>If I were to make a career out of computer programming,
>which would be better to learn, Java or C/C++?
If you don't know C, I wouldn't hire you. Period. If you don't know Java or C++, whether I would hire you or not depends on the job. However, I would recommend learning all three, starting with C, then moving to C++, and finally Java.

Ok. I know some C/C++ right now, and no Java.

>I know some C/C++ right now, and no Java.
Let me clear this up for you right now. C/C++ is for experts only. C and C++ are two different languages and you would be wise to learn only one at a time. When people say C/C++, they mean some combination of C and C++ that can only be correctly written by someone proficient in both.

Ok, I'll work on mastering C for now, thanks.

java compilers and the java runtime environment are created using C++


learning both C and C++ is good but you may find yourself trying to unteach yourself things from C when you work in C++.

>learning both C and C++ is good but you may find yourself
>trying to unteach yourself things from C when you work in C++.
Yes, just like when you learn C++ and Java, C and C#, Java and Fortran, Perl and Python, LISP and Forth... Pick any combination of languages and your statement is absolutely true. So did you have a point or are you simply trying to propagate the usual C/C++ myths?

C++ and Java are fairly similar in terms of syntax and concepts. It takes a little time to get to used to the nuances of each, but learning one makes transition to the other vary easy.

I would strongly suggest you learn both. C++/Java are both very fast and powerful languages that will give you the flexibility to choose which language best suits your needs.



A C++ programmer once told me that C++ is where you learn to program, C is where you learn to shoot yourself in the foot. I don't agree with him, but C can be both a very powerful and dangerous tool in software development.

C is often used for hardware oriented software and as a metalanguage for hardware oriented languages. If you were truly going to make a career out of programming, C would most likely be the most applicable language you could learn and possibly the one that would guarantee you the most job security.

All that said, I would strongly suggest you learn all of the languages above well and not limit yourself to any one or two languages by also learning the .net and script oriented languages such as Perl and Python.

there are deffinate uses for both C and C++ but it is not necesarily true that one should learn C prior to C++

there have been numerous .NET jobs available lately. It seems as though businesses are picking up on the languages because of the little learning curve and they can have something visible (software wise) near immediate.

of course the tradeoff is the fact that somethings are best done through windows API not included in the .NET framework so one hase to call in the .DLL's through the use of the runtime.interopservices

The differences between java and c++