I'm a programming beginner. I have no background in programming. I did learn some HTML and CSS many years ago, though. I'm looking to learn a programming language that is profitable. I would prefer to work form home as a web developer if that is possible. However, I would consider other languages if I knew a job would be waiting for me if I mastered it. Based on my research on this forum, there seems to be a wide variety of opinions. Lots of people say to learn PHP and MySQL, yet they never say how to get these jobs or what other skill sets you'll need in addition to this. For instance, I search on craiglist for jobs and I notice a company almost always lists at least five languages under the 'requirements' part. They also want you to have a Bachelor's degree most of the time too! Argh. Also, how can you possibly compete with Indians who are "willing to work for $6-8 an hour"? I don't know if that last bit is an exaggeration, but this is what I found some of you people saying in other threads. Then I see some posts on here that say to learn asp.net., Java, Ruby On Rails, etc. So it's really confusing figuring out which direction to go in. It would be nice if there was just one language I could learn and master, and be guaranteed a job. Is there such a thing? Judging by the jobs I see on craigslist, I think not.
Try getting a project done at those rates. You won't worry about finding work after that Start by becoming proficient at XHTML and CSS, then learn PHP and MySQL. You really should know how to build websites and templates before asking for work as a coder.
Go to different places. My mum placed an ad on the radio once for me (shut up), I advertise in the paper etc. Very little of my work actually comes from online. My going rate for flat xHTML/CSS is $44 an hour, or a lump sum if I get a good idea of the project beforehand. With PHP/MySQL web applications or modifications to existing applications, I charge a fair bit more, and more again for my abilities in Windows applications with C# and J#. Uni degrees mean crap all for the web - especially in HTML/CSS, where everything taught either relies on Dreamweaver, or is out of date. Very, very few people are as good at HTML as they think they are (myself partially included - I know the theory). I find application development much more rewarding, and there are endless platforms to try - playing around with DS or Wii homebrew (just starting on the Wii stuff) is great fun. You can become hugely profitable in any language if you are better than brilliant at it. Though I'd stay away from Visual Basic, or any BASIC dialects really - great for learning, easy, and good fun, but too simple (debatable) to do anything majorly profitable.
Visual Basic.NET is a very profitable language to learn as an overall approach to .NET. Java and .NET are extremely profitable even with outsourcing. It's difficult to break in but once you get some experience and you show you are skilled, you will do just fine.
It depends on what you'll want to be doing. Do you want web development like PHP, Javascript, .net, ruby or do you want C++, Python, Java? Also don't even think on getting hired by a company because you just won't if you don't have a degree in computer engineering and at least 2 years of experience and some good projects done. So, the projects you can get usually have a 300 - 500 dollar cap and those may take several weeks for a skilled programmer. So going for the easy pickings is where you can make some money. A project compiled in 3 -4 hours for 50 bucks it's pretty nice. But usually it will be hard to get those jobs, because their easy to do and lots of people target them.
Nebula, thanks for the reply. So I would be jumping the gun a bit by learning PHP first? It's funny, I read through a lot of replies on here and no one has said that each time they recommended PHP. However, I think you may be right. It would make sense. The thing is, I've mostly relied on Dreamweaver whenever I've done HTML in the past. Is it bad, in general, to learn CSS and XHTML in Dreamweaver? Do I need to brush up on my HTML before I learn XHTML? Or is it not necessary since XHTML has largely taken over HTML now? So I guess I will need to be looking up tutorials on XTHML and CSS first. Any advice on how to come up with ideas on what kind of website to create? Honestly, I'm not too into that. I just want to learn this stuff to make money. I like doing it when there is profit. I don't look at this as a hobby, though. Since I have background in internet marketing, I'm probably going to go with Web Development. I am only considering the other languages if it will earn me money quicker. Those $50 dollar projects would certainly be nice. I'd be happy with that. Will be hard to find them, as you say. That is the part that gets me down about this. Why put the effort into all this, and then not find work once you are ready.
My honest opinion is don't jump into programming. First of all because it's something that takes time and dedication and you can't learn in a week or two. It takes several months to get started doing small things. Another reason is because you are focusing on making money out of it, so I would not recommend that at all, because of the time it would take to get to a good level, the difficulty of getting hired and the competitive pricing there is nowadays. I think you'd be better of marketing only, maybe paying someone to make your products and than marketing them, that is a really powerful technique, as you make the money of the product creation within the first day or two.
I also don't think you should jump into programming. but to answer your question "Which Language Is the Best/Profitable to Learn Right Now?" many people here recommend php but i don't agree (please dont flame me. just my honest opinion ) many here come from a WordPress blog and Joomla kind of sites. all based on php technology. it is very good and very common, but is not the most prifitable as per your question. I would recommend .NET it can be either web based or windows based. The same basic knowledge in .NET is good for both! you don't have that with php After a while you will know yourself which is more appelaing to you. I would recommend C#. not VB.NET and not J#. not Perl.net. just C# my 2 cents
You don't need to be an expert in XHTML and CSS but you should to know enough to write valid websites. If you are getting paid by the hour, you should be able to edit markup quickly and accurately. Most buyers will expect your websites to validate perfectly and you won't get more work if they don't. Along with PHP, you should also know the basics of: - PHP Frameworks eg. Zend, CakePHP - PHP Templating eg. Smarty - Popular PHP scripts eg. Wordpress, OSCommerce - MySpace and Facebook apps.
If you are just looking for web work php and and either django(python) or rails(ruby). Those are 2 good dynamic languages that will help you bridge for the transition if you ever want to take programming to the next level(C#, C++, Java for example).
Short Answer: Yes. Not really. They are syntatically almost identical languages. You can do either HTML or xHTML, just make sure to use a strict doctype. Then stop, now. You need to enjoy doing it, and be willing to spend lots of time learning and little time making money when you start out.
So what about you all then? What kind of job are you working? For a company or for yourself? Please list all the languages you know, and which ones you use most often in your work.
I work for myself, doing local web development work, and occasionally online. Its strange since Web Development is my weak point with .NET (particularly C#) being my strongest point (but I really don't recommend using it for web development). The languages that come up most are PHP, SQL, HTML, CSS and Javascript. I really can't be bothered to list all the languages I know, since I always forget something when I do. Web development in particular is quite hard to learn, since there are few, if any, tutorials teaching you how to do things in HTML, CSS and Javascript the RIGHT way. Just steer clear of Dreamweaver, Frontpage, Expression Web, NVU etc. You always get better as you go along, so good luck.
Thanks Blue. Since you work for yourself, how do you get these jobs? If all those freelance job sites are filled with Indians willing to work for $6 dollars per hour, how can you possibly find places that will pay you more than that? So I should go with XHTML, CSS, PHP, MySQL, and Javascript in that order. I was also thinking of going to my community college and enrolling in a Web Developer Certificate program. Or it can be applied toward a A.S. degree too. I know you guys said that degrees don't matter if you work for yourself. But maybe it'd help...