C++ is a very common programming language, and a good language to start learning basic concepts with. I'm not going to say that it is the best language for a new programmer to try to master. If you asked 10 different programmers that question, you'd likely get 5 different answers. Usually, people reccomend whatever they find most useful. That's what I want you to do - figure out what you find most useful. To do that, you will have to try different programming languages over time and see which ones fit best for you - which language structure makes sense, which one seems to be able to accomplish the goals you want, etc.

We are going to start demonstrating programming concepts using C++ because it is easy to install, easy to write some basic programs in, has a well supported Borland compiler, and the output will make sense to Windows users (you get an .exe file). Althought I often use Linux myself, I will assume for now that the novice programmer is a Windows user. I will add a Linux oriented starter tutorial in the future.

Ok, now that that is out of the way, let's start by installing the C++ compiler!

Go to http://cc.codegear.com/Free.aspx?id=24778 and download the free C++ compiler. Install the .exe and let it install to the default directory (C:\Borland\CPP55\). The article found at http://dn.codegear.com/article/21205 will help you set up your system properly - you will need to make the path changes and the add the .cfg files.

You can use their instructions to test the compiler as well. Once you complete that and have the compiler working, we wil go ahead and walk through some test programs to work on concepts!