Hi all,
I have no experience programming, but am pretty quick at picking stuff up when I need to, and have been wanting to give making apps a go for a couple of years now.
I have decided to bite the bullet, buy a new mac and start learning to make apps (and hopefully make a couple!), but am totally clueless as to what specs are needed for this sort of work, I don't even know which programes I'd need!
So I'm looking at the macbook airs, and trying to decide if 4gb vs 8gb ram is required, and 128 vs 256 SSD is required, can anyone help?
Also, could anyone link me to somewhere that explains the process, or perhaps explains themselves how to go about making apps as a rookie!!
Thanks in advance to anyone that can help!
I've been in the business for years (decades really) You do NOT need a powerful computer. You don't need a lot of disk space or RAM. But you will find VERY soon that you want as BIG of a screen as you can possibly get. a 27" iMac is reasonable. If you must have a portable computer get a BIG LCD monitor.
ANY current Mac is powerful enough. Well maybe. What is your "app" going to do. If it needs to crunch numbers then the computer needs to be powerful enough to run your app. but DEVELOPMENT is not resource intensive.
Why the big screen size. Because programmers always like to have about a dozen text windows open. You have the source code text file you are editing to make the app, one or two other files you are references and then documentation in the browser windows and likely Google and then you might be running your app in another window. They is good reason to want even TWO 27" monitors but start with one.
Next. Don't expect to learn this in one year. OK maybe you can write some super-simple app that does a student type demo lie simulate a soda vending machine or something.
This is going to be just exactly like learning to be a fiction author. Yes you need to learn to use the word processor but learning that will not make you a good author. FIRST you need to have something to say that people want to pay you so they can read it.
A full on graphic app that uses a mouse and windows is NOT for a beginner. You will start with a text window and keyboard only data entry. So you do NOT need a big computer. A dumpster-salvaged PC running Linux would be ideal.
In fact Linux is MUCH better as a learning environment than a Mac.
I'd even start with something like Arduino and build a little robot as a first project.
Jumping into a full GIU app is a big step. Yu have to learn a lot before you can even start. So start simpler.
One good way to learn about how larger programs work is to become envolved with some Open Source project. Pick something you like, join the developer's email list and just read the emails. At first they will be incomprehensible bt you catch on over time
Find a SIMPLE or even "for dummies" type book and work through all the examples.
People will argue about what "language" to start with. Within reason it hardy matters. You need to learn "programming". That means loops and branches and decomposing complex things into simpler objects and those into even more simple objects and how to TEST your work and a little about version controls and so on. All of this applies to any modern object oriented language like Java, C++, Objective C. Learn any of this and you can switch later.
Java on the Eclipse IDE is a good place to start. It runs the same in Mac, Windows and Linux so the skills are transferable even to Adroid, Windows and Mcs. If you are planning to live ONLY in the Apple world then Objective C is the best place to end up but you need not start there.
Expect this process to take a couple years. It is NOT something you can learn for 15 minutes of watching Youtube videos. Take an on-line class. Figure that most university students are still beginners after their first year of full-time study.
Udacity is pretty good. They have a free intro-to java class that is very basic. I am actually going through there "AI for Robotic" class there thy cover the Google self driving car in some detail. But this class forced by to go back and re-learn my Linear Algebra, Id forgotten even basic matrix arithmetic.
https://www.udacity.com/courses#!/all
Start with whatever computer you have today. There is zoo reason to buy anything until AFTER you can get the basic test window based apps runnig.
EDIT: I just read you sig. Why would you need yet another computer? You have way more than needed already. But maybe you might need a large monitor but even that can wait until you see the reason for it. And you WILL see the reason for it the first imd you try and display four text editor windows on a MacBook.
One thing you might buy is an over-the-top multiply redundant backup system. You will invest 1000+ hours in even a simple App and you'd hate to loose months worth of work because a corrupted files system, theft of the equipment. Accidental over writing or a simple disk failure. Remember that one lightening strike of a power pole 1/2 mile away can destroy ALL of the equipment you have plugged in. So hopefully some of yur backups are far away in some other building and in a fire safe in the nest room and in some on-line backup service.
