   General Inquiry
  Hey people, I have been registered here for a few months but I have generally just read the articles and the newsletters.Here is my question, I program a bit, but not for games, I do CSS and PHP etc. I have a C++ book, called 'Beginning C++ Game Programming' respectively. However I cannot seem to 'settle down' I will read chapters and learn the basics, but I cannot seem to remember all of the things I need to remember Also flicking through the book, the programs that are used are useless, and this makes me think that even if I do read this book through and learn the programs it gives, when I come to program for myself, or try 3D programming I will not be able to, as I will not know the required things needed to program 3D ad I will not know which commands to use and where!Is this just my own paranoia or can someone help me?   
  Passively reading a programming book is one of the worst ways to learn a language. IMO, you should always read it in front of a computer, and do out all the code examples/exercises yourself. You'll take to a language much quicker if you have hands-on experience coding in it.As far as the programs in the book being useless, ideally you are reading it to learn the programming language, not memorize the programs it provides you. While the programs may not seem partiucularly usefull in terms of what they do, they will no doubt help you learn the semmantics and nuances of the language, so that you can build your own, more usefull programs.And, not to be discouraging, but it generally takes years before someone knows "the required things" to program in 3D, the least of which is the programming language.Edit: I should mention, I have not read the book you mentioned, so take what I say with a grain of salt.   ;  Hey mate,I was the same.I found that learning chapter by chapter wasn't for me and i also didnt see the point to the programs, they were ofcourse only for demonstration, but i wanted to leap into something better. Oh, how naive i was (and prolly still am). The other solid approach to learning is to decide on something simple to write to begin with, then reference to every document available when you need to know how to accomplish something.Another alternative is to buy the book that is used in the C++ online workshop that was recently established here and work through the weeks in your own time. Click here for the forum and subsequent articles.Don't be put off by people knowing more than you, embrace their knowledge [smile]. Don't be afraid to ask 'dumb' questions, we all asked them once.Hope that helps,Dave   ;  Thanks, this has helped, I guess I just need a bit more patientce!   ;  I was, and still am, the same way. The advice for hands on learning given previously is probably the best route to take. I too hate going through books and reading on and on about things that make sense in the outcoming image, but the little things that put it together are a total blur.If you'd really like to take a step into game programming, you have to make sure you're really dedicated to it. That doesn't mean you have to sit in front of you're computer 24/7/365 MMORPG style. But you do atleast have to remember that you've started on something that at one point you'd like to finish. So when you're sitting at home at 10pm surfing the web watching guys slip off diving boards and hit their heads, just take a moment and open your book and read a few pages.Good luck!   ;I haven't read practically any books on programming, until lately. Either the books were too code-orientated or too C++. So, I guess I did the learning in the hard and a long way, but I feel that it was worth of it. It isn't exactly question of "reinventing the wheel", but understanding how the wheel actually works.Where did I learn from ? Defining the goals, learning to ask the right questions, splitting the problem into so small parts that the problem doesn't exist anymore and definetely, spending endless hours in front of the computer.Cheers and good luck !   ;Quote:Original post by KelteNThat doesn't mean you have to sit in front of you're computer 24/7/365 MMORPG style.I do sit in front of my PC alot, and how did you know about the diving board ;)I am dedicated, just misguided I think, I get frustrated because I either do not know what is going on, like I do not understand what is being said, or I am sick of the example programs becase I can't see how they work: For example the program is a calculator; I wouldn't know how I could use snippets of his code for anything relevant to what I was making. Like I said, it's probably just my own paranoia :)   ;  I'd have to completely agree with Driv3MeFar about learning from a book.. If you just sit down and read the book without doing anything practical then you wont grasp much at all. I learnt by setting goals (i.e. to make a certain amount of applications) and I would try to think up usefull ideas for applications to make (I often made them to solve problems for my maths class). I also agree that programming apps and programming games are completely different, as I have recently got into game programming. So focus on programming applications with C++ until you think u have a good grasp of the language, then move onto DirectX.. Introduction to 3D game programming with DirectX 9 is a very good book to start with :D   ;  Practice. Practice. Practice.Practice everything you have learned over and over again. If you forgot something, look it up, and practice some more. Don't just try to remember how they programmed the application, try using what you have learned to make other programs.   ;  Thanks for more tips :) Anyone else has some I'm listening :)   