At 48 years old what is the ideal programming language to learn? I am a newbie?

[Roland]

I am a total loser. I am 48 making $9/h. My family is dysfunctional which bothers me a lot and makes me really sad. I want to learn a simple in demand programming or web programming language & but up and running in 1 year. I tried in the past and failed miserably. Either the language was too hard or I was losing focus to learn it. I want to try a LAST things a last try before I finish myself as a total loser. I live in the poverty level.

 

[Lucy Girl]

Start out with HTML then move to maybe Javascript. This has free tutorials.
http://www.echoecho.com
One thing about poverty level. A lot will turn to alcohol for relief. If you do then you need to convince yourself that there is life without alcohol. I have had some years of heavy drinking. The next day I did not want to do anything. There are moments that I decide to quit for one full month. I felt more energetic. I went to www.half.com and picked up some programming books. I usually can find good books that run about $8 to $9 dollars which included shipping. I also picked up a beginner book on installing home networks and realize those skills could apply at a small business. Even picked up some part time work setting up networks in peoples homes. I usually do not give out prices until I see what kind of house/car they possess. Fancy dressed and professional looking couples with no kids are charged more. I live with three other people that make between minimum to $10 per hour. Homes out here usually go for about $20,000. You need to stay away from alcohol because that will not help you learn. I also picked up odd man handyman jobs like shoveling snow for residences and businesses. Some people hate mowing lawns so I can usually cut a good deal. I had one job doing landscaping. Another where I cleaned up an old barn. I got paid to pick up and pile up dead branches from a pasture. The temptation for me to grab some alcohol after work is still strong. I have now accepted that alcohol is not an answer. Most I ever was paid was $25 doing software testing and I interviewed for jobs paying $35 doing that. I was offered a job to be part of the ground crew for a company that makes huge storage tanks. I heard of jobs for oil companies in North Dakota where you can expect to make $30 an hour doing something as simple as delivering water/food to the pump crews. One problem there is the locals told me they are desperate for workers in North Dakota but it is impossible to find a place to live. I live in a small community with my parents because I am inheriting the farm site and some farmland. Their wish is to stay out of a nursing home. We have agreed that I will take care of them. But the economy is so bad here that I do not expect to find a full time job making minimum wage in the next two years. Keep putting one foot in front of the other.

 

[husoski]

I don't know how to put this delicately, so I'll be blunt. If you think of yourself as a loser, then your chances of improving your situation are slim at best.

Perhaps if you can find something you enjoy, and figure out how to use a computer to make that work better, then you have a direction. One area that can be filled is web design. There are lots of people who would like a website for their small business, but don't have a lot of money to spend on design school professionals who may have huge student loans to pay off. However that will only work if you can both do the work and sell your ability to do it. "I'm a loser" is not a good start to a sales pitch.

Or maybe you're not good at the "make it look good" part, but take to coding. Javascript and either PHP or ASP.NET are scripting combinations that are used a lot for web applications. Designer often team up with or hire web programmers to do the code that they are not good at. It's like a right-brain/left-brain thing. (Except, for some reason I don't understand, musicians tend to make good programmers.) That's a possibility, but only you can figure out if it's *your* possibility.

And possibility is the key. Belief that a solution exists is almost essential to finding it. I've seen people older than you, with not only financial problems but decades of drug or alcohol dependence to recover from, manage to rebuild their lives--but never with "I'm a total loser" as a mantra.

Good luck.

 

[chris c]

My personal opinion is to learn web programming. The reason for this, is that is is somewhat in demand, and can be done anywhere in the world.
Learn HTML and CSS, and then go on to learn PHP or ASP as a server based language. If you stay focused, you can do that within a year. You don't have to purchase any additional software products. You just need Notepad (or better yet, pick up Notepad++ which is free off of the Internet), and a browser, which are also available on the Internet for free.

Good luck in your endeavor, and keep your head up.

Remember, no one can make you feel bad without your consent.

 

[Mantis]

There are lots of languages, and some are easier to learn than others. But none of them, I'm afraid, can be mastered enough in one year to make a career of it.

That doesn't mean there's no path to move in that direction, however. Software testing, technical support, and network support are all good entries into the field. Most of these are going to require some programming, and C# or VB is probably the shortest path to get there. C# + asp.net and you have the startings of something marketable, but it'll take time.

One last piece of advice: don't follow this path if you don't enjoy it. Programming can be a whole lot of fun, but it's also one of the most frustrating careers you could possibly pick. Itt's hard work, it's long hours, and it's draining. There are times when you can spend days banging your head against a problem or a week chasing an elusive bug. But, if you learn to enjoy it, programming can be very rewarding.

Good luck.

 

[Paul W]

I would suggest you start learning about things like databases along with software design and programming languages. I remember interviewing some programmers who knew their languages well but knew nothing about the world around them.

 

[jplatt39]

At 48 if you don't have the patience to learn Pascal then you won't have the patience to learn anything. Employers of course want delphi when they don't want C++ Java and so forth, but that isn't even the point: Pascal was designed to teach good programming practices and to introduce you to computer science so once you know it learning those other languages can be that much easier -- might take you a few days vs. months if you haven't invested the work already. It's not easy but it's easier enough so it's a highly recommended introduction.

http://www.freepascal.org