language, one should not immediately move on to its visual implementation. Simply put, if you want to learn Pascal, then study Pascal, not Delphi XE, study C instead of VC++ with MFC/QT, and so on.

The simpler the language, the less noticeable are the language features in it, but the algorithmic features are more pronounced - and this is the best approach to learning programming.

Not subject to time

It can be objected that Pascal, C and BASIC are ancient languages ​​and not worth mentioning. And that would be a mistake, since a programming language does not have fashion seasons - they are used under various circumstances, but they have nothing to do with the fact of "aging".

Moreover, in many cases, older programming languages ​​are much better suited for learning, as they allow the user to develop the missing library functionality on their own, while object-oriented (OOP) languages ​​with a rich set of functions only cool the creative ideas of novice programmers - try to force them to reinvent sound output via a sound card, data packaging formats or new DBMS.

As a result, it remains to advise beginners to learn programming from DOS versions such as Pascal and only then buy Delphi in order to move to comfortable visual environments.

Entering IT: starting from scratch or switches

This one, which Vladimir Kozhaev started a series with tips for beginners. Two articles will be an obligatory part in it, but if it is not possible to cover all the material, he promised to add more.

Where are the firewood from?

Ah, you thought? Do you think sometimes? You are a thinker. What is your last name, thinker?
Spinoza? Jean Jacques Rousseau? Marcus Aurelius?
© Golden calf

I have been in the industry since 2005, and during this time, many stories and destinies have passed before my eyes. But this is not the main thing, the fact is that most of the young (and not so) neophytes whom I helped are working successfully, some are already in their second or third job. But this is not the main thing. It is very valuable that I have examples of those who failed. Valuable because sometimes knowing what to do is much less important than knowing what and how not to do. Like all generalizations, the following is true only for the conditions of Ukraine and, to a lesser extent, for the countries of the former CIS. I know little about working conditions in the USA, so those who want to emigrate look for another source of information (for example, the wonderful podcast “America” by Yakov Fine, or “ SiliconValleyVoice» Mikhail Portnov).

Socio-psychological portrait of a switcher

A novel is a mirror with which you walk along the high road.
Either it reflects the azure of the sky to you, or dirty puddles and potholes.
© Stendhal. Red and black

Who wants to go to ai-ti. It is clear: students of specialized universities and switchers (what a word, understanding in the course) from other specialties. Both have a problem that bites its tail like the eternal serpent Ouroboros - there is no commercial experience. You can't get hired without experience, you can't get experience without work. However, education provides many benefits, so the problems facing those who do not have it deserve a separate discussion.

Once upon a time there was a man, he worked at a job far from IT, perhaps he achieved success, but then the crisis of 2008 happened, life became harder. Then came the Maidan of 2013, the annexation of Crimea, the war in Donbass, the dollar shot up and it became very hard to live. And suddenly our hero remembers that at the institute (school / kindergarten) he programmed well in Pascal (got an A in the exam / successfully answered the question / knew how to turn on the computer). "Eureka, I'll go to IT, they pay a lot and the work is interesting."

If a student programmer has no experience and the task is only (!) to get it, the switcher is seven miles away and everything is a forest: you need to determine what to do and gain knowledge. The matter, I must say right away, is not easy, so people are rightly overcome by doubts: will I succeed, is the game worth the candle, or maybe what for? Let's start with this.

Will I succeed?

Fate is a very convenient word for those who never make decisions!
© Jodie Foster

Once upon a time, when a programmer with experience earned less than a secretary from a post-Soviet research institute, programming was the lot of nerds in stretched sweaters. The trend to “enter IT” was correspondingly absent. But little by little, outsourcing came to the country. The earnings of the founders of IT offices were outrageous: low Ukrainian salaries were combined with a junk, but still external rate. For example, in 2004, a programmer was paid 2 dollars for an hour of work, and they sold this hour for 15. Therefore, they began to take as programmers everyone who is able to write a “hello world” program, and as testers - who can turn on the computer. More than six times the difference between internal and external rates covered any costs. This blessed time lasted until about 2008. There were few people wishing to enter IT from other specialties, because the programmer's earnings, although they had grown, alas, did not reach the level of an air conditioner installer.

In 2008, a crisis broke out, everyone was fired, including programmers, but fewer than others, and they were taken to other jobs. Someone (like the author) got a job almost immediately after the reduction. Someone in a month or two, but even during the crisis, the keyboard workers were full and even quite well-fed. Plus, the course has grown and, finally, programmers began to earn seriously more even the most busty girls from car dealerships. Accordingly, the flow of applicants and, as a result, the requirements for them also began to grow, and this growth continues to this day. Moreover, if in 2008 it was necessary to have theoretical knowledge for successful employment, now a beginner is required to have some kind of experience. That is, in order to get a job, a programmer must have experience in writing real programs, at least small and non-commercial ones. Tester - proven experience in application testing.

So we see: the requirements have increased by an order of magnitude. What follows from this: study, study and study again! Every day, for three or four hours, at least a year. After that, you need to gain experience, write programs for free. So from the beginning of training to employment, at best, two years will pass. Do you have the opportunity and motivation to work hard (in fact, half a day) for two years after work? If there is, good, but I have a surprise for you: no one guarantees that you will last more than a week at your first job! Junior, especially a trainee, are the most vulnerable positions.

Another important thing is English. Customers in Ukraine are entirely foreign, the domestic market is dead. Do you think they will learn Russian/Ukrainian for the sake of a talented, but so far little able trainee? Those who speak English, of course, find it easier. For those who don't, we learn. And how did you want?

This leads to a disturbing conclusion:

To get your first job, you need to be prepared for years of hard work and financial instability at first.

Think well, can you afford it?

In order not to go crazy, studying should become your hobby.

Believe me, doing every day what makes you sick is the road to the fool, and there, of course, you won’t earn any money. On the other hand, no one has canceled financial motivation, and if it prevails in you, there is nothing criminal in this. A good technique is to write down your goals on a piece of paper, hang it in front of your eyes and read it every day. Even better is to go to a psychologist, he will quickly insert brains regarding motivation. Who needs this, write in a personal.

Send demotivators away

There are some who will say: “fi, he went to program not at the call of his heart, but because he wanted to eat” Or: “he’s already old - where do you study?” Or: "this is not for your brains" - feel free to send them. In separately neglected cases, uninvited advisers can even be beaten. Why? So a black eye calms down much faster than an empty stomach! Also because these advisers do not really want to help you - they only scratch your sense of self-importance, simultaneously pushing you into a puddle. Not having money, denying what is necessary not only to yourself, but also to those close to you, to vegetate being capable of more - this is vulgar, disgusting and disgusting.

It is quite good and right to earn honestly for yourself and your family.

Where to start, or choosing a path

My years are growing
will be seventeen.
Where should I work then?
what to do?
© Mayakovsky

Well, we figured out the motivation: what do we do next? Firstly, learn english, right now! As I wrote earlier, without it, alas, there is nothing to do in IT!

Secondly, let's choose what we will be paid for by pleasant-looking green papers. You need something to learn quickly enough, but also paid well for it. The first thing that comes to mind is manual testing. For starters, it seems that you don’t need special knowledge, from the general qualities, only attentiveness and perseverance. I will learn the specifics of the tested programs along the way. I will go to courses, finish and look for a job. Alas, the excessively low entry threshold played a cruel joke on more than one newcomer. The fact is that until recently, up to a thousand (!) Resumes came to one vacancy as a junior tester. Why until recently? Yes, because such vacancies have ceased to appear in the public domain! Companies prefer to take testers with specialized education and after their own courses. Yes, and just entry-level QA vacancies on two orders fewer applicants.

And here's one more piece of advice: don't break into manual testers!

However, you don't have to be a programmer.

For some, it is enough to simply change the industry, relying on previous skills. For example, instead of an accountant in a sausage production company, become the same in a programming office. If you know how to work with people (waiters, flight attendants, hostesses) - a direct road to office managers. If you were a boss - go to managers, a psychologist - to recruiters and HR. But what if you still want to become a programmer? Become, what else! But what to study, that's the question? The answer is in the next paragraph.

What and how to learn to become a programmer

Children need to be taught what will be useful to them when they grow up.
© Aristippus

What to study in order to get a long-awaited job faster: Java, C #, or maybe C ++? Yes, these languages ​​are, of course, in demand and well paid, but there are two problems.

The first problem: any language does not exist on its own, but together with tools: compilers or interpreters, which can be several, libraries and frameworks (in English framework) and typical approaches used within the subject area. So, the point is that for the specified languages, any of the possible specializations(maybe other than android) implies a high barrier to entry. In other words, you will have to study especially long. That is why I recommend specializations with a low entry time for those who retrain: first of all, front-end programming using JavaScript and related languages, then website development in PHP or Python, then development of mobile applications for Android or iOS. But in the development of enterprise applications on the JavaEE or .NET platform, especially in system programming, bigdata or data analysis, it is better for switchers not to get involved. It will take too long to study.

The second problem: programming is not limited to the study of tools, first of all, these are algorithms.

Let them be quite simple, but if a person cannot reverse a line or write bubble sort, it will be difficult for him to work on a real project.

Hence one more piece of advice: you need to learn programming techniques - solve problems.

How to study

The first step is to learn the language itself, its syntax. To do this, we take a book in any of the selected languages, read it and be sure to do the exercises. Then we proceed to the study of commonly used libraries, in parallel we solve algorithmic problems: arrays, strings, and so on. After the language and the minimum amount of algorithms are more or less mastered, we proceed to the study of libraries and frameworks (frameworks) commonly used for this language. The fact is that the initial knowledge of sockets, web services, libraries for unit testing, HTTP requests are mandatory for any programmer, regardless of specialization.

The next step is to study design patterns. After that, we move on to mastering version control systems and databases, such as MySQL. And finally, we move on to mastering the desired specialization. But that's not all: at the end of the training, you need to create several working projects and put them on github and be sure to somewhere on the store or server so that people can see not only the code, but also the results of your work.

Only then can you start looking for a job.

Reading List for Android Java Programming Specialization

• For an initial introduction to the language, I recommend Jacob Fine's Java Programming for Kids, Parents, and Grandparents.
• After the book is read, you can move on to Bruce Eckel's book "Java Philosophy". Just do not take the Russian-language version in paperback - it is abbreviated, there are no exercises.
• Find either a newer edition or an English one called "Thinking in java". Programming tasks stupidly google on the issue of "algorithmic tasks for interviews."

• Either Uncle Jacob's book "Java Programming 24-Hour Trainer" or Eckel's book "Thinking in java enterprise".
• To master design patterns, we take Eckel's book "Thinking java in patterns".

To master MySQL and git, you can simply use the official documentation. After that, you can already start learning about Android itself, for example, according to the book "Android Application Development for Dummies" by Donn Felker. After that, I recommend writing two or three games, put them on the store. Then you can look for a job.

Mentor, how to find and not get bored

Often, a beginner has questions that he himself is not able to resolve. It would be nice to ask someone who understands, but where can I get it? Contact those who write articles, blogs (p.s. you do NOT need to contact the author, I already help several, and the time is not rubber). Why to them? Simply, if a person gives advice on his own initiative, most likely he will agree to help when asked. In addition, the mentor must have the skills of a teacher, to some extent a guru, not all even super-duper-duper seniors have them.

Questions should be asked in this order:

1. In the beginning, we try to find a solution ourselves.
2. If it doesn't work, go google.
3. If after that it still doesn’t work, ask a question on Stackowerflow or on another forum, but it’s better on several at once. Having asked a question, we read it, perhaps after reading it, you will understand how to solve the problem.
4. And only if points 1-3 did not work, we turn to the mentor.

At the same time, you must remember: you are not obligated to anything, except in cases where you pay for help. That is, if you were not answered or answered in insufficient detail, or the mentor does not know the answer, the maximum that you can do is to ask very politely, they say, did you happen to have time to answer my question? This is not at all because the mentor considers himself the navel of the earth. He is the same person as you, with a family, hobbies, his own problems. And, alas, his own tasks are much more important to him than the annoying Padawan, who once again inattentively read the manual

In general, it is better to contact a mentor to solve fundamental questions: what to read from the literature, what frameworks to master, what is bad in my code and how to improve it, what task to take for training, etc.

What else does? If you ask a mentor and he gives advice, use it! If you don't use it, don't worry it won't work. I have a friend who asks about once a month: “what should I do?”. I tell her in detail, she comes in a month, having done absolutely nothing from my recommendations! The cycle repeats again. Needless to say, its results are sad?

Courses, can they help?

It depends what you expect from them. If the introduction to the specialty, definitely - yes. Good courses will help you with this. But, I emphasize, good. How to find them? Let's think about it: how much does a programmer capable of teaching courses get per hour? That's right, from 20 dollars, rather higher. Let's say there are 10 people in a group. Lectures twice a week + practical tasks, which also take time to check. That is, a teacher should spend at least 15 hours a week on your training, rather 20 (because you need to prepare for lectures) 20 * 20 = 400 bucks - the minimum salary of a lecturer. We add at least 200 more to it (rent of premises, consumables, profit of the office). There are four weeks with a tail in a month. That is, the cost of a month of good courses for a group of 10 people should cost 600 * 4 + tail (200) = 2600 dollars. Divide by 10 and get $ 260 per person per month. At the current rate of thirty bucks, this will be 7800 hryvnia. Clear?

Can good courses be cheaper? Yes, if checking homework is automated (like on a course) and there are a lot of students, then it will turn out to be taken in volume. Or, if the main goal of the courses is not making money, but PR. I can recommend Yakov Fine's courses or those conducted by the owners of the site javascript.ru.

But cut it on your nose: no courses will give you all the knowledge. Another lure is the promise of 100% employment.

Even free courses of large IT companies, after a serious dropout, do not promise employment for everyone. This is understandable, the courses go on for a long time. On the other hand, in training center not oracles, they cannot predict how many interns the office will need in six months. Where, then, will the training organization get a job for you? She doesn't even have her own design. The question is rhetorical!

How to get your first job and what to do there

The hardest job is not having it!
© Ruben Bagautdinov

Well, the initial information from programming has been received. And you are inspired to start sending resumes. Do you think Google and Microsoft will fight with flails for you? Look at the situation from the point of view of the employer: some unknown type comes, he has a legal education, he is 27 years old, English is average. He says that he knows something, honestly, honestly, but alas, there is no evidence of this. Will you hire him?

What can be done? That's right, show evidence that you can do something! But how to do it? Create working a project worthy of attention, and preferably two or three, and put it in free access. Let people see the product face to face. Do you think that after that they took you r-r-time? No, they didn’t, but without implemented projects there is no chance at all. The fact is that the employer may not like something, because you are still a beginner. How to be? That's right, you must very politely ask for shortcomings, thank you for your time and eliminate these shortcomings. Then go to the next employer and so on until you get the desired position. And of course, in parallel, read the theory so that it flies off the teeth. However, the project in production is still the most important - it is your guide to the world of big money.

I knew guys who taught parallel programming patterns, aspect-oriented, dynamic, and who knows what else, while wondering: “why don’t they hire me?”. Yes, because there is nothing to show! You can talk for a long time about the quality of the code, but what's the point if you've never done real work?

Switcher Advantages

Graduated from the university with a degree in software” or “systems analysis” for five years, full-time studying what you mastered during the year in the evenings, in fits and starts. Studied under the guidance of experienced mentors, did laboratory work, did practice. Of course, he knows the theory better! Of course, you can say that we know these post-Soviet universities, but I assure you: a student of KPI or Shevchenko University who wants to gain knowledge, yes, has this opportunity. But you also have advantages. The fact is that a university graduate is a “young ishsho”, often-densely (but not for everyone) he has a wind in his head. It's not because he's bad, it's just that life experience comes with age.

You, as an adult, formed person, in theory, should be able to negotiate with other people, soberly assess the terms of any work, be able to say the word “no”, admit your mistakes, and take a pragmatic approach to any life situation.

You don’t know how, well ... how did you live to your age?

For example, where a graduate calls the deadlines that are pleasant to the manager’s ear, you, as an adult, politely but firmly say: you can’t do this job faster, you can’t. It is better for the boss to experience a few unpleasant minutes now, but find out about the problem in advance, than to be in the false confidence that everything is fine until the deadline.

What to do if the offer is received

Needless to say, the amount of salary at the first place of work is not the most important thing? Yes, she must provide at least the minimum needs, well, rent a bed there, dress in second-hand clothes and eat not only pasta, but don’t try to bargain! There are a lot of juniors on the market, there are also those with specialized education. And I wrote above that they have advantages. That's why, received an offer - happily nod and go to work. On it, by the way, still need to hold out. It is not uncommon for a junior trainee to get fired, even if he is perfect for his level. It's just that there is relatively little sense from such a person; he does the simplest work. Has this ended or just the customer decided to reduce the staff: “thank you, dear friend, we will remember you.” What to do? As I said, prepare for financial instability and not lose heart - quickly look for another job. Yet good way: take a vacation from your current job and go on an internship / probationary period. And only if it is successfully completed, quit the old one. It's difficult, I agree, but perhaps your family, other close people are in your hands - you cannot risk their future.

But can a situation arise when you need to quit your first job? Yes, if they offend or do not pay wages. Your still small value for the employer does not mean at all that you are not a person!

Even at the first job, you do not need to climb into the bottle. As one team leader I know said: “The problem of students is not so much that they do not know libraries, but that they do not know how to work in a team.” For example, if your work is criticized, it is actually a favor. There is no need to make excuses, let alone swear - the maximum is very correct to ask for an explanation of what exactly is wrong. Well, run to correct mistakes. On the other hand, they should not be afraid either. In the end, you are a beginner, you have the right to make mistakes.

There are times when you run into problems at work. Is it okay to ask? Of course yes! But you need to behave in exactly the same way as with a mentor: at the beginning yourself, then google, then to the forum, and only then ask questions.

How long do you need to work at your first job? If there are no other agreements with the employer, then at least six months, but a year is better. All this time, study hard: master patterns, patterns, frameworks, metrics. And after that, look around and try to talk about increasing salaries. A person who has worked for a year turns, no, not into a middle, but into a confident junior - he is already hunted by HRs, he proved that he can!

At the same time, the agreements must be fulfilled. Agreed that you will work for at least two years - do it. Agreed to finish the project? Finish it! Karma, after all, is like this: with what measure you measure, it will be measured to you.

However, the implementation of agreements should not be confused with guilt. Let me explain this with an example. So you worked for a year, raised your level, and now you are offered another job. Is it worth it to be tormented, they say, how is it, they taught me, and I'm such a bastard leaving? If you have fulfilled everything that you agreed on, no, you should not. Here's why: an employee is accepted not out of great kindness, but in the expectation of profits. If you have worked for a year, then the income from you exceeded the expense, otherwise you would have been fired a long time ago. And that means everything is in order. I myself was worried, they say, how is it that the project will be in a difficult situation without me. Still quit, and nothing happened, so do not overestimate your own importance.

If an IT company is not hired or an alternative job

It happens. Well, sit and wait by the sea for the weather? Not at all - contact a government organization, preferably a research institute. The state office usually has little money, but programming tasks arise and are often quite complex. For example, my first job was the Nikolaev Astronomical Observatory (NII NAO). What I didn’t do there: processing the results of astronomical observations, mathematical statistics, web development, databases. Now they talk a lot about big data, so I had tasks with this same big data back in 2005. Those who do not believe can remember the old adage “there are as many as stars in the sky” or the phrase “astronomical numbers”. True, I had to carry boxes, but it's not so scary.

There is one “but”, which is both a plus and a minus. In research institutes whose object of study is not programming, there are practitioners - it is important for them that programs work without fundamental errors and are created at an acceptable speed. Therefore, no one will focus on following best practices, using unit tests, correct decomposition, the presence of comments, and so on. You must take care of this yourself, if not for the sake of work, then at least for the purpose of self-study. A teacher poking his nose into the jambs is, of course, convenient, but if they paid attention to the cleanliness of the code, the newcomer would most likely not be hired.

After a year of work, even in a non-core organization and with outdated technologies, they will look at you with different eyes. You have a marginal, but experience. Don't underestimate it, but it's clearly better than nothing.

You are over 40, or the fight against discrimination

The post-Soviet society, unfortunately, is very inert and prejudiced. For example, it is believed that a subordinate must necessarily be younger than the boss, they say, the leader will not be respected otherwise. Moreover, the trainee cannot be a forty-year-old respectable uncle. There is also an opinion that upon reaching maturity, it is generally shameful to work in an ordinary position, regardless of pay. There are other stereotypes as well. Well, there the programmer must necessarily be a workaholic who lives only for work, a beautiful woman is necessarily stupid (which means she cannot perform duties more complicated than making coffee). In the end, this translates into an annoying phrase: "Your technical skills are good, but, unfortunately, you will not fit into the team." Since there is no recipe for eternal youth, something must be done.

• First, you can look for work with Western management. As a rule, in Europe and the USA, the approach to gender and age differences is simpler: if a person has knowledge and can work for health reasons, he is suitable. In general, in the West, as far as I know, there are other traditions that occur, on the one hand, due to the legislative fight against discrimination (just try to refuse because of age, nationality or gender - the fines will be “refreshing” values), on the other hand, they are mainly focused on making money . On the contrary, in some domestic offices the motto is still: “we don’t plow, we don’t sow, we don’t build, we are proud of the social system” and anyone who does not share political, social or other beliefs is an enemy, it’s not worth hiring him.
• Secondly, freelancing remains a salvation for those who are old or, for a number of reasons, who cannot work in the office. I wrote that it is difficult and not suitable for everyone, but the switcher has a number of the above advantages. In any case, if you do not try, you will not succeed for sure! The customer of a freelancer does not care what the person on the other end looks like, it is important that the work is completed on time and with acceptable quality. So, if they don’t take it anywhere at all, you can think about this type of income.

Story of a wheelchair user

In conclusion, I want to talk about one switcher from Siberia - a wheelchair user. The man, a former businessman, got into an accident on his SUV - a compression fracture of the spine + problems with his hands + the devil knows what else.

To write code, he had to turn his hands palms up and press the keys with his knuckles, it didn’t work any other way.

In my memory, he turned to one of the well-known personalities in the world of programming with a request to help in his studies. His motivation was not even personal survival - he wanted to help his daughters.

The man went to remote courses and after a few months got his first job: writing XML and creating Xpaths. Now he successfully works remotely, receives a programmer's salary in dollars. Sasha, if you read this, I send you a big hello and send rays of goodness, you are great!

Remember this person when you justify your doing nothing, they say it’s hard for you. Was it easy for a paralyzed person with a bunch of physical and psychological problems? Yes, they helped him, but if he did not work, no one would pay him just like that. So if it worked out for him, I see no reason why it didn't work out for you.

Good luck with your learning!

A little motivation

Programming technologies are increasingly competing with each other, because developers are increasingly focusing on creating cross-platform applications designed not so much for the web and desktop as for mobile devices. thewildblogger.com writes about the twelve most important programming languages ​​this year.

Last year, IEEE Spectrum ranked the most popular programming languages ​​based on at least ten pre-researched sources, including:

Let's briefly talk about the most important of them at the moment.

C

C is one of the first programming languages ​​that became popular and is still used today. Created by Dennis Ritchie in 1972 at Bell labs, it became the basis for other languages: C++, Java, C#, JavaScript, and Perl. The pioneering language is the first to be taught in universities, because it helps to better understand other components of programming technologies.

Many popular sites will help you learn the C language for free.

Java

Java combines C and C++ and is the most powerful language for building cross-platform applications. Java, recently 20 years old, has become the first fully object-oriented programming language that works on the "Write Once, Run Anywhere" principle. You can compile Java source code once and run it on any device with JVM (Java Virtual Machine) installed

C#

C# is a member of the Microsoft programming language family. It was created in 2000 as part of the Microsoft . net framework. In use, C# is very close to Java, although C# has been said to combine the robustness of C++ with the advanced features of Java.

In C#, you can create almost all types of applications for most platforms.

PHP

In my opinion, PHP is the most powerful server-side language that can do a lot with a small amount of code. PHP is widely used to create CMS like WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, etc., as well as to create dynamic and static websites. PHP is an open source language. This means that there are thousands of modules that can be modified to perform the desired functions.

Objective-C

Brad Cox and Tom Love created Objective C in 1983 in an effort to correct the shortcomings of C. This language is the main language for creating applications for iOS and OS X. Objective C programmers are mainly involved in the development of these extremely popular platforms, which guarantees demand in the market labor and high wages.

Sites for learning Objective C: Udemy , Mac Developer Library , Cocoa Dev Central , Mobile Tuts+ .

JavaScript

With a simple syntax, JavaScript can perform more complex functions. It is an ideal scripting language that is easy to learn. The program code runs in browsers and processes commands on the client computer, and not on the server, thus reducing the load on the server and increasing the speed of the application.

Websites for learning JavaScript: Codecademy, Code School, Treehouse, Learn-JS.org.

Perl

Larry Wall created Perl in 1987 to simplify report processing. Perl (an informal backronym for Practical Extraction and Report Language) is a high-level, general-purpose programming language that can replace any other language. This family includes Perl 5 and Perl 6. The Perl languages ​​have borrowed features from C, sh, AWK, and sed.

Scala

Scala is a functional, object-oriented programming language created by Martin Odersky in the early 2000s. It provides support for functional programming, being a strongly statically typed language. Scala code compiles to Java bytecode and can be run on virtual machine Java.

Programming is gradually taking over one industry after another: not so long ago, calling a taxi seemed to be a completely offline process, and now Uber has a lot of developers. Looking at this (as well as at the level of salaries of specialists), even people far from programming think: “Shouldn’t I try it too.”

Often, such a thought is immediately frightened away by the variety of programming languages: you have to choose from a variety of not entirely clear options. How do languages ​​differ and why there is no one best and universal one, which one should be taken in the first place and for what tasks?

Courses such as "" help to understand this, where you can decide which IT perspectives your interests best match ..

The material was prepared with the support.

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The choice of language largely depends on what is supposed to be done with it. The most popular language uses today are web development, mobile development, and game development. Web development, in turn, is divided into frontend (what the user directly interacts with) and backend (invisible to the user, but the necessary “technical” part).

Frontend

HTML and CSS - the face of the site

Used in conjunction, HTML and CSS are not really programming languages. They do not determine how the site will operate, but only how it will look. If you write a site using only HTML and CSS, it will end up as a set of static pages where the only interactive elements are links.

However, websites cannot do without HTML, so a basic knowledge of it is necessary for anyone who plans to do web development. And mastering CSS can be quite a valuable skill: the task of “arranging elements correctly” is not always trivial.

JavaScript - to teach the site to understand you

The JavaScript language is responsible for interactivity and dynamically changing information on the pages of the site. For example, when you enter a phone number in the wrong format on a site form, or forget about the @ sign when entering an email address, JavaScript allows the site to instantly know about it and highlight the field in red. And here's the real-time view counter for this page: an HTML site could only show a static number.

JavaScript has become the main language of the front-end and is now experiencing a real peak in popularity: interest in it is growing, and new tools are constantly appearing in the JavaScript world. The nuance is that for a developer, the constant appearance of something new is not always a plus: you often have to relearn, and the new does not always work stably, causing unpleasant surprises. However, no one forbids the use of stable and popular tools.

In addition, there is the Node.js platform, which allowed the use of JavaScript in the backend. Unlike the frontend, it is not a leader there and competes with a number of other languages.

Web development: backend

Java - as reliable as grandfather's coat

Although the name is sometimes confused with JavaScript, Java is not just a different language, but almost the opposite of JavaScript: it is a more conservative choice, proven over the years. It is preferred to be used in the backend of those projects for which reliability is much more important than fashion trends - for example, banking systems. In the TIOBE Language Popularity Ranking, Java ranks first, which means there are millions of Java developer jobs around the world.

Young developers often find Java boring and outdated, and its supporters respond, for example, with this GIF that no Node.js can compare with its power:

Python - progressive and popular

If we compare Python with Java, then it will win in the amount of code, but lose in execution speed. For a large, high-load project where performance is important, Python will not be the best choice. The language is perfect for a startup: for example, to show a prototype to an investor before all the investment money runs out.

In 2016, the language unexpectedly received another advantage: it is convenient to write bots for messengers on it.

PHP - popular and relatively uncomplicated

The popularity of PHP is undeniable: it is used by  , VKontakte, Wikipedia and, by the way, the website. It also underpins the WordPress system, which runs about a quarter of all sites.

PHP is easy to learn but has a controversial reputation and the two are related. Due to the simplicity of the language, many newcomers to the industry have appeared with an irresistible desire to do professional PHP development without delving into the details. This is how a lot of bad PHP code appeared. It is because of this that some people criticize PHP, while others object that in capable hands it shows itself only from the best side.

There are also a few less popular alternatives on the list of options, from Ruby to the burgeoning Go.

Of course, the list of languages ​​is not limited to those mentioned: someone prefers the young Kotlin, created in St. Petersburg, and someone has gotten used to Smalltalk since the 1980s. And the range of tasks is also not limited to the above: there are also “low-level” ones, such as writing drivers.

However, everything that is not included in the list is usually either narrow and niche (Smalltalk jobs are in short supply), or poorly suited for beginners (low level requires serious preparation). Therefore, first of all, it is worth paying attention to the listed languages, and then it will not be difficult to deal with the rest.

If you dream of a career as a programmer and are just starting to learn programming, you may want to find the easiest language. A programming language that is quick to learn and start using.

But do not try to go with this question to the forums of programmers or to acquaintances. Usually a person who already knows how to write code finds that the easiest language is the one with which he works himself. And if he knows several programming languages ​​- the one that he studied first. Again, all people are arranged differently, and what one considers easy and understandable, the other may not master at all.

So which language is the easiest? In order to simply learn, Pascal or one of the languages ​​​​of the Basic family is recommended. Pascal will instill in you "correct manners" in programming, it teaches you to write structured programs and always declare the types of variables. Having learned in time, you will make fewer mistakes when writing code in any other languages. Basic even translates to “easy” or “for beginners”, but you are unlikely to be able to write anything really serious on it.

Not all beginners know that in order to learn how to program, it is not enough to learn any language or even several languages. It is necessary to be able to create algorithms, solve applied problems, work with data arrays. To learn all these things you need your first language. And in order for the training to be effective, it is necessary to build algorithms not according to individual examples from the problem book, but on some small program. Usually they recommend writing Tetris or a word processor on their own, from scratch.

But what if you not only want to become a programmer someday, but already dream of some specific application of this skill? Then you should not look for the easiest language. It is better to pay attention to the most suitable one, otherwise you just risk wasting time. Web applications are written in PHP and Java, Delphi is ideal for working with databases, and you can now write anything in C++.

Very often, the easiest programming language is sought by novice game developers - non-professionals in writing games. If you just want to make a small casual game, any language will do. For office games, learn Flash - it's pretty simple too. And if you dream of creating addons and making mods popular games, you can't do without C++.

Once you've decided on the best or easiest language you've chosen to start with, don't forget about textbooks. Now it's time to go to familiar professionals. Those will prompt good textbooks. Indeed, sometimes even simple things can be made extremely complex due to improper presentation and vice versa. Writing code and solving algorithmization problems should be fun, only in this way you can master programming in the shortest possible time and not lose motivation along the way.

In conclusion, let's say that the operators of most modern programming languages ​​are named in English language. Therefore, for those coders who speak at least a little bit of English, it will be easier and faster to remember their name and how they work.