Apps

      _      _ MOBILE AND WEB APPLICATIONS (Back End) ____ __

These languages let you DO things with logic or computations or interactions with your user or with data.  Python or Ruby are great places for new coders to start developing apps.   Javascript is fun to explore too.

A great place to start making mobile apps is AppInventor, an easy to use but powerful visual language.  Or you can use web languages (HTML, CSS, Javascript) and convert them to phone apps using PhoneGap.  

• Python  www.python.org/about  Python resources for new coders Python is an extremely popular, free (open source) remarkably powerful dynamic programming language that is used in a wide variety of application domains. Many real world sites, ranging from Google to YouTube are built using Python.  Here is a great list of Python resources for beginners.    Jessica McKellar on Python and hacking  Coursera course called Learn to Program  Python goodies  5 books on Python for Beginners   Why Python?   

•  Ruby   www.ruby-lang.org/en/  A dynamic, open source programming language with a focus on simplicity and productivity. It has an elegant syntax that is natural to read and easy to write.  About Ruby  and here's how to use Ruby on Rails to design web apps. Try Ruby  (free from Code School.)  And here's a long list of other online resources for learning Ruby.

•  Javascript  is not only a language to make a website interactive (see above.)  It can be used to create games, mobile apps and much more. You can learn Javascript for free at many excellent online sites, including Khan Academy, CodeHS and Codecademy. Skillcrush (fee based coding ed)  explains here why Javascript  is so cool and so useful.  Some good books:  Eloquent Javascript and A Smarter Way to Learn Javascript.  More projects.  Javascipt also has lots of libraries and frameworks for useful tasks:  check out Angular.js and Node.js 

•  PHP, SQL, C and its variants, etc.    There are many more languages in common use.  Here's an infographic with some pointers on what each one does and is good for.

• AppInventor  http://appinventor.mit.edu/   Create Android mobile app with this easy to use visual programming software from MIT.  Also check out the Technovation Challenge, a great contest for high school girls that can use AppInventor.

• Java:  For beginners interested in Android apps, AppInventor is  the place to start.  But when you are ready for more (real world) complexity, try Java. Here are some places to learn Java online.  http://www.learnjavaonline.org/    Beginners Java Tutorial : http://www.roseindia.net/java/beginners/
  Free ebook Sams Teach Yourself Java 2 in 24 Hours : http://www.informit.com/library/library.…
  Introduction to Programming Using Java by David J. Eck : http://math.hws.edu/javanotes/

• Android apps: Another great resource is the Android Developer site.  It's full of acronyms (SDK, IDE, APK, etc.) but if you use Google inquiries extensively to help you decode what's being said, it's fairly straightforward, and you have access to all the goodies the pros use.  Remember, even professional developers have many gaps in knowledge;  they are simply accustomed to asking questions, looking things up and Googling repeatedly.  It's the nature of the dynamic, always changing universe of coding.

• iOS If you want to write apps for the iPhone, you need to learn iOS, or check out PhoneGap to convert HTML/CSS/Javascript or try Kivy to convert Python.  Here's a list of online resources to tackle iOS. And look at this article if you are interested in writing iPhone apps.  

• PhoneGap  is a free open source resource for turning code written in web development languages (HTML, CSS and Javascript) into iPhone or Android apps. So it's not for raw beginners -- it really helps to have some coding and some system knowledge under your belt first.   Here are 3 videos and some pointers and more pointers about getting started with PhoneGap.  Knowing HTML, CSS and Javascript is useful in its own right -- that's how you make your own cool websites.  If you get into PhoneGap, you might also look at AppGyver.