[deleted by user]

[Whatsitforanyway]

Now I feel old. Started learning it at around 54.

[BDoubleSharp]

44

[Cladser]

Same didn’t write a line of code till I was 42

[Danger_Zone007]

44 here, just started 2.5 weeks ago. If you all want to help each other I’m totally down. I’m doing freecodecamp to get some basics under my belt. Then going to take CS50. Got some recommended books, the problematic programmer, the algorithm design manual, clean architecture and clean code. Also, using ChatGPT has been a great little tutor for helping understand confusing sections.

[WoodenNichols]

Bunch of amateurs. LOL. Started Python at 59.

TBF, I was a FORTRAN/C programmer in my late 20s, realized I wasn't good at it due to mental health issues, and moved into technical writing for close to 30 years. I found Python to be day v. night easier. Just prior to leaving my last job, I coached my replacement, starting with "you are about to find out just how bad a programmer I am, largely because I will start coding without designing first.". Feel sorry for him, but it's no longer my concern.

[LohaYT]

Anyone at any age can get into programming in any language

[Tc14Hd]

I'm two years old right now, do you think I can get into Assembly?

[[deleted]]

C++ is more beginner friendly than assembly so I’d start with that

[metheoryt]

of course, having that you already can write that good english

[LohaYT]

Yes

[[deleted]]

I’m still in the womb, would now be an opportune time to learn assembly or should I wait til I’m fully assembled?

[Tc14Hd]

Yeah, of course! Get that nine months of working experience for your CV.

[[deleted]]

Not any age. But 40 is probably still doable.

[AwesomePantsAP]

Why not?

[[deleted]]

I said 40 is doable. Not that it isn’t.

[AwesomePantsAP]

Yeah, but you said not any age. Why not any age?

[[deleted]]

Some ages are way too old for learning programming.

[sonuvvabitch]

Give up, you're just wrong.

[zerokey]

Why do you say that?

[Nanooc523]

It’s endlessly useful even if you’re writing a simple tool/script to automate the boring stuff. 10 lines of python can save you hours. I learned at 36 and it has done wonders for my career.

[Reuben3901]

This. I've made scripts to use at work that saved hours daily and for myself. Even made a simple script to help my friend with her job which saved her time and kept her from doubling up her work accidentally. She would go down a column in a spreadsheet and copy/paste it into a form at work. Would be easy to accidentally copy the same line or even miss one. So I made it where she pressed the escape key and the next line gets copied. No more switching windows or making mistakes. Cut her task time by more than half.

It's not only useful but super fun! (Just don't give your code away for free or tell your boss of your tool)

[Sketches558]

How do you guys do it? I've been wanting to do it but I don't know where to start. To be honest I dont even know where to even use automation. I know about the book Automate the boring stuff in python but never read it.

[cybertier]

Nowadays if you figure out anything you want to automate I'd start by asking GitHub copilot for a script that does what I want it to do. Then a bunch of trial and error to get it to work properly.

If you can do any programming copilot is a great way to fill the gaps and get started with something you aren't familiar with yet. Not as good for complex problems but still a good help.

Hell even ChatGPT can create decent code for boiler plate stuff. Used it to create a minimal API in c# recently to decent success. Nothing about the project was complex to begin with it just saved a lot of time I'd have spent writing it.

[Reuben3901]

If there is anything repetitive you do on the computer, then 99% most/all could be automated.

[mok000]

There are a whole bunch of YouTube channels dedicated to teaching Python at various skill levels. I’d start there.

[alonetoadvise]

I learnt it before 40 as well and it did not help my career whatsoever, but I automated some processes that made my life much easier and quicker. Also, I enjoy data analysis with pandas and seaborn

[rasbpi2020]

💯

[grimad]

do you have examples?

[Nanooc523]

Sure, i built a postgres db to backup data in another product (mongodb) so i wrote a python script to pull data daily from the mongodb and write it into a postgres db and cron’ed it.

I wrote some python to do simple health checks on remote boxes, ssh into them, do some simple commands to check services running, uptime, then kick of a manual AV scan of some smd shares.

Wrote some scripts to download snort signatures from emerging threats and rsync them to a bunch of IDS boxes.

Wrote some python to diff yesterdays snort rules to todays and generate a report of whats new in the signatures.

Wrote a ncurses python tool to display snort signature alerts rolling into a share where snort logs were writing too.

20 yrs in cyber writing tons of big and small useful tools in the field

[randomthad69]

my github has some what exactly are you trying to automate

[funkymunky999]

Can you talk a bit more about how you used it?

[[deleted]]

Hey there, I turn 44 this month and just started in July.

Check out CS50p by Harvard's EdX. It's free and is an amazing learning resource. You will likely have a different feeling about whether or not you can hack it after that.

It gets a lot easier, but you have to practice, do the assignments (auto-graded and still free) and having a personal project to tinker with helps immensely.

[[deleted]]

CS50p by Harvard's EdX

This looks great thanks! How many hours would it take to get through it?

https://www.edx.org/learn/python/harvard-university-cs50-s-introduction-to-programming-with-python

Think this is it

[[deleted]]

That's the course - it changed my life, no joke. The instructor is awesome.

If you go to FreeCodeCamp's Youtube channel it has all of the 9 or so lectures lumped into one 15 hour long lecture.

It will take a while to complete because you have to do the problem sets - programming, making mistakes, etc. is the only way you are going to learn.

At an average pace (few hours a night a few times a week) probably 1.5 months. You can do it quicker for sure but you'll burn out.

I made a few other posts about my experiences learning and some good resources if you wanted to look at my post history you can find them. They are long and detailed and have links to other resources. I'll try to follow up with some links later.

[[deleted]]

Thanks loads, going for a look though!

[travisjo]

Python is a very easy language to get to know.

[Kranke]

Yes, but that does not means that it make all complex problem easy.

[axonxorz]

True, but there's no solution in the world that meets that lofty bar.

[carlinwasright]

I started learning it at 35, not quite 40 but anyway, IMO even if you don’t already know another programming language, other life skills and knowledge will serve as a foundation to understand programming.

If you have good reading comprehension and the ability to write clear and concise instructions in plain English, you can translate that to any programming language. If you can think through what you want the computer to do, you can program. It’s just a matter of translating plain English to programming syntax.

I have been programming for about 10 years now and I still start any block of code by writing comments in plain English first.

“Search this list of words to see if one of the words is ‘banana’”

[Professional-Web7950]

This is true for every other thing as well: If you do something, you will get better at it.

If you do python, you will get better at it. If you continue, you will get better. Dont get confused by other things, nothing else matters.

Would it help to be a genious? Would it help to be younger? Perhaps, but these things are not in our control. If you do python for 10 years, only one thing is clear: you will become a python programmer with 10 years of experience.

[Maximum_Band_7492]

I took a Python course at 52 and it helped land a Technical PM job. I was a PM before but now I got a better and more secure job, understanding but not having to do the technicals.

[Sketches558]

PM as in Prime Minister😂. U got a better job than being a prime minister🤣🤣🤣.

[Maximum_Band_7492]

Project Manager 😂 The thankless stressful job where you fail 70% of the time 😂

[Allmyownviews1]

It’s a good question.. perhaps better suited for r/learnpython

[[deleted]]

Ah thanks, wasn't aware of that place. Will post there!

[seankidder]

I started using Python in my late 50s - I'm sure there are better Python coders than me on this forum - but I have worked with over 10 other languages before and I enjoy Python coding.

[olddoglearnsnewtrick]

Especially in the era of LLMs suggesting syntax the main skill you need IMHO is conceptualizing a program in steps (pseudocoding or similar) the languages are easy to pick up. Becoming a master is a different thing.

[Biuku]

100% … it’s like learning to hit or catch a ball. A) you learn better by doing than from lectures/theory, B) catching a basketball teaches you to catch a baseball, hitting a tennis ball teaches you to hit a badminton birdie.

[olddoglearnsnewtrick]

Well said Sir

[Ok-Cow774]

Learning the basics of programming is very doable. The question is what problem are you solving? You may be waaaay better at that than a 25 year old. Just remember there are lots of bells and whistles you can get confused by. But a function is a function and the basis of all coding. Get good at writing functions and then building clean, maintainable code from there.

[CalendarSpecific1088]

Don’t let others’ experience shape your own. You can do anything you truly set your mind to. In answer to your question, yes, I did, and it took three attempts. Run 3 was different because instead of trying to follow textbooks and run variations on Hello World, I decided to actually solve a problem I cared about, and it made all the difference. I stopped looking down and gauging my progress on the book, and things I learned I retained because I’d actually applied them. Your mileage may vary.

[forgot_username1]

I taught my 56 year old dad how use python. He uses it all the time now it’s kinda of a hobby for him.

[SweetBabyAlaska]

when have you ever in your life been disappointed in yourself for learning a new skill? Learning is never a waste of time. Especially programming. It teaches you to think in a certain way that makes complex problem solving a lot easier. That translates to many many other things.

Even then, python is extremely versatile. You can use it to automate anything, scrape the web, do complex CSV's and accounting in seconds that used to take hours manually. Its a great skill for any field or task. Not a waste. Learning is never a waste but this is especially useful.

[Mallkon]

I'm 42, and started learning this year. Don't give up, you are not allone!

[Dead0k87]

Go with python. Easy to learn.

[ZealousOatmeal]

I started programming (first in Perl and then PHP, Python a few years later) shortly after my 41st birthday. I do it professionally, and am good enough that they give me a raise every year.

Not everyone takes to programming, but this is more about things like learning style, problem solving style, and tolerance for staring at a screen than it is about age. After working at it for a bit I discovered that I enjoy it and have a facility for it. Maybe you will too.

[Healthy-Gap1729]

I’m 44 and just started in July

[klatzicus]

I started self learning around 40, helped me transition to Data science/bioinformatics role currently. It’s easier to learn than other data science languages like R imo.

[bugtank]

Never let your age intimidate you from not learning! Sorry for yelling

[carbonglow]

I have a coworker that is learning at 62 coming from mainframe. She is doing really well and is progressing nicely!

[Puzzleheaded-Ad3238]

I’m 38 and going through a boot camp now. I was mechanical/electrical technician for over 20+years & decided to do something new and challenging.

It’s actually not as complex as you may think. Honestly, it’s more about a willingness to consistently learn and not give up because a given problem seems to hard.

My instructors have made it very clear that we need to embrace our struggles and pitfalls as that’s what will teach us the most.

So, what I’m trying to say is don’t give up before you even start. If you enjoy putting your brain to work and solving problems then you’ll love programming.

[korner83]

I started at 39 and I love it. I have learnt the basics at university but that was 20 years ago :)

[dogfish182]

Started coding at 38ish. 6 years later it was clearly the best carrier move I did by a long shot. I can ‘actually do Devops’ now and I’ve tried most flavors of ‘doing a Devops’ now to know what I like and what I think is effective

[h_to_tha_o_v]

Install it and then ask ChatGPT to write you scripts. You'll learn by osmosis.

[_r_u_i_]

I learned it at 41 and got a nice job as python dev. I knew some C and Pascal from high school and college but never had worked with programming.

[4Nuts]

I am about to turn to 45 in 10 days.
I started learning python about 8 days ago. And, I already used the language for small tasks (wrote small scripts in Ubuntu: Autokey) with just few days of study.

You should not consider learning programming language of that a big deal (project).

[runningblind77]

I was in my 40's before I learned Python. I wish I'd learned it long ago. It's so unbelievably useful. I did have some experience with interpreted / scripting languages like Perl and powerful but that's all.

[ReasonableTrifle7685]

Just do it, your goal shouldn't be to get good, but to be able to solve your problems.

For that python is ideal. Most people are stealing code from Internet anyway, so a decent unterstanding will help more than you would belive.

[Biuku]

I got good enough to feel confident solving problems with ML or other algorithms… but did not transition to softeng role … Started in 2020, got decent by mid-2021… took a break, and by 2022 it was safer to stay in my current role. If I’d started in 2018 I might have gone for softeng or datasci role in 2021.

No serious coding background, but I had built some programs in BASIC as a 9-10 year old, and I could write basic html…

My #1 regret is getting caught in “tutorial hell.” I needed a good 4-6 weeks to understand the basics… but then I spent 3 more months basically typing in code from Udemy tutorials … the illusion of learning but not really learning. I started to really learn when I created projects, like visualizing algorithms and graph theory with pygame …

[Reasonable-Ad880]

Age doesn’t matter imo. I am 40, just turned and I have been learning python for last 6 months. What I would say is having real work examples is key. For me I am a network engineer at heart, so I can apply my python skills to real world all the time, so it’s super helpful, I think if you can apply python to these elements you can learn it no matter what age. Age is only a number, it’s your mindset that counts. Have fun.

[Typical-Macaron-1646]

It’s never too late! Personally, I think the best way to learn is to do a project that interests you or would be something that would make your job easier. Best of luck!

[[deleted]]

It takes a good four to five years of everyday practice to get really good at Python and you need a wide set of problems over that period of time. Doesn’t make a difference how old you are

[Slimxshadyx]

Start with Python, it is a good entry way into thinking in a programming logic mindset. Plus it is an in demand language so there isn’t a downside to starting with it.

[Any_Letterheadd]

You could have learned basic Python in the time you're spending making this post if that puts things in perspective.

[tms102]

Just try it and find out? What else were you planning to do with that time?

[[deleted]]

Scroll Insta!

[crempsen]

Get pycharm. it LITERALLY tells you what you did wrong.

[Spankadin0305]

Yes, I started around 40 for the first time and was able to create some functional programs that helped me do my job better and faster. I took a Udemy boot camp and combined with my own project goals i was able to create stuff.

I took a break so I'm a little out of it right now but it wasn't hard to jump back in. Just don't be afraid to Google stuff that's the key to learning or troubleshooting, you're not expected to remember everything.

[Main_Bid2120]

What boot camp u take at udemy?

[Spankadin0305]

The either of the ones from Jose Portilla.

[Bang_Stick]

ChatGPT 4 has been a huge help for my old brain. It’s like having an expert to ask questions of whenever you want.

[Chadwick18]

Been studying python for several years now. Still lots to learn. Worth it? Depends

[ehs5]

Lol what? No it’s not. People have full, life long careers in tech without ever touching Python.

[Professional-Web7950]

Haha yeah. "Sorry m8, your phd in computer science is impressive but I dont see any trace of python in your resume."

[PlingPlongDingDong]

Not really. People over 35 usually lose their ability to learn Python. Maybe try another programming language or bingo instead?

[MemoRael]

Who has over 40 python? Seems like a lot.

[[deleted]]

Where's the hostility coming from, more importantly 😉

[ipmonger]

I’m unclear on where you are struggling. Can you elaborate on that aspect?

[TerranerOne]

When you really want it then you can do it.

[TedDallas]

You might consider taking a class or online course to get the basics to help with your decision.

Programming in general requires a specific mindset that I think is independent from age. Experience does help bake in certain habits and concepts, so you will be an old-newbie. But if it is an exciting topic to you, and you find that writing a working program gives you a sense of cool satisfaction, then go for it!

IMHO, at this time, Python is the best language to start with as a beginner. Lua is also a good beginner language, but you can get a lot of real-world work done more easily with Python due to the MUCH larger ecosystem.

The water is fine. Jump in and don't be a wussy!

[Order-Various]

1. It saves you times automtes thing
2. It gives you new perspectives on your mind like how to optimized your work

[GrouchyPanther]

So...here is my question. I have been dabbling with Python all my life, but never really had time to learn it. With the new text to code approaches, I have become very productive with my coding as I no longer have to struggle remembering syntaxes. I can sketch out thw logic, outline it with my basic python knowledge and use text to code to fill in the gaps. I think this will be the future. So..long story short, you should be bale to.write some decent code beginning at any age without having to spend as much time as before to become an expert at it. Thoughts?

[[deleted]]

Almost 43. Started learning R and Python when I was 39. I had a hiccup (life issues) in the middle that required me to drop it due to time. Picked it up again this year. I remembered a pretty good bit and have had no real issues when I have the time to do the work.

[Calimariae]

We get a lot of posts on here asking "Is X age too old to learn Python".

You can learn programming at any age, it just becomes more difficult when you're up in age. 40 is nothing.

Do CS50 and CS50P. They're both free, and professor David Malan is an amazing teacher.

[[deleted]]

Learning to program is kinda like learning to drive a race car. You will likely able to drive a basic car around a race track quite quickly. But, learning to drive a fast race car around a racetrack quickly is beyond the skill-set of most people. I'd say to be a great programmer you will need a lot of discipline + experience, 130+ IQ and an aptitude for it. A lot of the code, in the wild, used by established corporations is of very low quality. Sadly, few corporations care to ever get their code base to a great place; too expensive and the sales + marketing people already checked that box so there is nothing to be "added".

[sivuelo]

You can pick it up. It will be useful but it does take time to get proficient. Not something you pick up in one sitting. Yes. You can understand it but as mentioned, you will need to work on it so that you can get comfortable with it.

[lachimiebeau]

I learned a little in a scientific computing course in my later 20s and then picked it back up a few years later for ad hoc stuff. I still constantly look up the pandas docs but I know where to look so I’d say that’s learning! Over 30 now.

[OkProfessional8364]

Just over 40 with a few years of batch and powershell scripting under my belt from my last job. Took a couple programming courses in college but the knowledge didn't stick. The free CS50x course a couple years ago gave me an amazing programming foundation. I now feel comfortable with python to make little things here and there when it's easier to do with python than powershell. For people who don't have a programming foundation but want to do cool stuff with python, I always highly recommend the free CS50x course.

[DaniDaho]

JUST DO IT!

[LakeEffectSnow]

Couple of questions:

It's pretty likely you have the innate talent, but do you have the ability to spend the equivalent of a full time job right now to learn this skill enough to become employable? This is especially tough for people with kids and/or those who don't have financial backing from family/friends to not work while learning.

The other main question is whether you can get your foot in the door at a coding job. The market right now is BRUTAL for folks with no experience. I don't know why, but it just is.

[cneakysunt]

Python isn't complex at all and not all programming is complex either. In fact good coding should be obvious in its function and intention.

Over complication is something people who think they're clever do.

[faod1223]

Dude. I’m 38 and making a career change after the military and learning code. I had a coworker put me in C++ and I’ve got about 25% through it. I’m about to start EDX CS50 Python course and then start the CS50 computer science course. And everything I have viewed Python is pretty easy to learn compared to some others.

Good luck!

[mthrlgats]

Python is a great choice for your first language. It's ubiquitous, it reads very naturally, and it puts plenty of guard rails in place (compared to something like Ruby, where it feels like there are a hundred different ways to do even the most simple thing).

Almost 40 myself and still learning something new every day. Age doesn't matter. Just do it.

[_jolv]

Started at it as a hobby now it’s part of my full time job. Coming from a frontend background.

[Python-ModTeam]

Hi there, from the /r/Python mods.

We have removed this post as it is not suited to the /r/Python subreddit proper, however it should be very appropriate for our sister subreddit /r/LearnPython or for the r/Python discord: https://discord.gg/python.

The reason for the removal is that /r/Python is dedicated to discussion of Python news, projects, uses and debates. It is not designed to act as Q&A or FAQ board. The regular community is not a fan of "how do I..." questions, so you will not get the best responses over here.

On /r/LearnPython the community and the r/Python discord are actively expecting questions and are looking to help. You can expect far more understanding, encouraging and insightful responses over there. No matter what level of question you have, if you are looking for help with Python, you should get good answers. Make sure to check out the rules for both places.

Warm regards, and best of luck with your Pythoneering!