[plug] What language to learn?

Z. Cliffe Schreuders c.schreuders at murdoch.edu.au
Tue Feb 22 22:25:16 WST 2011


I would say that C, C++, and Java are all pretty safe bets in the FOSS 
community. Maybe have a look at what software projects you are 
interested in contributing to or for, and see what programming languages 
they use.

KDE, and all its tools are generally coded in C++/Qt. C++ can be a 
little complex but Qt is a fantastic framework.
I believe that Gnome and its tools are mostly written using C/GTK, 
although some programs are Mono (.NET).
Android uses a modified version of Java. Java is also used for many 
popular FOSS applications such as Vuze. In my opinion Java is one of the 
easier languages to learn, since it abstracts details away from the 
programmer.
The Linux kernel itself is C.
If you want to automate things or write console tools, then maybe look 
at scripting languages such as Perl or Bash.

Not sure how these skills compare on the job market.

Places to learn in Perth include: uni, tafe, certification courses...

Hope that quick list helps.

Cheers,

Cliffe.


On 22/02/2011 10:04 PM, Marcos Raul Carot Collins wrote:
> Hi there!
>
> I would like to learn a programming language that is both widely used in FOSS
> and is also in good demand in the job market.
>
> What is in high demand these days other than .Net?
>
> Which are the latest trends in FOSS? I know that most big projects use C, but
> I wonder if it is in good demand in the job market.
>
> Longgggggggg ago I learnt Basic, Logo, QuickBasic (all at a med level) and
> more recently PHP (+html,css) and have a low to mid knowledge of MySQL and
> MSSQL.
>
> I need some recommendations and it would also be great if there is also some
> place to study them in Perth (other than self-learning).
>
> Thanks a lot!
>
> Cheers,
>
> Marcos
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