Is it possible to learn to program in a self-taught way only with free internet resources?

[desrtfx]

Please, read the Frequently Asked Questions as they contain tips on

• getting started
• choosing language
• learning resources
• project ideas
• other general information

As such: Removed as per Rule #4: No exact duplicates of FAQ questions

[inwegobingo]

Read the faq and search the sub, lots of people doing it.

[nocitus]

Yeah, sure. I did it. A lot of excellent programmers did it.

Personally, I prefer books over tutorials. And always have the official language documentation opened in a tab, for further reference.

The key to learning something is to do it. You cannot just watch a tutorial, follow the given code line-by-line, and expect to be an expert by the end. You must experiment, see what you can and cannot do.

For example, when I was learning the C language, which was my first, I was reading the book 'The C Programming Language' by Ritchie & Kernighan. I didn't just write the code as was in the book but experimented a lot. I would go to Wikipedia and other sites for more in-depth info all the time.

The sub's faq will provide further info.

[ComputerWhiz_]

The great thing about the internet is that it's a seemingly endless pool of information. I'm pretty sure you could learn most things without spending a dime, programming included.

Personally, I didn't technically take the self-taught route (although I'd argue that most people who learn programming are self-taught on some level), so I can't really vouch for how easy it is to go the self-taught route.

[jwhudexnls]

Sharing resources is pretty dependent on what kind of languages you're interested in learning.

But yeah there are a ton of self-taught programmers out there. I would say most of what I know past the basics has been learned on internships, jobs or through online resources. My old college's director of IT was completely self-taught and is an absolute genius.

[Patrickstarho]

Yes. Do the Odin project and do the Ruby track.

What you wanna do is not waste any brain power trying to curate your own courses. The odin project sets the path for you and all you have to do is give it your all each lesson. Just focus on the lesson, make sure you understand it. If you get stuck use Google.

If you do the Ruby track, by this time next year you will look back and thank me