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look ok to some of you i know this is going to be funny but i really need to learn to code..
i just want to learn to code im a fast learner..just send me an email about some info..i will gladly take any info you can give me

Vrykyl

Before directing you anywhere, answer this question: why do you 'need' to learn to code?

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P.S. It might be worth it to scan the boards for old posts of the same type. This question comes up every month or so.

im sorry for not putting this on in the first place...my good friend is making a mud and he needs someone to code for him because he has to work alot...he wants me to learn to code for him because i know all of his ideas and share his wants for the mud..

Do you want to code? Have you done any sort of coding before, mob scripting, HTML, anything like that? Are you a mathematician or an artist? The options depend a lot on what you're starting with. Additionally good details would be whether your friend is running a stock MUD (in C, usually) or one from scratch. It's much easier to learn a scripting language than it is C.

For complete newbie and C, I would suggest the following:

1. Buy two books. One something like 'C for dummies' or 'C primer' -make sure this book is not more than 300 pages long (preferrably not even 200.) The second book should be a language reference. Someone will suggest 'the C Programming Language', but I'd say get 'C in a nutshell' or something similar (but not 'Complete C Reference', it's atrocious. This book can be very large -you'll use it to look up library functions and specific language features. You can get C books cheap on Amazon or Powell's. Ask here if you're not sure which book to get.


2. Read the 'dummy' book cover to cover. Try to not write any code, just understand the basic concepts. Then read it again, actually doing whatever exercises the book may have.


3. Getting here will take about 2-3 weeks, but feel free to take more time if you need it. Next step is to read some code. I suggest going to www.socketmud.dk and grabbing Jobo's excellent Socketmud codebase, which is well-annotated and extremely bare-boned, so it's easy to get into. If you feel it's still hard to grasp how the MUD works (and trust me, it can be), I suggest you run it through GDB (the GNU Debugger) and step through it so you see how the program flows (using GDB this way is very easy.. just type gdb [program name] and you'll be in the prompt. Then type 'break main' -this will pause the execution in the very first function of the MUD. Type 'run'. You should see the MUD stop at breakpoint in main (which you just set before.) Then type 'step' once.. you're in the program now. Then just continue hitting enter (it'll repeat the last command 'step') so the computer will slowly move through each function. See the GDB manual for details.)


4. Read the MUD source (or other code), and start reading the library reference whenever you find a function you're not sure the purpose of.

It takes time to learn to code -even to just understand code. Allow yourself at least a month before you can do anything useful except for changing some strings.

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