Programming guide for beginners (how and where to start)

Many ambitious young people these days want to start their careers in the world of programming, some of them want to do this to improve their financial level, some of them want to do this to satisfy their passion, and some of them need to learn to program for their job.

In any case, whatever your motivation and desire to learn to program, in this article, I will give you everything you need to know to take your first steps in this mysterious world.

But before I do this, I must first tell you the beginning of my journey in learning programming, so that you understand what is behind the steps I offer you in this article.

In my first year at the Faculty of Pharmacy, I was very passionate about oncology, and I used to attend the course behind the course in it and attend seminars in universities and large hospitals in this field, such as 57357 Hospital, Nile University, and others.

With time, I realized that the future in this field is to integrate oncology research with programming and machine learning, and because of my passion at the time in this field, I started from scratch in the mysterious world of programming at the time.

Then I tried several times to start on my own and discover this world, and I took the first steps 3 times and failed before I finally succeeded I can say that I have already learned to program.

And it was my success the fourth time because I realized these steps that I will share with you in this article, so prepare your cup of coffee, get a pen and paper, and start reading right away.

Steps to learning to program for beginners

Learning programming for beginners is not an easy process at all, but it is not impossible either, if you have a clear vision and plan and you are doing what you do to reach a specific goal, your learning journey will be simple, easy, and not stressful.

What makes people fail the most is the confusion at first, as they keep looking for things like the best course or the best programming language for beginners, and waste all their efforts on this useless search, so before we move on to learning resources we should touch on some of the most important things at the beginning.

And this is what I will introduce to you in this article through these steps:

Step One: Decide the reason you want to learn to program

The first, most important, and difficult step is to determine why you want to learn to program and to keep your learning goal in mind. If you don't have a goal, how can you achieve it?

This is the most important point in learning programming for beginners, which will help you chart your way in this world that you don't know much about right now.

In this step, you'll have to learn more about what programming is, and its different types.

Don't worry, these topics and other basics you'll need in whatever field you're going to enter, whatever the job tasks assigned to you.

Your knowledge or view of the field from above will help you determine which field is right for you if you haven't already defined it, as well as determine tools you'll need to learn and master.

It will also prevent you from making some serious mistakes, as you may have the wrong knowledge about programming and the field you want to enter, and another field may suit you.

Here's an overview of some of the scenarios you should consider in this step:

a) If you want to enter the field of programming to improve your financial level and improve your salary

In this case, you will have to know the fields available to you and the nature of the job market in your country, for example, the chance of getting a job in the field of web development is much better than in fields, such as video game design or cybersecurity.

It would also be better if you thought about how programming intersects with your field of origin so that the technical and programming skills you will get will ensure that you will be promoted in the same profession as you if you love it and want to stay in it.

b) If you want to learn programming to develop in your field

Many fields, for example, academia, today need to learn some programming skills, in which case you will have to know which languages and tools are used in your field and need to learn them, instead of studying a language or tool that you do not need.

Today, programming has entered more or less everything from management to civil engineering, medicine, and pharmacy. All you have to do is just look carefully at the opportunities that exist around you in your field.

c) If you just have a general passion for learning programming and want to know more about it

In this case, there will be more suitable beginnings with you than others, and programming languages that it is better for you to start with, for example, Python,  which will open the door to almost all existing domains.

d) If you want to get the benefits of programming for logical thinking and others

In this case, some languages and tools will be more suitable for you than others, and knowing them will save you a great deal of time.

Of course, these are not all scenarios, but I think they are the most important scenarios.

This step was my handicap that made me fail to learn to code properly until I succeeded the fourth time.

Each time I didn't have a clear plan, I didn't set my goals, and I chose the sources that would help me achieve them.

Until the fourth time, I put a complete plan in front of me - after a detailed reading of course - and I was able to find the techniques and programming languages that I need at this stage of learning, and I will tell you about the rest of the details successively at each of the next steps.

But before I move on to the next step, I have to advise you to start learning about computer science in this step, as it helped me a lot when I was at this stage.

Luckily, there are plenty of courses that will also help you start your career, such as:

1. CS50 Course: Introduction to Computer Science from Harvard

This course is perhaps the best in the world as millions around the world have benefited from it from students who want to start learning to program.

The course presenter is the famous professor David G. Malan, and the course includes many topics, such as fundamentals, algorithms,  data structures, protection, web development, and others, and through it, you will learn about languages such as Python, C, JavaScript, SQL,  in addition to HTML and CSS.

2. Computer Science Course from Crash Course

Although this course is much less known than CS50,  I find it very valuable, as it briefly explains everything you should know, from computer parts, their work, and operating systems to natural language processing (NLP).

The introduction of this course is Carrie Ann Philbin who has a very simple and fun style and will take you on a fun and short journey in the world of computers and programming.

Of course, there are a lot of other courses, but these two courses are my favorites and I think that each one of them is more than enough to take your hand in this mysterious field for you -only now-.

Many skip this step or initially see that it is not of great importance or that it is a waste of time, but this is not entirely true and you will realize that it is the most important after a while in your programming learning journey and then you will thank me.

Step Two: Knowing the Field You Are Entering

In this step and after you have set your goals you will be able to determine the area you will learn, as you know there are many areas now.

I will talk to you about the most important areas of programming for beginners that you should pay attention to:

1. Web Development

The field of web development is the most widespread and easiest field to hire both in traditional companies and in freelancing.

The domain is divided into two subdomains:

The Front end is responsible for designing web interfaces and relies on languages such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, and development tools such as Bootstrap, Sass,  and others.

This is where most newcomers start with the world of programming and web development, and it's the area you'll find a lot of online courses.

The best of these courses, in my opinion, is the Front-End Developer track from Zero Academy, which is short comprehensive, and orderly.

You'll find everything you need in it, from the questions you have in mind to the order of the lessons you need to learn.

Osama Al-Zero, the presenter and explainer of this path, has an uncanny ability to explain and simplify, especially since he is personally not a graduate of the Faculty of Computers or Computer Engineering and has learned programming on his own.

The other area of web development is the Back end, which is responsible for everything that happens behind the interface of the site.

In this field, you need other programming languages, such as PHP, and its frameworks such as Laravel and others.

There is also a course by Osama Al-Zero entitled  PHP Back-End Developer,  which is one of the best resources ever to learn the PHP language.

Usually, in the areas of web development, the programmer or developer is either a front-end or back-end specialist.

But there is a type of web developer that is a Full stack web developer who develops site interfaces as well as their back-end systems.

They either know and use the languages and tools of each field, or they know programming languages and tools that allow them to do both in the same language.

One of these languages that combines the two is Ruby and its Ruby on Rails framework, which is heavily used these days.

2. Mobile App Development

Another area that competes with the popularity of web development is the field of mobile application development, and its popularity has increased this period because every company and business has become necessary to have an application.

The most commonly used programming languages in this field are Swift for IOS application development and Kotlin and Java for Android application development.

But now there are programming languages that help developers write application codes that work on both systems at once, the most famous of which are Flutter and the React Native framework based on JavaScript.

Mobile application development is the second most sought-after field for programmers and so many beginners join it.

3. Data Science and Artificial Intelligence

These two areas are very similar so I'm going to talk about them together, as the two rely heavily on the Python programming language.

They are two very important technical fields that are growing very quickly and need tens of thousands of programmers annually.

In 2020, there was a shortage of about 250,000 data scientists, and that is in the United States alone.

If you want to learn this powerful language, you should check out our comprehensive guide: Learn Python: All the resources and information you need.

As for artificial intelligence, you will not find a more comprehensive source on the Internet than our guide to learning artificial intelligence (all the sources and information you need).

Of course, there are many other areas that we cannot talk about in detail, such as:

• Software Engineering.
• Video Game Development.
• Cybersecurity.
• Internet Of Things.

The list goes on.

As for what I did in this step, I read more about programming applications and their use in oncology, especially in clinical research.

I knew that there were two areas that I had to learn about in detail: Data Science and machine.

And then I moved on to the third step as I will tell you.

Step Three: Learn about the programming languages and tools you'll need for the domain you've selected.

After you know the right field for you and see if it is suitable for you or not, read more about it and know what tools and languages are most used in it at this time, yes, as the languages and tools for each field are constantly changing in the market and the demand for them is changing.

Pay more attention to learning about the most in-demand technologies in your country, whereby by asking specialists or looking at job applications for companies you will learn everything you need.

Once you know the languages, tools, and frameworks required in each field, you'll be left to determine where you're going to study them.

This is where learning to code for beginners begins, but as you've seen it precedes many other important steps.

As for me, when I was in this step, I learned that there are two languages that I have to master to achieve my goals, namely Python and R.

In addition, I had to learn a lot about data structures and I needed some math to understand the applications of data science.

Step Four: Identify the appropriate source of study

Learning programming for beginners is a breeze as there are dozens of resources online that provide you with everything you need to know.

Sometimes it can even become a problem because you can't determine the best source from which to start your programming journey.

In general, you will find a lot of articles on our website that will help you start learning the field you want.

If I want to advise you one tip in this step is to pay attention to the application, learning a language or technique without applying it in real projects is a waste of time and effort.

It's the app that will help you build your business gallery, and also let you start freelancing if you don't want to work for a company.

On the Internet, you will find hundreds of free resources that you can learn from, and if you have the financial ability, you can subscribe to sites, such as:

• Codecademy website
• Data Camp website
• Pluralsight website
• 365 DataScience website

If you don't know what source of study is right for you from the start, simply try several sources until you settle on what works for you.

Sooner or later you will realize that learning to code for beginners is not a problem of lack of resources but a lack of motivation, as you start you will find everything you want on the Internet.

As for me, when I started learning, I did not know what was the best source for learning Python, but I tried a lot of sources until I reached the right one for me, with whom I completed my journey, and some of them I shared with you in the programming learning guide.

Step Five: Planning the Learning Process

Learning programming does not depend only on the learning process, but also on planning and organization, especially if you are a student or employee and not dedicated to learning.

In these cases, you should determine exactly how many hours you can learn to code, and after you determine this number, even if it is 6 hours per week, divide it by two.

Want to know why? To give yourself time to assimilate and apply, you are not learning literature or sociology.

You're learning a technical field, so you have to put extra time into absorbing the concepts you're learning, many of which you won't be able to understand satisfactorily from the first time or even the second.

Try to distribute the learning time on two or three days a week, for example, if you have 8 free hours in your day, divide it into two groups of 4 hours, one in a day and the other in a day.

Step Six: Apply as you learn

The application in learning programming is equivalent to the learning process itself, programming is my field of work if you cannot apply what you are studying, you have not learned it.

Always apply and experiment with what you learn, and you can even devote more time to applying than learning time, and after a while of learning the basics, work on real projects.

Apply even to very simple projects, the important thing is that you use what you learn, I think that just as there is muscle memory there is software memory that you have to build during the learning period.

On the Internet and YouTube, you will find tons of projects that you can work on, implement and add to your portfolio.

Step Seven: Don't Stop Learning

The title of learning to code for beginners may suggest that the learning phase is temporary, but this is not true at all, as learning to code is an ongoing process.

Technologies are changing and in just 6 months you may find that the frameworks you use are obsolete and the market has turned to other frameworks to work.

So keep in mind that you should set aside weekly time to learn even after you've finished learning to program for beginners.

The most frequently asked and important questions in learning programming for beginners

1. Do I need strong English to learn to program?

No, English is not necessary for the learning phase, there are many strong Arabic resources on the Internet, but over time you will learn English programming terminology and you will need to develop your language to reach a deeper source and get greater opportunities.

Our advice to you is that even if your English is not strong, you should start learning to program, and you will find yourself with time getting to know all the English terms you need to master programming, and it is generally not difficult, as you do not study English literature, for example.

2. What is the best programming language for beginners?

It is not correct to say that there is a language that is the best for beginners, as there are many languages nowadays and each of them is the best for the purpose it serves.

So the right question is which programming languages are the best in the field, and this is what you will learn about after spending time researching and reading about this field.

3. Am I too old to learn to program?

Learning to code has nothing to do with age, whether you are 7 or 70 years old you will be able to learn to program, and learning to code will be beneficial to you in one way or another.

I found a lot of people on the Internet who were over the age of forty and fifty who started learning to program and got jobs in it.

4. Is it easy to get a job in programming?

As you define the word easily, yes you can get a job in programming without the need for a university degree in computer science, but you will have to put in some effort first.

In short, don't think too much about whether getting a job in programming is easy or difficult, and direct all your energy to mastering the field, languages, and tools you want, and you will be qualified for the job market, and therefore it will be easy to get your first job.

5. Did you learn programming only for smart people?

Programming is not only for smart people and you don't have to be Einstein to be a programmer, programming is for everyone, and in fact, anyone can learn it.

Programming does not need some organization in thinking and some time to learn, and everyone during learning has difficulty understanding and applying some things, but with a little time and effort, they overcome these common difficulties.

6. Why should I learn to program?

Because programming is the future, and the field of programming is the best in salaries, moral recognition, growth opportunities, and migration, programming will somehow make your life better.

Also, learning it today is very easy and in many cases, it does not require you to spend even one pound, on the contrary, it will be difficult to identify a single source through which to learn programming.

The bottom line

Learning programming for beginners is not an easy process, but it is also not impossible, if you know the right steps, you will be able to easily master programming with the least effort and in the shortest time.

In this short guide, I have provided everything that will help you in your programming learning journey and shared with you my story and learning journey as well.