Getting started in programming - advice please

I'm wanting to get into programming but need some assistance with where to start.

I am looking at VB .NET to get started and combining that with ASP, XML and CSS.

I'm not too sure how all these technoloiges fit together - other than some are client and others are server.

Would my selection let me get started in some basic web application development or is there something I have missed?

Also - I see plenty of books on ASP, VB etc but what I missing is something telling me how to link these all together - is there a good place I can look?

Finally - is there some essential reading that you can point me at - web based or books?

Many thanks!!

Well I would recommend throwing in some open source languages too, like PHP or Perl, perhaps Python. Remember the more you know the more likely you are to get hired or earn contracts.

Reading through the articles here and on Sitepoint.com would be a helpful starting point.

You said you wanted to get started "programming", while the languages you listed are almost all (w/ exception of vb.net) web based. I would say if you really want to program, as opposed to web development, you'll want to learn C++ or Java. Again, as Silky said, you'll want to learn as many as you can to be more employable. For this reason, I would say you do not necessarily want to learn vb or web based things first, but rather something like C++, Perl, Java, or Python, so that you can learn programming logic and think like a programmer. VB is not so good for this. Once you master one of the 'real' programming languages I mentioned, then learning more will be much simpler, as you just have to learn the syntax used.
The most important thing is to learn the logic behind the programming.
That said, the web sources Silky mentioned are good, and some "teach yourself" books can be good too, such as the ones published by Sams.
Good luck

I want to get familiar with .NET and at the same time web development - hence the asp and xml. I was thinking VB .NET because it is easy(ier) to learn but I see your point about programming logic.

Perl might be quite useful as it will teach me the logic and become a good tool for the web things I am interested in.

I guess at the moment I am walking blind not really knowing the technologies I need to learn but knowing what I want to do if that makes sense.

I guess for now however I should just dip in and get learning and through doing so I will discover the tools of my trade

Well, yeah if you want to focus on web dev, you'll want xml and asp. I still say just learn vbscript as part of asp and don't bother w/ vb.net till later. Perl or python would be good languages for your purpose. And of course php is a good alternative to asp, though if you want to work for a bigger company asp might be a better bet. Anyway, you have to start somewhere . I'll stick to not recommending vb, but beyond that its all what you find yourself drawn to. Have fun!

IMHO, VB.NET is Microsoft's way of migrating those "VB Classic" folks to the .NET framework. If you have never programmed VB before and you want to learn .NET, you should learn C# instead of VB.NET.

I agree with the other posters. Good programmers should be multi-lingual (I mean programming languages). The more tools you have in your basket the better.

Traditionally, Microsoft is good at producing RAD tools (e.g. VB) that help developers to build application quickly. The downside is that these RAD tools also help to produce a lot of bad programmers. If you truly want to learn the essence of programming, you should start with something like C++ and Java.

If you like to do web development, learn Servlet and JSP. And learn how to configure Tomcat, Apache Server, and JBoss. I guarantee you that you will learn a whole lot more from these tools than playing with Visual Studio.

Hope this helps.

I think if you want to start a language you should find out the good and bad bits of it. Also see if it suits you.

I programme in languages that I think are fun. Also it depends on the situation. What type of thing are you programming? Software, Internet applications?

My first real programming language was PERL but I advanced onto java which got really boring! So I chose Visual Basic!

Its upto you.

Hope Ive helped you?