I am 15, and my school has a robotics competition (called FRC). You have to create the robot and also program it. You can use C or C++ or LabVIEW or Java. I would like to use Java as it has been recommended to me a lot. Now, I have absolutely NO EXPERIENCE at all with any programming language, period. I am thoroughly educated with computers in general though.
So, considering i have no experience, where do I start learning? Where do I download the JRE and all of that stuff? Some good books? Tutorials for beginners?
Sorry for my overwhelming description, but I have no clue where to start. Any tips are appreciated. Thanks!!!
indi012012-07-09T14:05:36Z
Favorite Answer
you can start with a book like this: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Java-Everyone-Cay-S-Horstmann/dp/0471791911
go for an IDE (Eclipse or Netbeans are the most used by professionals, I personally suggest BlueJ for beginners).
Start practicing (a lot, there are many exercises in the book). Without practice you will get nowhere.
But let me warn you...Computational intelligence is one of the most complicated stuff to implement. Ever. The best computer scientists and engineers in the world still struggle with making robots function optimally (and independently of humans). I assume however that your task will be to build a machine which will be controlled manually from you, not that will interact automatically with the environment.
For C++ I recommend using CodeBlocks, and for Java using Eclipse. They're both very helpful and both have quick and dirty tutorials, and check your work as you code. Here's a quick few steps to remember for coding in either of the two: 1) You always, always, always put a semicolon after your line. It's used instead of a period. 2) Ask someone who knows. Does your school have a computer sciences class? Ask the teacher for help. If not, go to a high school nearby and see if they do, and ask the teacher there. 3) Do these packets: http://www.pps.k12.or.us/schools/wilson/1079.htm They will help you learn C++ if you do them one at a time, starting with number one and going from there.
You can't just learn in a week of study, it takes a lot longer than that. You are best to get with someone who knows how to do the programming (you can learn from that person) and you do the building of the robot. It's a competition so you need to both participate in both sides of the project.