programming-for-dummies

Figuring Out Programming 19
✦ Linux is a free operating system for almost every computer (including PCs).
Linux is becoming more popular with big companies (as opposed to individual
users), so there’s a growing market for talented Linux programmers.
If you want to prepare yourself for the future, it’s probably best to begin programming
on any computer that runs Windows, Linux, or Mac OS X.
With the right software (www.parallels.com), it’s possible to run both
Windows and Linux on a Macintosh computer that’s also running Mac OS X.
That way you can practice writing programs for three different operating
systems on a single Macintosh computer.
Book I
Chapter 1
Getting Started
Programming a
Computer
Writing programs with an editor
After you have a computer that runs Windows, Linux, or Mac OS X, the next
step is to get an editor. An editor acts like a simple word processor that lets
you type, change, and save program commands in a file.
In the world of computer programming, a single program command is a line
of code. Most programs consist of thousands of lines of code, although a large
program (like Microsoft Windows) consists of millions of lines of code. When
you write a program, you don’t tell people, “I’m writing a program.” You say,
“I’m writing code.” It sounds cooler — at least to other programmers.
Almost every operating system comes with a free editor:
✦ In Windows, the free editor is Notepad.
✦ In Linux, hundreds of free editors — like Vi and Emacs — are available.
✦ Mac OS X comes with a free word processor called TextEdit, which can
work as a text editor.
If you’re using Mac OS X, you may find it easier to use a dedicated text editor
such as TextWrangler (www.barebones.com) or jEdit (www.jedit.org).
Both TextWrangler and jEdit are free.
Unlike a word processor, which offers commands for formatting text to make
it look pretty or appear in different colors, a text editor is just designed for
typing commands in a particular programming language, such as assembly
language or C:
✦ The simplest editor just lets you type commands in a file.
✦ More sophisticated editors can help you write a program by
• Color-coding program commands (to help you identify them easily)
• Indenting your code automatically (to make it easier to read)
• Typing in commonly used commands for you