C or C++

[Longman, Bill]

> The site aside, I really believe that learning a programming language
> (especially a complex one like C++) is best done through books and
> practice.  Practice by itself does not solve anything though, you may
> learn to do C++ programs this way, but you will likely learn to do bad
> programs if you don't teach yourself the good programming practice
> first (hence the requirement of a good book).  But then maybe this is
> only the opinion of a prof who works in formal methods and has some
> interest in programing languages...

In my practical experience, I've found it, *hands down*, most fruitful to
work alongside a good programmer. You need an understanding of the language
syntax, obviously, but once you master that, it's the semantics that throws
you. That's when a helpful nudge in the right direction can help open your
eyes. "Oh, that's the way you do that!" I programmed in 4GLs for years and
*always* had the language book at my side. It takes a while to get familiar
with the libraries and by far the fastest I was ever able to get up to speed
was when I had my book nearby and I had a good chunk of existing code handy
in order to stare and compare with.

When you don't have a programmer nearby, you have to find good code on your
own. Luckily, you've got an entire hard disk full of it (or at least could
have) on your Linux box. And if it isn't there, there's surely plenty of
great code at Sourceforge or Freshmeat.