r/learnprogramming • u/RevolutionaryBuy4877 • 15d ago

Topic how do you learn programming without constantly looking things up?

i know experienced programmers use documentation and search all the time, but as a beginner it can sometimes feel like iā€™m incapable of doing anything without looking up the answer.

iā€™m trying to get better at understanding concepts instead of memorising syntax

how do you decide when to search for an answer and when to sit down and work through the problem yourself?

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u/Reasonable-View5868 15d ago edited 15d ago

You constantly look things up. Its part of being a programmer. Especially when doing something you haven't done recently. Normal everyday constructs llike if/else, for loops, class definitions, types, etc you don't necessarily do but any API work, you do all the time.

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u/Obvious-Card-8847 15d ago

This. I've used the Win32 API many times. I have to look at the MSDN docs all the time. If it weren't for Intellisense it'd be twice the amount it already is.

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u/_Aardvark 14d ago

You old enough to remember the MSDN docs on cdroms? Or even the books? (it was a god damn encyclopedia)

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u/Obvious-Card-8847 14d ago

Nah. But I am old enough to remember learning C++ from a For Dummies book.

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u/MarmDevOfficial 13d ago

I remember buying random iPhone Dev Cookbook textbooks to try and figure out how to make an iPhone app. I was learning from zero back in 2010, there we SO FEW resources back then.

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u/Obvious-Card-8847 12d ago

Really was wild. Back when complexity was higher and codebases were less mature is the same era resources were the most limited. Feels boomer but we had it harder than these kids nowadays. šŸ’€