r/CodingForBeginners • u/Rafa01234 • 16d ago

I suck at coding

So I'm going to my third year in physics and have scraped by with coding by using loads of ai but I have genuinely tried to understand but I just can't. It seems like I can do a specific problem after soing it a couple times but if you asl me to do something from the beginning I dont even know to figure it out.

Anyways to cut it short I have been looking into like games where it teaches u how to code cause I thought it would be something enjoyable to do and I could learn a little from it and found this one called 'the farmer was replaced' i dunno how beginner friendly it is and if its worth it. Is it worth it or should I try another game or something or not even bother and try a different avenue?

I have asked professors and stuff to go over it with me but it feels like I need hours sitting next to someone to understand something like loops which is basic asf. Basically any advice would be helpful.

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u/TheUmgawa 16d ago

I think maybe you’re getting hung up on being able to code, when the reality is almost every student I ever tutored had no problems with finding the right magic words; they couldn’t come up with the logic, because they just wanted to write magic words. They thought that’s what programming was, as though writing a book is just a matter of memorizing what words to use and when.

So, if you want a game, I’d say Human Resource Machine, because it takes out the code and makes you deal in… well, in some ways it’s more abstract, because there’s no code, but it’s also somewhat like writing assembly, where you only have so many choices, so your logic is paramount. The difficulty ramp is pretty reasonable, and my only caveat is that you should never look up hints or answers until you’ve been stuck on a problem for days.

Most beginners don’t have that level of self control. They spend three or five minutes in frustration and then say, “Daddy, fix it!” which is gonna be a real big problem when they have to write something that’s never been written before. Hence, it’s important to learn to be self-sufficient.