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Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Computing/2025 February 1

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February 1

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Computing Programming and Coding

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What is the maximum age limit to begin learning coding?Tymer Repost (talk) 21:14, 1 February 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Is there basically a suitable programming language for a beginner?Tymer Repost (talk) 21:12, 1 February 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Is there a maximum age limit for one to begin learning programming and coding?Tymer Repost (talk) 21:11, 1 February 2025 (UTC)[reply]

There is no age limit on learning anything, although it may be more difficult to learn as one gets older. Python is popular as a learning language, and there's a tutorial on the website linked to in that article. You can very likely find books on programming in Python at your local library, but try to find ones dealing with a recent version of Python. If you can use the online tutorial, that will be right up to date.-Gadfium (talk) 03:13, 2 February 2025 (UTC)[reply]
Some (often self-reported) ages at which people learned to program, or even taught themselves programming:
Reportedly, someone learned to program at the age of 81;[12] the link given in this article is dead.
 ‑‑Lambiam 17:44, 2 February 2025 (UTC)[reply]
The book Bite-Size Python is advertized as being "ideal for those who are new to programming, giving kids ages 9 and up a beginners' approach to learning one of the most important programming languages". Most reviews on Amazon.com give the book five stars. From one of the less positive reviews: "when you get to age 13 or 14, this would not really be deemed suitable (as tested by my own 10 and 13 year olds!) as it feels to [sic] childish". Some adult learners are quite positive, though: "Since I struggled with other books, I bought a 'kids' book. It's great and what I needed. Plain English and easy to follow examples and instructions. I recommend this to anyone, child or adult, who is started to learn programming."  ‑‑Lambiam 07:32, 3 February 2025 (UTC)[reply]
I teach programming to the over 65 group at our university. They host free courses for over 65 people based on interest and a lot of them are interested in programming as well as database usage and web design. I often get many asking if we can do a class on hacking. They are a bit mischevious. Long long ago, I taught programming in an elementary school for the "delta" students, ones who were ahead of their classmates and needed more education to keep them from getting bored and in trouble. 12.116.29.106 (talk) 14:17, 6 February 2025 (UTC)[reply]