Hello, new to the forums, I don't know a lick of programming nor do I know if i have the ability to learn it and apply it to a possible job. I guess that is what im really after is a job and enjoy what im doing. I have no idea how the career of a programmer is. Constantly barked at, unappreciated, unrealistic deadlines? Would that be it right there?

The community colleges have Java,C#,C++, and PHP/Perl classes available online to take. But unsure if the classes are worth taking. I took C# with my intro to computing class, that was fine. I need a structured learning environment to learn anything. I enjoy the feedback i receive from someone teaching me knowing if im making a stupid mistake.

Currently pursuing a degree in Chemistry, but watching that job field drop off like a dead fly. The past 2 years have been really bad and wanting to maybe try my old childhood dream of programming. master of the computer, as it maybe called.

Would love to hear from people in the industry.

Welcome THX for registering, you didn't surely make a mistake by coming here !
We all, just like you, had childhood dreams about computers and becoming a master in that field. It is pretty easy to learn basics of working on a computer, but basics of programming are something bigger, that is huge issue for those who are trying for the first time. But for those who know basics and who developed their knowledge, it is a piece of cake.
So it is not a problem to start, really, you just need to choose the language. It is better to start with Console programming in order to learn basics and than turn into object orientated programming. You will see here that most of us are dealing with console more than with object orientated. That is because we are making programs that can do small things, that are fast and that created for others to see, to test and to improve. That is because we enjoy doing programming. Like for some people basketball is more than a game, for us programming is more than making a machine do what you want it to do. Basically programming is a set of instructions for processor of a computer, but for some people it is more than that.

And it is good to see somebody who likes some other field of science, like chemistry, to come here. You are right about jobs, IT is rapidly developing and programmers along with other IT professions are wanted more than anything. It is a good choice i can say. But it need to pass a time for learning, and it would be better to have a degree in programming too, that increases chances of getting a quality job.

Another time, Thanks for registering, and feel free to ask anything !

Welcome.
I'm a student of Nature - Mathematical Science University, and I'm studying Informatics. Programming was one of the things I was thinking to study.
But one thing is for sure. You don't really know what would you like to do until you try it or now a bit more about it. When I started programming I realized that this is the think that keeps me amused and is very interesting to me. And people don't say for nothing that the best job is the one that you love doing.

Try programming and see. We have a few fellows here who are really great programmers and are willing to help.

Enjoy the time spent here.

Welcome dude!
I study physics, and I have learned Pascal language,I don't know whether Pascal is the best for intro to programming world or not,But I can surely tell you that Pascal is a structural language,you identify approximately most of the syntaxes with meaningful signs as :begin,end,procedure,integer,function,write,read,... .
there is a link for learning Pascal in the right below of the forum,feel free to read some sessions,maybe you like that.
I can strongly tell you that programming can make you think better,no matter what is the language,It gives you the ability to think structural and better ,in different cases,It really helps you in life!and I'm not exaggerating! search in the forum,find your favorite language,and then start,there are kind people here that help you.
good luck

Interesting that most of you recommend taking the time to understand a structured/console programming language. So it maybe beneficial, to take the programming fundamentals class that one of the colleges offer. Here is a course competencies list from the syllabus.

1. Design algorithms for simple business problems.
2. Perform computations using binary, octal. and hexadecimal number systems.
3. Work with Extended Binary Coded Decimal Interchange Code (EBCDIC) and American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII) codes.
4. Lay out reports and records.
5. Demonstrate with the following logic structures: sort/merge, search, arrays/matrices, looping, editing, data comparisons, control breaks, subroutines, external logic control, and linkage editors.
6. Describe and demonstrate the procedures for debugging simple business programs and debug a program.

Would this fit the need for a good foundation? I also do understand the opinion of a degree. It is true most places will except work experience without a degree. But I would be able to make a lot more money with a degree. When I look at some of the jobs, there is a 75% to 125% increase over non degree jobs. Both require a certain amount of experience but the only difference between the two was the college degree requirement.

Well that is a good course. It is probably console programming. I think that course will prepare you for self learning, because those are fundamentals (number systems, ASCII, algorithms-basic and debugging). But that course is not enough for earning money. You need to know at least one object-orientated language along with databases for a decent job.
So you need first to learn console fundamentals and than pass to object-orientated and than develop knowledge about other structures like databases.
Another issue is time for doing all of that. Also if you are good at maths, you can learn programming easier.

Math with me is strange. From a text book or teaching stand point I do not understand the way they both present it, unless its a good teacher. Most of the time I will get a math problem wrong and figure out how they got the answer. I can reverse engineer the math problem and I must go at my own pace. Then there are those rare occasions that i can apply myself to a problem without doing that. Trigonometry was a good example of that.

I am not expecting instant results. I am expecting to work, in the field, within five years would be a good goal marker. Maybe two if I do nothing but programming for breakfast,lunch, and dinner. This is of course only comes with if I understand programming. If I do understand one object oriented language and, am well at it, I am sure I will learn others. As I saw with the job requirement of knowing multiple languages. This is understandable based on the pay.

Java/Perl/C++ are the behemoths that im shooting for. Python, Lua, ruby,ect. Would be an interesting alternative. Though a second thought came to mind. SQL would be good to learn, but it seemed extremely annoying coming onto a pre-made database.

I only showed those relative figures to prove it is worth the time. To me, programming is the only working class job left. You can find work in the field of programming without a degree, if you are good at your job, but you can make a lot more with a degree.

As a side note. Sometimes I leave out information in what I reply with and I notice that with a lot of things. If I do, please let me know so I can correct it. It is quite embarrassing when I email something to the wrong person and not even realize it till I receive a reply.

Well i only say, if you know maths programming can be easier. You have a good choice of languages. I suggest you to start with C++.
Here is an interesting thread where one guy who doesn't know anything about programming asked to learn C++ :
http://www.pro9ramming.com/someone-help-pls-t-203.html
You can read everything there and if you understand everything that is written there than your first move is done.
I think there are explained basics of C++ namespaces and including libraries, variables, input, output and "if" statement.
If you don't understand something, just make a thread, we are going to answer !

P.S. Yeah you can make yourself a good programmer in two years with just breakfast, lunch, dinner and programming, going to the toilet is excluded, it takes too much time !
This was a joke !

Toilet doesn't have to be excluded, take the laptop with you. That is what my friend would do. He would sit on the pot for 30 minutes and I would think, what the hell is taking so long. He yells "sorry I got distracted with my MCSE studying!"

That thread you linked is great! I'll have to look over that later.

,TOILET...
of course you can be a better programmer with good maths,but depends on the work you wanna do ,the maths you need can be change,i think in buissness you have to know basics of math,maybe matrices,but not more than them.