How did you get started??

#1 I read alot of game programming and programming books and wrote alot of programs. I also went to college for 4 years and got a math degree with a minor and computer science.

I must stress here that I do NOT have a programming job. I can't find one. Reading alot of books and writing alot of programs is still a good idea. It is important that you get a degree that's actually in computer science instead of just minoring in it.

I encountered a number of problems that hurt my chances but have little to do with programming (mostly just alot of stupid decisions on my part). Get an actual computer science degree, and work hard in college (preferably a good college - try to get into one of the top 5 or so for your field if you can get the money).

But I warn you that the computer programming field is very hard to get into right now. Don't put all your eggs in one basket. Have a backup plan so that you don't end up flipping burgers.

#2 Thats why im giving myself two choices. Cause im good at art in general and if I can't get into a programming job i'll fall back on 3D art or vise versa. And the thing about the college is that my dad isn't the richest person in the world and I don't know if he'll be able to send me to Full Sail (I live closest to it) which is where I want to go. Would you say im screwed if im not able to get into a tech college.

#3 Kyle: You're fairly screwed if you don't have a college education or at least some certifications. Speaking from experience in the tech field, with no certs or college diploma, I can say that I've sent off literally hundreds of resumes in the last two years, and with two responses. The tech job I'm doing now(it's permanence dubious) is only due to the fact that my boss is someone I worked for on and off on contracts since 1998. For the last year I've been waiting on tables(the money's not too bad, enough to live on).

Ironically, I work for a govt. staffing firm in DC, and was talking about this very issue with one of the recruiters over lunch, and he agreed that I was lucky to get a job in this climate at all.

Moral of the story: Go get college. If your dad can't pay it all, get a job and work for the rest, because a Masters is the new high school diploma. Talent may get you in the door with art, I don't know, but programming or tech-wise, they want paper. Don't let this scare you though, college is doable, you just have to work a little harder than others who can afford it better, and in the long run it's a better road.

#4 Greetings,

I started programming at 14(I'm 19 now), and made my first game in VB3 called 'Final Fantasy V Battle'; which was basically some hacked graphics from the final fantasy 5 rom(I used print screen and then mspaint to cut em up) used to create my own 'final fantasy' style battle. I also used some MIDIs from FF7 for the background music. I had two custom spells, fireball and lightning which was basically a red ball that flew across the application and the lightning was a blue line that came down from the top of the application. It was more of a learning experience than an actual game.

Anyways, I had been programming in VB3 for about a month when I made that. It wasn't really that hard, to be honest. Shortly after I started learning C/C++ (http://www.cprogramming.com <- good starting tutorials). I've also done a lot of web development, and I've learned PHP for web developement.

The truth of the matter is, you dont have to go to college to learn to program, or learn the logic of programming. Though at some point you will want to go to college and earn a degree, as that will actually enable you to get a job with a company; not to include that you will learn a lot taking this route that otherwise would be more difficult to learn on your own. However, if you have the internet(and you do, obviously) then you have all you need to get started. You won't start out making anything real great in the beginning, but with persistance, a thirst for knowledge, and a lot of time hacking away on your keyboard anyone can be fully capable of learning to program on their own. I haven't taken a single class in programming, cept in highschool (but I didn't learn anything that I didn't already know), and I've learned enough that enables me(with a little extra time and work) to pretty much learn to do almost anything I would want to do via programming.

I learned a lot from programming MUDs, and I've also advanced into learning OpenGL(plenty of OpenGL tuts on the net) without any problems.

Once you learn some C/C++ and begin to understand the logic behind programming you can pick up a scripting language, such as Torque Script, for a 3d engine, or you could look into MUD stocksources, which is basically just a MUD game engine that you can modify all you want. I started out on MUDs using stocksources, and then once I got better I began writing my own MUD codebase from scratch. (http://www.mudconnect.com for info on MUDs). MUDs are basically text based online roleplaying games played via telnet or a MUD Client.

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#5 Of course everyone has started and advanced in their own ways. The point I'm trying to get to, is what better time than now to start learning? Theres plenty of resources on the net, plenty of example code, and a lot of people willing to help you. Take a look at the GarageGames community, its practically a home for game developers.

You could also look into 3D GameStudio. It has a nice scripting language that is used to control every aspect of a 3d game, and its really not that hard to learn or get started with, even if you have never done any programming before. Most tutorials or resources on scripting languages like this usually begin with the basic concept and logic of programming, so theres ways to get started into programming games using a scripting language without having prior knowledge of programming. Even Ken's book for Torque, 3D Game Programming All in One, starts out teaching you basic logic for programming. By the way, the url to GameStudio is http://www.conitec.net/a4info.html. I've used 3D GameStudio a lot, but recently migrated to Torque, because Torque has a lot more possibilities, despite the learning curve and extra effort it takes to accomplish what you want(which is well worth the time invested).

So, to conclude my rambling, college is a great way to go. If you want to persue programming as a career, go to college and get a degree. But whether you go to college or not for programming, you can still advance your knowledge and skill on your own using available resources on the internet. And theres no better way to learn something than your own personal experience. I, myself, am planning to go to college for graphics programming because I plan to persue a career in game programming, and hopefully within the next ten years start my own game/software company.

As a side note, it also helpes to dabble a little with paint programs such as Paintshop Pro($100), or Adobe Photoshop($700), and 3D modeling tools, such as Milkshape($25), Blender, Wings3d, or the more expensive 3D Studio Max($3,000+). Doing this is not only fun(especially when you can make your own textures and models for levels), but you also learn how textures, graphics, and 3d models, are constructed for game developement.

So go out there on Google, or Yahoo, or your search engine of choice, and search for some tutorials and information on getting started. You'll be suprised how much you can learn with a little effort and time. I recommend http://www.cprogramming.com, as mentioned above, because it has simple to understand C/C++ tutorials, a nice forum, and resources on how and where to get started. Then its up to you to continue the effort, whether it involves college or no college.

-Jase

#6 I got into programming when I was around 8. My dad bought my a Spectrum, and I got curious as to how it all worked. So, using the manual that came with it (which, as manuals go, wasnt that great IIRC) I tought myself BASIC. Later on I managed to get hold of some magazines about programming and learnt more there. Most of what I've learnt was by simply playing around writing code, seeing what worked and what didnt.

Later on I got an Amiga and decided to learn C. I bought a compiler (Dice, it was on special offer in a magazine) and a beginners book and proceded the same way I had before. I'd outgrown the book in about 2 weeks. Around this time I also got a modem, and the wonderful world of BBSs opened up to me and thus some more source code. Until then most of other people's source I'd seen was just in magazines. That's when I really took off and figured out enough to make something releasable. A local BBS had Internet access and was mirroring Aminet. The sysop (who's name I forget) ran an upload service for Aminet, and that was my first taste of releasing my stuff to a very wide audience. If I wasnt hooked already, I was then.

Around the same time I taught myself Assembler, Pascal, ARexx, and some other languages. Ah, those were great days.

When I finally got Internet access properly, the world was literally my oyster. I learnt a LOT of new and fun stuff through my constant experimentation and reading of existing source code.

These days it's EASY to learn to program. REALLY easy, compared to how it was when I learnt. The Internet is a gold mine of information on every aspect of programming. There is more source code freely available on the net now then is comprehendable. Use your favourite search engine, read every thing you can possibly find about programming.

BASIC, in almost any form, is a really good language to learn first, which is what the language was designed for. At some point moving into C and C++ will be a good and neccessary move if you want to ever get a job programming. But dont rush that ... BASIC will teach you the basics neccessary to understand programming. Understanding is the most important first step to take. Once you have learnt one language it is easy to learn another.

The most important thing you can do other then reading is to just code. Grab source code in the language you are using from the net, read it, understand it. Try and implement it again yourself without referring to the source if you can, but look at it when you get stuck.

If it's not obvious by now, learning to program is a very long and at times tedious job. If programming is not for you, you will find out very quickly. If you can stick at it, then there is nothing on earth (well, maybe a few things) like the high you get when you get an email saying "Hey, I'm using your program, it ROCKS!"

Good luck, whatever you decide.

Tom.

#7 I don't remember which system I started on. My parents would never buy a computer for me (they said I was too young for something so expensive - we were rather poor). I used to hang out at Radio Shack and the computer section at Sears, browsing through a manual and typing in:

10 ? Michael
20 goto 10

... along with whatever else I happened to notice in the manual.

I'm not sure if I wrote my first program on a Commodore 64, a TRS-80, or an Apple II (I was only 9 or 10 years old). I remember my uncle had a Commodore 64, and I would always jump on it and throw open the manual to the Basic sections.

Unfortuantely, my dream of programming computer games got side-tracked somewhere in middle school when I started playing football (the Yank version). I managed to get in with the cool crowd (I was always a geek before that thanks to my interest in D&D), which meant weekend parties and part time jobs to support my social life through high school. When it came time for college I was a reckless We're-Not-Gonna-Take-It-Rebel-Without-A-Clue and wanted something easy, so didn't bother with any CS classes. Never finished anyway. If we'd had a computer at home way back when, I'm sure it would have been much different. The glass-is-half-full side of me says it was a fantastic learning experience, while the other part of me cringes at all the wasted time and money.

Anyway, after spending 2 years playing games and learning HTML on my roommate's computer I finally came around and bought my first system when I was 26 (a Packard Bell Pentium 200mhz with a Riva TNT and a whopping 64 MB of RAM). Taught myself through a progression of HTML->JavaScript->Java->C->C++ and ultimately 2D->3D games. I managed to land a job a few years later doing J2EE stuff. Now I'm 33 and doing a little contract work (mostly J2EE, yuck) and Enmglish conversation while I work on my first commercial game. Progress is slow, but it's coming along. And I have a lovely wife who doesn't mind if I spend 6 days a week parked at my desk... as long as I give her Sundays.

#8 When I was 12 years old, I discovered Pac-Man, Asteroids, Defender, and other games --- and became horribly addicted. I was told by a girl that her uncle actually wrote computer games, and I was baffled about how someone actually went about creating a computer game... how do you tell a computer what to draw on the screen?

A few months later, my Dad brought home a Sinclair ZX80... with 1K of RAM. Right... 1024 bytes to work with, a membrane keyboard... it was horribly underpowered even by the standards of the day, but it was also extremely cheap. I learned programming, and eventually we pre-ordered a Commodore 64 for (I think) $600. The wait for that machine to be released was horrible... I think it didn't arrive until late August or early September, RIGHT about the time school started, so I didn't get to spend my summer (of 1982? 1983? Can't recall) playing with it.

Anyway, I wrote several games for it, but nothing commercial. I learned machine language to speed up my graphics loops. The fever had died a little bit by the time I went to college - I originally intended on being an electrical engineer. But I was in one of the 'career lectures' my first or second semester in, and the lecturer was showing off what he thought to be super-cool stuff on an oscilliscope... and I was bored to tears. I realized that the electrical engineers were building the great hardware, but the guys actually making it do cool stuff were the software people. So I switched my major to computer science.

I got lucky out of college to get a job as a programmer at a start-up videogame studio. The pay stank, the hours were horrible, but we worked our butts off and came out with two SIGNIFICANT hit titles for the Sony Playstation for its release season (we missed the actual release by a few weeks, but it was close enough). I was actually on two teams at once there, dividing my time between them, and where possible sharing my code between them.

I stayed in the videogame industry for six years, then finally made the jump to business software, thinking I could still write games in my spare time. Took me a couple of years to get around to it, though.

#9 Well I also started with spectrum, Schneider,Amiga and finally get my first 486 DX/2.
Started with BASIC, trying out the code and learning. Then VB came, what a beautifull programming language for beginer. I started to create buissnes programs with VB altought my desire was to create games. I did however create some small games with VB but they was way too bad to even give them for free :)

Anyway, a two year's ago I finnaly decided to start creating some commercial titles (even if i will earn 1$ from it), and start to learn C++, also find out about 3D game studio and learn some basic's about game programming. 3DGS is great start (pretty easy) for any begginer who has never done any texturing, level design, or anything related to games but true power lies in torque. Aftern learning some basics I also find out that with 3DGS I'll have hard time creating the type of game I had in mind. Next step was purchasing torque and learn torque script. Torque is well commented, and script is fairly easy to learn, however I reccomend purchasing Ken Finney Book about game programming, it will speed up learning proccess.

My opinion is that college is a waste of time(except for getting a degree) when you pursue programmer's job. A friend once told me "WHO ASK PROGRAMMER FOR A DEGREE?" and he was right. When i stop hunting degree and invest that extra time to learn a few more tricks, not only I become more experienced in programming, but also I easily find job. At begining I did some low vage jobs, but now I am full time employed programmer, have a wife and 4 month's old daughter, and a make a good living and all that without a degree. So whats finnaly counts is knowledge. Going to school will make you smarter, but finding your own ways (that's mostly what programming is) is something that you will never learn in school.
Two same programs, created by two different programmers will have different source code, and will work differently, alltought they are doing the same job. Also there is allways room to improve the code. Sorry to say that but college takes away 4 years of creative thinking. Don't get me wrong, I think that college is wonderfull thing except when it cames to programming. I would rather study managment, or marketing than programming. Of course there are colleges that are competitive, following the tehnology, updating the classes regulary, but most of them have old programs, old books, hell in my country in some schools they are still teaching kids LOGO while the same kids program in C++ at home.

Anyway thats just IMHO of course :)

P.S. Sorry for my english but it's not my native language....