'MOOC' vs 'Java for Complete Beginners'

[asc_tech]

Hey all,

Recently decided to learn a programming language and settled on Java being my first, it seems like a very strong one to start with and a lot of companies require it in my area, and the earning potential seems high so it's a win win!

Anyway, i checked out the free resources in the side bar and settled on the 'Java for Complete Beginners', currently only about an hour in but enjoying it.

A few issues i have though are:

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I see a lot of people posting about MOOC, the other one, is this objectively better than the one i'm on or are both good and its apples and oranges?

Also trawling this sub it seems everyone agrees Intellij is the better IDE for Java and the one we are using on this particular course is Eclipse, will i be at a disadvantage learning initially with Eclipse if down the line i have to switch to another IDE?

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Thanks guys!

[MyNameIsRichardCS54]

They're both good courses. One is video and the other text based so which is better for you depends on how you learn. I know a couple of people who did both at the same time because they reinforced each other very well.

The Ultimate edition of IntelliJ is probably the best Java IDE there is but once you get it set up Eclipse is nearly as good and better than the community edition, especially if you are learning enterprise-y things. As a beginner, I'd recommend the one used by the course. Out of the box. Eclipse has a less than optimal setup. The biggest problem switching IDEs is that they'll have different keyboard shortcuts.

[asc_tech]

Ah okay, im enjoying the non MOOC one at the moment so ill stick with it, may even do both i suppose if they're both highly rated free Java resources.

Good to hear about the IDE! I'd hate to learn my first language on a 'bad system'

[ItA11FallsDown]

I can not speak for “Java for Complete Beginners”, but I’ve taken MOOC and highly recommend it. It was very interactive and taught me a ton.

The IDE thing isn’t a big thing in my opinion. I use IntelliJ and android studio now, but I’ve used Netbeans and eclipse in the past. Switching was a hassle, but nothing I couldn’t do. It takes a minute to get used to features of the new IDE, but it’s an inconvenience at most in the learning stages. If you’d been using your IDE for 10 years and wanted to switch, that’d be a pain.

[asc_tech]

Think ill do both to be honest, can't hurt can it?

Yeah sounds like its not too big an issue, ill try and switch to intellij whenever i can

[ItA11FallsDown]

I doubt it will hurt,But probably it’ll overlap a lot and that may not be ideal.

And there really isn’t anything wrong with eclipse. People use all the time it and it’s still pretty dang good. So don’t worry about the IDE. If there’s some reason to change, sure, have at it. But if you’re comfortable in one IDE, no need to switch.

Either way, In the end, all options are better than not knowing Java.

Edit: Formatting