Confession. I loved programming in high school and college. Then I discovered my love for theatre so all the computer stuff got pushed aside.
I'm about to date myself, but I had fun learning QBASIC on my Tandy Color Computer and the computers at my high school. In college, I learned C++ (yep, 2 plus signs) and FORTRAN. I loved figuring out how to code everything in the correct order and making it do what I wanted it to do. Boy have times changed! None of those program languages are used anymore. We've moved on to much languages that are more powerful.
While I was reading the print version of The Washington Post, I learned about Codecademy. (Apparently the article is a reprint of Slate's You Need to Learn How to Program-Farhad Manjoo makes a good case why we should learn.) Founders Zach Sims and Ryan Bubinski believe that everyone should learn how to program.
Lessons are free on Codecademy. Currently, you can learn JavaScript, but I think there are plans to add more programming languages. You can start as soon as you visit the website. I've already taken the first lesson. It took me less than 5 minutes, but I've taken programming classes before. I found the instructions easy to understand and not written in jargon. As you learn to code, you can use the "Scratch Pad" to play around with what you've learned.
Since it's the age of social media, you can connect your account with Facebook and show off badges you've earned as you progress through your coding lessons. So far I only have 1 badge, or achievements as Codecademy calls it.
The tech industry is dominated by men and I think it's time we have more women in the field. (Yes, I know I have some male readers.) Take a few minutes each day and learn how to program. Who knows? You might learn how to create the next cool app or design a fabulous website!
I think Codecademy is freaking awesome! But no one is paying me to say that. Just learn some code, ok? You'll be glad you did.
Qbasic screenshot by eston via Creative Commons
