Classes you'd recommed?

[HeyCori]

Long story short I've always been interested in software development but for various reasons never jumped in. I want to learn about developing apps I'm just not sure where to start. Thought maybe I'd take a class or two to kind of get my feet wet. Are there any classes you think would be good for app development?

 

[Reflexx]

How much do you know right now? Are you an absolute beginner?

Check this out.

C# Fundamentals: Development for Absolute Beginners | Channel 9

It's a video series that covers the basics of C#. If you're not at all familiar with programming concepts, then you might have to watch some of these videos more than once. But they're done really well.

After you get the basic concepts down, then you could move on to things specific for app development. But you want to lay down your foundation before trying to build that house!

And of course I say this all theoretically. I haven't built any apps myself. I just went through this course and will hopefully find the time to do more in the future.

 

[HeyCori]

Wow, thanks for the link. That's look extremely helpful. Yup, I'm an absolute beginner. I also rented the book "Sam's Teach Yourself Windows Phone 7 Game Programming." I'm going to search through that just to see if I can even grasp the concept.

 

[wagedomain]

Personally I didn't get nearly as much value from my college courses as I did from real world experience. My advice would be to just start developing something. Anytime you get stuck, Google it, try it, see what works and what doesn't.

If you have NO knowledge of OOP (Object-oriented programming) you could benefit from a class, though. C# or even Java would be good places to start, C/C++ stay away from as a beginner.

Another option is once you're more familiar with C#/.NET/etc., you could find an open source project, download the code, and read through it to understand how things are built.

 

[JedH]

I would say get aquainted with if you even like development first. I'm a recent University Computer Science grad now working full time as a mobile developer and it's mostly due to my portfolio and my experience from building apps and not necessarily from my degree.

First go to App Hub - windows phone and xbox live indie games development
It has tons of resources and everything you need.

THEN get this book:
Amazon.com: 101 Windows Phone 7 Apps, Volume I: Developing Apps 1-50 (9780672335525): Adam Nathan: Books

It is THE BEST development book I've ever read (and I have lots) and it will definitely inspire you to develop. Good luck!

 

[jleebiker]

I'm in the same boat as you Figure 8. I have TONS of ideas for apps, but just don't have the exp/skills to write my own apps. I WANT to learn this as I think it would be a fun/rewarding trip to take.
I have a buddy that does coding for a living and he's trying to teach me, but he's at Mach 10 and I'm just putting gas in the car.

I'm interested to see the road you take.

 

[wagedomain]

I'm in the same boat as you Figure 8. I have TONS of ideas for apps, but just don't have the exp/skills to write my own apps. I WANT to learn this as I think it would be a fun/rewarding trip to take.
I have a buddy that does coding for a living and he's trying to teach me, but he's at Mach 10 and I'm just putting gas in the car.

I'm interested to see the road you take.

I have the opposite problem, I know how to code, and am primarily a .NET developer. Unfortunately most of the time I have no idea what app to write and I end up giving up.

I used to TA the intro to computer science course for like 3 years in college so feel free to shoot me a PM or something, I love to teach.

 

[DanSmithKY]

I will second JedH's book recommendation. It really is great. I just wish I had more time to develop apps. Getting a degree can be so time consuming.

 

[mprice86]

I will say this, it's quite difficult to learn programming yourself from a book if you're starting from absolute scratch. Even the ones that are well recommended and well written tend to get mired in the technicalities.

For me, absolute scratch meant I had zero background in programming. I had never used programming tools and I had never written code. I had no concept at all of what it was to write code. Now, I've been going a Computer course (HND Level) since September. I have two classes a week in programming and we're doing Visual Basic.NET. About two weeks ago we started on the OOP side of .NET and since then I've been able to apply what we're covering in class to making small, ultimately useless, test apps for WP. No book could have gotten me to this stage.

That's not to rubbish any of the books the others have posted/suggested, and it really comes down to how you learn best, but from experience I would really recommend a course if there is a reputable one in your area.

 

[DanSmithKY]

You could be right, mprice86. I am a Computer Engineering and Computer Science major, and I didn't start from scratch programming-wise with Windows Phone. However, I personally think that programming is one of the easiest things to pick up without formal training, though formal training will surely get you up to a good speed quicker, and there are plenty of informative resources on the internet.

The videos at Windows Phone 7 Development for Absolute Beginners | Channel 9 for instance, are aimed at people in the OP's position, and I'm sure there are many more.

 

[JedH]

You could be right, mprice86. I am a Computer Engineering and Computer Science major, and I didn't start from scratch programming-wise with Windows Phone. However, I personally think that programming is one of the easiest things to pick up without formal training, though formal training will surely get you up to a good speed quicker, and there are plenty of informative resources on the internet.

The videos at Windows Phone 7 Development for Absolute Beginners | Channel 9 for instance, are aimed at people in the OP's position, and I'm sure there are many more.

To add to this, I guess a lot of it depends on what type of classes we're talking. University or even Tech School level, I say are useless for the most part unless you also want the certification. However if there is an expert teach a class or doing a seminar to the public that could be a different story.

I really hate to call my degree useless cause I did receive some benefits from it, mostly the fact that I can put a BSc on my resume, but if you really want to get into it and mobile development is your main focus, self motivating yourself and putting your nose to the grindstone I think would be the ultimate payoff.