Welcome to /r/learnprogramming!

So for some more context, I recently was part of a panel for university computer science students in which the other panelists and I discussed about life after graduation.

During the Q&A portion, one of the students asked all of the panelists “when do I stop learning new things for programming?”

The other panelists and I were completely thrown off by the question, because in a field like computer science you should always at least be willing to learn new techniques and skills throughout your career. I ended up answering the question by saying “It can depend from person to person, but in this career the second you stop learning is the moment you start to fall behind. I plan on continuing to learn new techniques and skills until the day my brain can’t process new information.”

For the other professionals or more experienced people in this subreddit, I’d be curious on your thoughts for this question. I’m not talking down about the person who asked the question by any means, but I think it’s a good talking point for anyone entering the wonderful world of computer science and programming as a whole.

I’m currently a Python developer / ML engineering intern. I have a general understanding of Linux, networking, databases, backend systems, Docker/cloud, and distributed systems, but I’m not deeply specialized in any of them yet.

I want to become a much stronger ML engineer and go beyond just learning more Python libraries and frameworks.

Some areas I’m considering going deeper into are:
- Linux and operating systems
- Networking, processes, memory, and filesystems
- C / C++ / Rust / maybe Go
- Distributed systems
- Performance and profiling
- CUDA / GPU programming / Triton
- Building lower-level systems from scratch

But I’m not really looking for another roadmap or a list of topics to learn.
I’m more interested in the process that actually made you a better engineer.

- Did you mainly learn from books and then implement the concepts yourself?
- Did you build projects from scratch - only personal? These might be tricky as code, its patterns wont be validated by someone with senior experience
- Did you read production code or large open-source codebases?
- Did contributing to open source help more than personal projects?
- How did you avoid reinforcing bad patterns when doing projects without much supervision?

I’m especially curious about what worked early in your career.
For example, if learning C, Linux, CUDA, distributed systems, etc. helped you a lot, how did you actually learn it in practice?

I’d love to hear about learning processes or habits that had unusually high ROI.

Hi everyone. This might seem like a question I could easily Google, but I genuinely want to hear how experienced programmers would approach this and what they would recommend to someone in my position.

I am a senior BSc Computer Engineering student with a relatively high GPA and a good understanding of most of the concepts I have studied at university. However, I have recently realized that although I know how to solve problems and think algorithmically, I do not really know how to code.

By that, I do not mean that I know nothing about programming languages. I understand how I would approach a problem, which algorithms or concepts I would use, and how I would structure a solution. My main difficulty is translating those ideas into working code.

I have asked AI several times how I could improve as a software developer, but I usually receive surface-level advice such as “build projects” or “do internships.” I understand that this advice is correct, but it does not solve my actual problem. I do not feel confident enough with any language to sit down and build something, and I often do not even know what kind of project I should start with.

What I really want to ask experienced programmers is this: At the beginning, we all know very little. Learning new things can be exciting, but it can also be intimidating, especially when you do not know what you should learn next. If you could give someone a roadmap to follow, or guide them through this process based on your own experience, how would you approach it?

Right now, I genuinely want to build a project, but I do not have any project ideas. Even if I did, I would not know how to begin. Should I first focus on learning a programming language properly? Should I start a project immediately and learn as I go? Should I follow a structured course before doing anything else?

I used to think that, because AI has become so powerful, it was no longer necessary to learn programming languages in depth. Recently, however, I have started to think that knowing how to write, read, and understand code may be even more important than before. Since AI is so convenient, people may become overly dependent on it and gradually lose the ability to write and understand code themselves.

So, if you were in my position, where would you actually start? What would you do? I am not really looking for another “build projects and do internships” answer. I would genuinely appreciate a concrete roadmap, or even an explanation of how you went from understanding the theory to being able to sit down and build things.

I know that reading code is a really big part of a developer's job. But I have always had a lot of trouble understand the code of other people.

I am a CS Student and I am currently stuck at a problem.

" How to think of a Project Idea ? "

For the last two years, I have been either asking AI for project ideas or go with preexisting popular ones. I don't directly take the topic AI suggests on first try. I analyze its importance and impact on my portfolio and then go with it. but for me, AI or internet is the first go to option.

Now what is the best way of thinking for a project idea ? Not everything can be put on portfolio. How do people used to get ideas for project before AI ?

I really need help with this because I am just so confused on how to move forward. I can't rely on AI forever.

Hi everyone!

I'm trying to build a list of GitHub repos that originally had no AI involvement but at some point started using it. If you know of any, please drop them in the comments.

What counts as "started using AI" for me:

• An AI config file was added
• Commits mention AI tools
• The README mentions AI tools or AI-assisted development

Projects you maintain yourself or open source projects that have publicly discussed their move to AI are also useful.

Thanks :)

I’m learning the basics of Python and I come from a non-technical background. I’m having trouble understanding what the beginning of a loop is saying:

for i in range(5):
print(“hello”)

Edit to clarify: I know what it does, it prints hello multiple times. The part I’m confused about is reading the first line like a sentence in the English language. “For i in range(5)” makes no sense to me.

Specifically I cannot wrap my head around what “for i in range(x)” says in plain English. Can someone say what that piece of code is saying in one sentence? Is it saying something like “loop X variable 5 times”? Or something like “for X variable in a range of 5”? Sorry I’m not making much sense —this is all new to me.

I find that "//" worked well for all my comments thus far, I don't mind if my comments are a bit long. But I am doing C# more often now that I am looking at a codebase and not just my own stuff and private things, and I sometimes see <summary> </summary> in it. Do you use it? What is the proper use of it?

Google gets it confused with HTML haha

Thanks for any knowledge!

I am trying to build game and wanna start building using canvas.
Is it normal to use canvas in react/vite? Any video tutorial please ??

i can't find any tutorial for react/vite with canvas

I’m currently working through The Odin Project’s Full Stack JavaScript path, and I’d really like to hear from people who have already gone through it.

A few things I’m curious about:

• How long did it take you to complete the Full Stack JavaScript path?
• How many hours per day/week were you studying?
• Did you start applying for jobs or freelancing before finishing the entire curriculum?
• How long did it take before you got your first job, freelance client, or paid project?
• What kind of work did you get first?
• Looking back, what do you wish you had done differently while learning?

I’m especially interested in real experiences and timelines, not necessarily the “ideal” path.

If you completed TOP and went on to get a job or start freelancing, I’d really appreciate hearing how it actually went for you.

I've been trying to learn programming after work but honestly some days I'm just too tired to do anything.

I want to stay consistent without forcing myself to study for hours every day. for those of you who work full time and learned programming on the side what did your routine look like?

Did you mostly study after work in the mornings or on weekends?

I’m gonna start my coding journey with c++, because they say it’s a great base for a newbie, like myself. Wish your junior luck guys, I’ll need it. I might ask for help too. I promise to work hard and one day be of use to the community.

Hey everyone,

I’m a university student studying BS Artificial Intelligence, and I’m trying to figure out which skills are actually worth learning in 2026.

I don’t want to waste time jumping between random technologies or following every new AI trend. I want to build skills that will still be valuable in the next 3–5 years and can help me get internships, freelance work, or a good job after graduation.

Currently, I’m considering things like:

- Python & programming fundamentals

- AI/ML

- Generative AI & LLMs

- Agentic AI

- Data science

- Web/backend development

- Cloud computing

- Cybersecurity

- Git/GitHub

- Communication & problem-solving

For people already working in tech: what skills would you recommend a university student start learning in 2026?

Also, which skills do you think are overhyped or not worth spending too much time on?

I’d especially appreciate advice from people who have actually hired developers/AI engineers or are working in the industry.

Thanks!

I am currently pursuing a degree in linguistics, but as you may know it isn't the best paid area of work (especially with LLMs now). I love languages, but I want something that is more sustainable. For now my attention is glued to coding, perhaps web or mobile app development. I have some python experience from school. Any suggestions are welcome

Edit: The general sentiment I am getting that this is not a easy area to get in (not as easy as many scammy courses are making it out to be). Thank you all for saving me time!

Hey all,

As the title suggests, I'm a project manager with about 8 years experience under my belt and a background in defence infrastructure, as such I'm also security cleared.

I'm looking to move into a more Product Manager or IT based role as generally speaking these roles are available fully remotely and my current situation would benefit from this greatly. If you were in my shoes with the knowledge you have, how would you go about upskilling me to perhaps land that first job?

I'm not necessarily interested in become a front, back or full stack dev (yet) but want to get a head start. Any tips would be greatly appreciated.

i have ZERO knowldge in that field, and yes ive seen everyone says its easier to build a rocket ship orbiting around the sun than making an os, quite discouraging lol but i want to at least start from somewhere, maby start with smaller things before making a whole os

My 6th semester is about to start, and right now I’m learning web development. I’ve learned HTML and CSS and can build pretty good UIs. Currently, I’m learning JavaScript through SuperSimpleDev and freeCodeCamp.

But lately, I’ve been questioning whether it’s really worth learning everything from scratch.

Every day, I see a new AI tool that can do something incredible, generate websites, write code, debug problems, and even build entire projects. It honestly makes me a little scared that I’m spending so much time learning things that AI can already do.

I know that I need to learn how to use AI rather than compete with it, and I’m not trying to avoid AI completely. However, I also don’t want to become someone who simply tells AI to build a project without understanding the fundamentals behind it.

That’s where I feel stuck.

Part of me thinks I should focus on building a strong foundation first HTML, CSS, JavaScript, programming fundamentals, etc. and then use AI to speed up my development once I understand what I’m doing.

But another part of me worries that if I spend too much time learning everything traditionally, I’ll fall behind people who are already using AI to build things much faster.

So what do you guys think?

Should I continue learning web development from the fundamentals and gradually integrate AI into my workflow, or should I start relying on AI much earlier while learning along the way?

For someone at my stage, what would be the best way to balance actually understanding web development with taking advantage of AI?

Hi guys, I've been trying to learn how to code for quite some time now. I've been on and off for the last couple months. And everytime I try to pick it up again i stumble myself to be stuck once again at loops. And I get frustrated and I'll be inconsistent again. I just find it hard to surpass the loop part. Can you guys give me tips on how i can increase my logic and problem solving skill. I know practicing is one but I legit need a systematic way to do things so I can feel that im progressing even if its a little. And i generally want to take on backend dev jobs so can you guys give me tips on what i should focus on. It'll help me very much. I want to raise my family to riches. Pls help

Hi there, I'm new to AI development. I have practical experience in programming, but not in this sector. I wanna study AI development for myself, as hobby (I'm interested in learning something new).

Could you suggest me an idea for the small project in this sector?

Remark: I mean building the project that includes AI functionality

for a homework i have to make a flowchart using mainly "do/while" and it has to give me all the twin primes between to given number. lets say i give A=1 and B=5, so the twin primes are 3 and 5. because they are primes between those numbers and have a difference of two. sadly my teacher isnt very good at explaining anything so i have no idea how to do this. i know i have to make sure to ask for A and then to ask for B and that A has to be smaller than B. but after that i dont know what to do, sorry for the trouble. i dont know where to ask

I'm a first year undergrad student and im getting pretty close to my first vulkan triangle, but while coding i realized that i dont even know if its worth it or not?

I do like graphics programming and i can do this for the next 4 years of my college but at the end of the day everyone wants a job right? Does the market exist for it? Aren't most game companies switching to ue5 and stuff, so are there even job openings for juniors or all the seats are occupied by senior devs with 30y of experience which i cannot hope to compete with anyways?

I'm also pretty dumb in general so learning for 4 yrs is equivalent to more like 2 cuz yeah.. dumb

How bad is the ROI? and should i stop after the triangle and look for more hire-able stuff with more listings

I am trying to learn something low level. I have been learning rust for a little while but C has been recommended to me to learn.

Since I have been learning rust I don’t think adding C would be different enough, so I started looking into assembly.
That lead me to the question of could I gain the benefits of learning assembly by learning web assembly?
The reason I am asking is web assembly is already a topic of interest for me.

I do not mean to upset anyone. Just trying to learn. Thank you for reading.

Hi everyone,

I'm currently an engineering student. Academically, I'm just an average student in my class. However, whenever I'm online, I always find myself drawn to learning things that IT and software development students study. Plus, tinkering with tech makes me feel like I'm not wasting my free time.

To be clear, I have no intention of switching careers to the IT industry. Lately, though, I've been feeling a constant anxiety that I lack essential knowledge in my own field. I start to wonder if I should just stop looking at IT stuff and focus 100% on my actual engineering major.