You know, so I can make standalone exes. I run windows, so I was thinking VB might be a good choice, since i have no need to run the program on anything other than windows
If you want results fairly quickly and you know the BASIC syntax, I would suggest looking into
http://realbasic.com/
I played with it a while back when it first came out...it's cool because it compiles to native machine code and for multiple platforms (Mac, Windows when I last played and now I think Linux). VB compiled to a intermediate called p-code and is why it has such a bad rap. VB programs ran like garbage.
RealBasic looks pretty solid now...and is likely your best choice if you want results now...
C# is a good choice too...but it's likely more complicated than RealBasic...as already said it's very similiar to Java and therefore the learning curve is much larger than RealBasic...
http://www.codeproject.com/csharp/quickcsharp.asp
I've never used C# as for the time being C++/MFC is my choice...I can tell you this from experience...
C++ is awesome...but learning it well, takes serious time...pointers may confuse you...and then all of a sudden the idea *clicks* but concept and usage are two very different things...
Programming basic applications in the console, like generating fibonacci numbers is trivial and well documented and doesn't *require* the use of pointers...
Programming anything useful, likely will require the use of a framework like that of MFC...when you introduce this into the mix you've just complicated things ten fold...
Mastering the Windows API, understanding how the system manages it's sub-systems and the sophisticated messaging system and constantly changing new technologies, like COM and so on...make learning Windows development very complex, when using C++
My point about pointers, is that, they may make sense but are still difficult to use properly and when used incorrectly, lead to interesting crashes or bugs which are very difficult to find...
C++ is cool...and is still the most widely used programming language for Windows application development...but it's being phased out...of general application development anyways...C will likely exist as a systems/kernel language for quite some time...
Therefore, if you really hate the idea of using RealBasic, perhaps C# is your choice...
RealBasic/VB and so on...are more than just programming languages...their RAD (rapid application development) tools...they offer click and drag GUI builders which makes the process of designing *Window'ed* applications a breeze when compared to manually when doing things in C++/MFC
Not sure about C# but I believe the idea there was to include a Window builder as well, but this will likely depend on the IDE you choose - for obvious reasons M$ is likely your best choice...
I've also had a look at C, but could never find a compiler
You didn't look very hard then did you
http://www.thefreecountry.com/compilers/cpp.shtml
What's a good language to start with?
Depends what your goals are...
If you want quick results, which are decent, I suggest RealBasic...if you want to spend the next 1-2 years learning C++/MFC and another few years getting good at it...go for C++
C# will likely cut back the learning curve...and will look best on your future resume...as it's not going anywhere...M$ have invested waaaay to much for them to scrap the project...
It will take you more time to learn that than RealBasic but the long term payoff might be justified???
I always promote C++ as it's a very cool language...arguably the best there is...as well as arguably makes the best developers...the coolest code I have ever seen has been done in C++...
Cheers
