Programming opens a world of endless possibilities that is really fun and intriguing. Once you start learning the basic methods of programming, you’ll want to start creating programs yourself and show off your work. Everyone needs to start somewhere, but what kind of projects should you pursue? What should you use programming for?
As a beginner, you should start small in order to continue building the foundation of your knowledge. Of course, a lot of this is based off of the assumption that you took the time to learn to code, but if you haven’t no worries – it is never too late to learn. Consider some of the following ideas as possible projects to undertake as a beginner programmer:
Something You Can Use for School or Work
When you go to code something, ideally you want to make something that either you or someone else will actually be able to use. From maintenance to user testing and analyzing, this can give you the chance to have a complete software development experience. You may even feel more motivated to finish this project since it will be something that you can use in your daily work.
What your job or area of study is can determine the kind of program that you decide to make. Anything you do that involves manual, repetitive steps can be easily automated. A couple examples of this include:
– A Tool for Weight Conversion
This can be a quick project – all you need is some formulaic operations that can be rather simple that will help you create an awesome weight conversion tool.
– Calculator
Inputs are extremely critical for any programmer to learn how to do. By creating a calculator, you can perform small tasks with minimal operations. It’s perfect for practice because it teaches you the most vital techniques a programmer should know.
Create a Game
If nothing useful for work or school is coming to mind, or if maybe you just want to create something more fun, consider making a game. Having the complete freedom to create a fun activity can be very motivating. Once it’s polished, you can play with friends!
– Rock, Paper, Scissors
This game is a challenge because it requires a bit of everything, but it is valuable experience. You will need to do some user inputting as well as add an element that is randomized. When you’re done, you will have an interactive, tangible product that you can play with right away. You can get really creative with this since you have different graphic objects that you can interact with.
– Tic Tac Toe
If you want to experiment with something that requires some strategy as opposed to the randomization of Rock, Paper, Scissors, try Tic Tac Toe. If you put together some math, JavaScript, CSS, and HTML, you can create a bot that is unbeatable.
– Chess
Chess is something that has been played for forever, and the rules have largely stayed the same. Chess logic matches up well with programming logic, which makes it a great practice game to code. Begin by mapping out the pieces and your board and then assigning specific movements to your pieces.
Make a Soundboard
If you want to start a little simpler than an all-out chess game and your stomach gets all tied up just staring at a blinking cursor, you have other options! By creating a soundboard, you expand upon your knowledge of how user interactions and sound files can be meshed together. The separate files merge together to create an audio environment that is immersive and is very enjoyable to interact with while you play your favorite games.
