ok im 15 guys and when im older im hoping to be a computer games creater/designer and i no absolutely nothing about programming and i mean nothing...where should i start and is it worrying that i dotn know this at this age or can you learn all this at College and university
This year i've started doing a degree in computer games develpment at swansea institute. No previous programming knowledge is required here, you will need at least gcse maths and physics but A level maths is a BIG help. I'd advise learning c++ if you want to learn any language as it's pretty much game programming industry standard, but they are teaching it to us from the beggining. It's a really good course but is in its infancy so a lot may change by the time you get to uni. i'd advise computing, maths, physics at A level, but only the maths is really required, especially as most a level computing courses teach a dead language like pascal (mine did) have a dabble in some 3d programs aswell (3d max or maya) but again, you'll be taught that from scratch as well. Basicly you got nothing to worry about as its such a varied course they can't expect everyone to know the basics of all the modules. hope this helps. Matt
Most uni's consider A-Level computing as relivent to a computer science degree course, as say buisness studies. Some lecturers actualy hate it, because they would rather teach you properly from the ground up. A-Level maths is the most important thing, most uni's won't take you without it. But we're told to incourage a-level maths anyway as its soo universal in sceince degree entry requirments. Also don't go for a computer games/graphics i know a few programmers who work for the uk games people (not exciting i know) but none of them have degrees in computer games programming. Most to standard comp. sci, and just take graphics modules. Its been hinted at that most fo the comp games ones are just to attract people, and sometimes they don't even get accreditation from the BCS (required if you want to work in a hard to get job).
Anyway, heck, 3 years is a long time before you will be going to a Uni - so plenty of time to get a head start. You'll soon find out whether you have a like for programming or not, it's a bit like marmite in some respects In three years time you may have totally changed your mind though!
Does your school have any programming or computer science classes? Mine does, but is fairly limited. I took a class last year which covered Visual Basic for 3/4 of the year and HTML for the last quarter (how boring). This year I'm taking Computer Science, where they're teaching us Java (they used to teach C, IIRC). Next year, I'll probably take AP Computer Science, which is a college-level course they offer for high school students.
Some appreciation of what programming is about would be useful just to give you a head-start. You could do with learning the basic programming concepts and structures - ANY language will do for this.. As for any prerequisites for University, the only really useful one is Maths. As TheAnimus pionted out... the more IT-related courses you do before Uni, the more they have to knock out of you when you get there! You learn very little that is useful pre-Uni, and a little more at Uni, and then you start your real learning with your first job. And if you are lucky, you will keep learning throughout your career...
do you want to do the programming side of things? Design? concept? modling? all different, all require different training, but all need to be aware of each other as well.
You have two options before heading to Uni - the question is do you know specifically which area of the games industry you want to go into? If yes - then work towards that, if not - look at the Games specific University courses. I'm in my last semester of my last year at Lincoln University studying BSc (HONS) Games Computing (Software Development). Before the degree I did IT A-Level and thought I would enjoy the programming side (how wrong I was ). But after 3 years of programming, designing, learning about the theory and modelling/animating I have a completely different view. Looking back I should have taken a degree in pure animation. The advantages of a gaming degree instead of a pure programming or animating degree is that you learn every aspect of designing and making a game. So you know where your texture will fit in with the game, or how your algorithm manipulates that model etc. As many have said, Maths and Physics seem a good starting point - I took neither at A-Level (though did them for GCSE) and found the maths orientated units challenging - but do-able. Everything I learnt in IT (A-Level) came in use at some point - but purely as a basis for the more advanced stuff (pseudo code, object orientated theory, macros etc.). Seeing as you still have a few years before you make the decision, start having a go at programming and possibly try some 2d/3d modelling. The games industry dramatically changes in the space of a few years - when I first started looking at degrees, the industry was thriving and the salaries were high... 4 years on, there have been many cuts and salaries are almost half what they were. The demand seems to be for highly skilled programmers. It's not at all worrying that you don't know what to do at this stage - it's actually better that you are focused on an industry to begin with. You just need to decide which area you want to focus on. If you can't decide, go for a "general" games degree, if you know which specific area you want to end up in - improve your skills and aim for a degree specific to them. Software/standards wise, the games industry revolves around (although not limited to) C++ (programming) and 3D Studio Max (3d modelling/animation) - so they may be a starting point. These links may be of use to you: http://www.developmag.com/ - monthly industry magazine, which is free to students http://www.gamasutra.com/ - possibly THE gaming industry website - articles, reviews, surveys, post-mortems all specific to game developers http://www.gamedev.net/ - another good game development site
Thanks guys the help has been awesome also i was just wondering is there any sites i can learn C++ and is it hard or not? thanks, Ice
If you want to teach yourself programming (and in 3 years you can learn a lot!) I'd recommend getting a book. Go to a bookstore and leaf through the 'basic' looking books in the programming section. Get one that starts with explaining very basic things (like if-else statements and for-loops) and that appeals to you, that looks like you would be able to read it and work through it. Then go home, download the appropriate language and do just that: work at it. Play around, have fun. Look for tutorials on the web if you need more information. Note that the language does not have to be C or C++; once you've learnt the 'mind steps' in programming, you can quite easily switch to another language. (at least if it's remotely similar). If you eventually want to get to C, you should look for object-oriented languages. In my opinion Java is a good one to start with: it's also object-oriented and it's big advantage is that it will give you *understandable* error messages (C does *not* heh). Have a look at this to get started. You can download java here And this is a fun new editor you can use. Whew. Long post. Good luck!!
I agree! Though IMHO i think that if you start with C then things like pointers, references and value types which are fundamental to all languages become explicit but which some (e.g. VB) hide from you. To me programming per se, is not about the language ... its about understanding and recognising algorithms and data patterns. Then, being able to manipulate them into a desired solution. Languages to programmers are as chisels are to a carpenter - many types, but all have their specific uses to achieve different results... eek! That's almost an aphorism! Stu
this is what our school has 9-10-------cert 2 in info 10---------intro to ipt (some vb and stuff) 11--------- cert in networking, programming (and something else) 12---------same iv done cert2 and doing intro to ipt then im doing programming in 11 and something else in 12
Who teches you c++ in swansea institute? are you in FADE or the business building. Would expect Gaynor Thomas or Kevin Palmer teaches it to you if your based in FADE? I done my degree in SIHE, and am doing my MSc there now, still based in FADE.
Now I know neither very well but iv read that this advise is questionable... Just a thought However I do now a block of java. I got started last semester by taking a course at the local comm college (im 15 too [homeschooled] ) and they took me after I took a placement test. There werent enough people to warant going forward with the C++ class otherwise i probobly would hav taken that. So its questionable, if you can pass a placement test a comm college might take you on a comp sci course... if not go get a book and a C++ compiler and start plowing. Good luck
c before c++? Personally, I think learning C first made it harder to learn C++ (unless you can get your head away from tructural thinking into object thinking). Also, I actually read in a C++ book that you should not need to learn C until you have learnt C++. There are good reasons for this, mainly that C++ supports the C features, but C does not support the C++ features, so you will actually learn most of C while learning C++.
My 2 cents (CDN): From everything I'm reading, going to a university for a program specifically in games programming doesn't really count for much. Not that it will work against you. My understanding is that most companies don't care about your degree, but rather it is your experience that counts. I'm currently working towards a degree in computer science and would really like to work in games programming when I'm older. A few problems there: 1) We aren't learning anything about game programming or any aspect of game development in my program. 2) I haven't learned a damn thing in a school setting since grade 12 computer science. Neither of these are really problems, IMO. I haven't learned anything new because I had a great teacher in high school and I already do lots of programming in my spare time (I've made a few simple games). For information on game programming there are loads of useful articles at GameDev.net. Going specifically for game programming would probably be very useful though. I find it easier to learn things in classrooms (I had lots of trouble with C++ on my own before we covered it in grade 12), and being taught about game development in real life would be sweet. However, if I can't get into game programming (or if I decide I don't want to), a degree in computer science might look better than one in game programming. You're 15, you say? Starting early is great (wish I could've started even earlier). Read lots of books. Try to find friends that have experience, and bug them about it. Bug teachers at your school (computer science) to see what they know. And math: I hate it, but you've gotta admit there's some really important stuff. Look up vectors and cross product and matrices and stuff now. Even if you can't understand it completely, you should be learning it within the next few years and it might be easier to take in if you've already seen it before. That's just what I think though. I don't know if it's right, and I'd like to hear what others think. EDIT: and on the topic of C vs C++, I agree with skipping C. I learned C++ first (before C, at least. My first language was Turing), and now in University they seem to think C is easier to learn. It's like a big step back for me. For everything I do, I just think of how much easier it would be with the standard template library or how annoying the /* */ comments are. But don't just learn C++. I guess it's still pretty much standard in the games industry now, but a good programmer learns a variety of languages because what's important isn't syntax: it's problem solving. And there are some pretty neat languages out there that are actually better than C++. I'm looking into Python right now, I know a professional programmer who likes to bug people to learn Ruby.
If I were 15 again I would try and learn C++ myself (there are so many good books on C++ and games dev). Once I have the basics down and I finished A levels I would apply to some games dev companies in the attempt to start that way. I really think Uni is a big waste of time if you can get a job without a degree. If however the companies you apply to say you need a degree then they can tell you what degrees they are looking for.
Sorry to hijack the topic, but it's kinda bugging me. What are A levels? I just take it to be some kind of education level in parts of Europe. Is it just like high school? Also, yeah University seems pretty useless to me. The only way I would gain anything from University level computer science is if I didn't know anything going into it. And how would it make sense for me to go into a program that I don't know about?
