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Just starting...

Jul 17, 2002 -

		BigDAlcala	Jul 17, 2002
		I just recently graduated from high school and am going to major in computer science. I have little (VERY little) experience with C++ and Visual Basic. Does anyone have a suggestion for a beginner like me, like what language/code I should screw around with in the summer while I'm waiting for college to start?

		sizone	Jul 17, 2002
		i took some java, that can be fun but ultimately worthless and unfulfilling. i'd say get heavy into c++ and fortran that way you'll always be able to find work

		BigDAlcala	Jul 17, 2002
		Ok, cool. Thanks! BTW, I have Microsoft Visual Studio, but what compiler will work with Fortran? And which one is more for beginners (which one should I start with?)? Any more help/suggestions will be greatly appreciated!

		antigov	Jul 20, 2002
		You can get one from their site: www.fortran.com/F... You should start with C++, IMHO, since you'll probably be using that the most. You may want to take a peek at Perl or maybe Python, just to get some scripting ability under your belt.

		ExCyber	Jul 22, 2002
		I second the C++ and Perl recommendations, but I'd also suggest learning about basic computer architecture. This will help you get a greater appreciation for what's going on "under the hood", and might help you to avoid some problems with your code. It will also give you a head start on learning concepts that will be important later in a serious CS education. There are more books written on this topic than I could possibly list, but at leastone... is available for free online, though it's quite 80x86-specific.