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iOS Best method for learning to code?

M

Mstr

macrumors newbie
Original poster
I hold very little experience as a programmer, and hope to start from scratch with the iPhone platform. I understand that I will need to know the basics of C and be very familiar with Objective-C.
What methods/ books etc. do you suggest I have a look at? I am very determined to learn and would very much appreciate some well-thought-out answers as to how I should start.

Thanks for your time.
 
I have been recommended:
1. C Programming Language by Brian W. Kernighan & Dennis M. Ritchie
This is supposed to be good ( I`m waiting for my order), so please don`t ask my personal opinion.

Other books on Objective-C and Cocoa programming you can browse at Amazon
 
2 books I recommend:

Programming in Objective-C 2.0 by Stephen Kochan

and

Beginning iPhone Development by Dave Mark and Jeff LaMarche

That, on top of the apple documentation should get you a nice start.
 
One of the skills you'll want to master when becoming a programmer is searching and reading pre-existing information. Documentation, tutorials, books, etc. For example, there are plenty of threads in this forum that already provide well-thought-out answers to your query. 🙂
 
Thanks everyone for your suggestions. Yes, I much rather have books infront of me than to watch a screen! 🙂
 
Try out a few tutorials and get a feel for the language. Then customize the code when you get an idea of how the language works. That worked the best for me.
 
JLatte said:
2 books I recommend:

Programming in Objective-C 2.0 by Stephen Kochan

and

Beginning iPhone Development by Dave Mark and Jeff LaMarche

That, on top of the apple documentation should get you a nice start.
Click to expand...

As a newbie myself, I would go for this one first - then move on to the other suggestion. I have both books and the Kochan book is the best for getting you started from scratch.
 
henrysoup said:
As a newbie myself, I would go for this one first - then move on to the other suggestion. I have both books and the Kochan book is the best for getting you started from scratch.
Click to expand...

Thanks! I already have the second, but I'm still wondering whether to get the first due to the code having mistakes (from what I've heard).
 
@Mstr: There were actually few errors in the code itself; most were typos in the text. Most of the errors have been fixed in subsequent printings of the second edition. If you have an early printing (1st or 2nd), the forum for the book (noted below) contains a master list of corrections.

In my opinion, you're better off staying with the second edition, as it addresses the changes added to Objective-C 2.0, is more Mac-oriented, and includes an additional chapter to get you started with iPhone programming. There is also quite a large community that has developed to share questions, answers to exercises, and lend support at www.classroomM.com/objective-c.

@steve10172: The K&R book was the first book ever written on C (Dennis Ritchie, one of the authors, invented the C language). While still considered the bible on C, it's a very difficult text for someone who's new to programming to digest, so you may find it tough going. As I've written elsewhere, I don't believe you need to learn C before Objective-C.


Cheers,


Steve Kochan
 
skochan said:
@Mstr: There were actually few errors in the code itself; most were typos in the text. Most of the errors have been fixed in subsequent printings of the second edition. If you have an early printing (1st or 2nd), the forum for the book (noted below) contains a master list of corrections.

In my opinion, you're better off staying with the second edition, as it addresses the changes added to Objective-C 2.0, is more Mac-oriented, and includes an additional chapter to get you started with iPhone programming. There is also quite a large community that has developed to share questions, answers to exercises, and lend support at www.classroomM.com/objective-c.

@steve10172: The K&R book was the first book ever written on C (Dennis Ritchie, one of the authors, invented the C language). While still considered the bible on C, it's a very difficult text for someone who's new to programming to digest, so you may find it tough going. As I've written elsewhere, I don't believe you need to learn C before Objective-C.


Cheers,


Steve Kochan
Click to expand...

Hi Steve
I have actually ordered your book and waiting for delivery.
Could you tell me, is this the latest edition/print available?

Programming in Objective-C 2.0 (Developer's Library)
Author Kochan, Stephen G. Click to see more Items by this Author
Format: Paperback
Publisher: Addison Wesley








Published: 6 Jan 2009
Pages: 624
Genre: Macintosh OS
ISBN-13: 9780321566157
Condition: BRAND NEW
 
Mstr said:
Thanks everyone for your suggestions. Yes, I much rather have books infront of me than to watch a screen! 🙂
Click to expand...

A programmer who doesn't like to watch a screen? 😱 Good luck. The one thing you will really appreciate is the wealth of information available with a simple google search. Got an error? Paste it into google. Need an example of how to use a built-in function? Google it. Found a nice piece of code? Copy and factor in.

I'm currently doing an OO course in C++ and while the book is handy, google will get you the answer your looking for much faster.
 
Ok cool, thanks everyone! I'm going to order that objective-c 2.0 book - sounds good. Oh and btw, I said I prefer going through books to squinting at a screen, reading a lot of text. I don't have much of a problem with being by a screen for a few hours, it's just reading excessive amounts of text! Hope I cleared all that up! 😀
 
steve10172 said:
Hi Steve
I have actually ordered your book and waiting for delivery.
Could you tell me, is this the latest edition/print available?

Programming in Objective-C 2.0 (Developer's Library)
Author Kochan, Stephen G. Click to see more Items by this Author
Format: Paperback
Publisher: Addison Wesley
Click to expand...

That's the right edition, however there's no way to tell what printing it is. Since the third printing has been out for a couple of months now, it's more than likely you'll get the latest printing (especially if you've ordered it from a place like Amazon that goes through their stock quickly). The only way to tell what printing you have is to physically check inside the cover when it arrives.

Cheers,

Steve
 
It's just a shame that the book has to be so expensive... I mean, £25 for a book?
 
Recommended books for iPhone/Mac programming

I've read through most of the book Beginning iPhone Development by Mark + LaMarche, and as far as technical books go, it is pretty good and fairly easy to read through.

To get a good intro to Cocoa, pick up Cocoa Programming for Mac OS X by Aaron Hillegass.

The book I used to learn C was C By Discovery by L.S. Foster. Pretty decent book with good mini-examples in the book.
 
OP:

By the way, when you get Kochan's Programming in Objective-C 2.0, make SURE you do all of the examples, and don't just type the code and think you understand it. Make sure you completely understand what you're doing, especially if it's your first language. iPhone programming isn't just drag and drop an interface and suddenly it works, knowing the code behind it and how it will display and work the inner bindings of your application is key.

The examples at the end of each chapter in Kochan's book are good and don't just give you code snippits that you can copy, you actually have to think a bit of what you learned through the rest of the chapter. The forums and google will be your best friend. Apple's documentation can be really useful too for certain confusion or when you're not sure if you're using the right function, etc.

Good luck!
 
sammich said:
A programmer who doesn't like to watch a screen? 😱 Good luck.
Click to expand...

Heh. Back in high school, I used to write out code with pencil and paper during history class, then take it home and type it all in. 🙂

I also prefer physical books to online tutorials. It helps your eyes get a break from staring at the screen for extended periods of time.
 
Try one of the many books or online tutorials on learning plain C. There's lots more of those than anything for Obj-C.

Write lots of programs.

Then maybe try Squeak for the Mac. That will give you a great background for learning Obj-C.

Then dive into Obj-C and the iPhone SDK.

People who try to learn too many things at once often (not always) end up short-changing something important.

YMMV.
 
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