Teaching Myself to Code: 1
So I started learning how to code for video games on my own because school is too expensive and I canât get enough money from the government (go debt!)
Anyway, Iâm not sure what to do with myself so I think I should write stuff about it, maybe my journey into the nonsense that is telling a computer to move pixels in a certain way that seem interesting.
So, hereâs what Iâve learned so far, in a philosophical, sorta, advicy sorta way:
1) Donât just steal someone elseâs code for your code, you wonât learn what you are doing wrong this way. I started using a website that I canât remember anymore that gamified coding for games, mostly working around creating a short algorithm somewhere between 10-50 lines (from what I got into so far) and I canât honestly remember any of it because I just got angry and waited for the code hints to appear and I wouldnât learn anything because IÂ âunderstood the logic.â i wasted roughly 30 hours not learning a thing.
2) Set your sights low on the small targets when starting out. Currently Iâm making a game and itâs a slow process that will likely never actually be finished until the next game I make. Starting with near-zero experience, it took me a lot of time to learn what to type and how to type it. Donât start working on a game thinking about how youâre going to make the next RTS or Fire Emblem game and instead say to yourself âIâm going to learn how to make my player character interact with a singular object and figure out how to make that work ALL the time for everything.â
3) Keep it simple. Like, really.
4) Learn how to organize your code! So many errors occur when you type too fast and forget a â â  âor a â)â or a â;â and by setting up a consistent programming style similar to what youâd see an actual professional use helps to find the errant lines faster so you can continue to make more mistakes later.
5) Donât let your failures stop you. âFail Faster.â I love this mentality because it means youâll never be perfect. Your next failure is just a step away, and hopefully that failure is a lesson. With every failure you get closer to your hopes and dreams.