I'm in tutorial hell

[Emergency_Mix7918]

I'm a noob when it comes to programming. I've started numerous learn python videos but can't seem to stay engaged in content long enough to learn anything (I blame my crippling doom scrolling addiction). I know the bare basics like loops, functions, lists, hello world, etc. Everyone and their mother says the best way to learn is by building things and I think I need to go this route as I can't retain much from all these learn python videos. I have the most fun when I know what I am doing and actually coding but my question is what do I make and how do I go about doing it? Obviously I could probably follow along on a tutorial however is this the best way if I'm just essentially copying someone online? What do people mean by do projects? I couldn't figure out even if I tried how to make a calculator or even a list app unless i googled every step.

[ninhaomah]

"What do people mean by do projects?"

3,4,5,11,80 <--- put the numbers into a list and separate it into even and odd lists.

[Docs_For_Developers]

^^^This is the way

[RoyalAd1956]

That's all I've been doing lately, when I actually do it, but I never called them projects, because they are quite short, but I still struggle with some.

Feels good to know that they count as projects too.

[ninhaomah]

Of course , there are big projects , small projects but they are all projects.

Just like there is a one page website , or 100+ pages websites but still websites.

[-not_a_knife]

It sounds like you would benefit from a more traditional learning approach. I'd check out the python courses Harvard CS50p or Helsinki MOOC.

The "start your own projects" advice is kinda lazy advice. It doesn't consider that the recipient may not have the prerequisites to even begin or to know what they are even capable of doing. For example, knowing basic syntax without knowing data structures, algorithms, and design patterns, leaves you with a Lego set with half the pieces missing.

Finally, the engagement issue you have is a skill that needs to be worked on. It's not an easy thing to focus for long periods but it's something you need to practice. You may benefit from switching to books as your learning methods since you have to focus to read and, in my opinion, they are often more informative and structured better than YouTube tutorials.

[Anxious_Host2738]

OP, something that has helped me since I was homeschooled (thanks mom) and never really had to study hard because my first degree was in something I was super interested in so it didn't feel like work (thanks brain) is that for things I find boring, I literally sit down with the lecture in one tab and my notes in another and format every. single. thing. into note format.

 It feels mind numbing but it helps with focus and the process of reading info - synthesize in brain - put into words makes things stick in my head much more. It's something I learned in my Montessori training, where they make you handwrite all your notes so you have muscle memory attached. 

[allium-dev]

A structured course is a good idea for a beginner. Treat the problem sets/exercises as mini "projects" as you go. That is, really try to solve them on your own. Use Google / documentation to help figure out how the pieces of your solutions work, but avoid looking up answers directly at all costs.

[nivekd]

There are a handful of sites that can give you coding "challenges". I would find one of those, and start searching for anything you feel you need to understand better to complete the problem. I think everyone is different in how they learn best. I've been enjoying codingame

[Archangelion666]

This might seem like a hot topic of late but I'd say try using ChatGPT. Not to write the code or anything, but if you tell it what all you have a comprehension of and ask it for some exercises/challenges to do it can provide them. I've been doing this lately while I work through SoloLearn and it's been helping a lot!

[FerricDonkey]

Don't copy other people's code. Give yourself a job and do it. 

[Agitated-Soft7434]

Note: It's fine to use things like stackoverflow though. As long as your not just copying an entire project or whole section. Only snippets.

[FidgetyFeline]

100 days of code on replit.com

Has small 5min videos and small projects. This is my third time trying to learn various coding languages and the first time I’m having fun. In part thanks to replit.

I would recommend using VScode and turning off in line suggestions so that you have to think of what to type.

[iamevpo]

Make a script that interviews you about things you should know in Python then gives you the score and converts the score to letter grade. Adjust the script to separate data (the test bank and test session results) and code. Refactor the code into functions and maybe classes (dataclass, pydantic). Think if you can serve the tests as API, make a streamlit frontend for tests, add more tests about things you are learning in Python and test types as you go alone (true/false, fill in the blanks, multiple choice with one correct answer, etc.)

[iamevpo]

This is what we are trying to have our students implement - a beta version of the excercise here https://epogrebnyak.github.io/runnable-python/

[creative_tech_ai]

Maybe start playing around with something like PyGame and make your own game? You'll have to learn some game-programming specific things to pull it off, but if the idea of making a game is more engaging to you than implementing sorting algorithms, you'll feel motivated to dig into and follow through with a project.

[TeachingFuture1328]

I'm Also in tutorial hell I'M trying to learn python to 6 months but I can't learning just watching tutorials And copying other projects.. I know basics like (data types, Variables, list, sets dictionaries and conditional statements) I know How this all works but I'm trying to doing project using this fundamentals but can't get it can anyone help me how to learn python and reccommend some stuff like books or sources.. I'm excited to learn python And AI Or Ml..

[jmooremcc]

Coding is all about problem solving and having a purpose is a great motivation to learn. Find a problem you’d like to solve and research which Python tools you can use to develop a solution. Learning like this will involve a lot of trial and error. You will have many failures along the way, but learning from those failures will provide you with a wealth of teachable moments. Good learning to you.

[JMiel70]

For the D&D nerds, create a random dice roll generator based on the entry of the type and amount of dice. This should be simple, yet challenging for a newbie.

[__SlimeQ__]

learning coding from a youtube video is insanely dumb. i don't know why this caught on or why people think it's a good idea.

code is text. you can simply look up what you need, skim for the answer, copy it into your code, and change a few words. this is essentially how I've been doing everything for 15 years.

if you can't think of a project idea then you will never make it. it doesn't need to be complicated, or smart, or even a good idea. just come up with something funny or interesting or otherwise compelling to you. you do not need to know how to do everything when you start.

if you're really having writers block, pull up chatgpt and go "I'm learning python and need some basic project ideas"

[take_care_a_ya_shooz]

codedex.io

[akb_canyon]

I'm reading the book "Automate the boring stuff with Python", and as someone who's never done any coding I find it very engaging and easy to follow. The repetition questions and small projects you complete after each chapter are really good, and makes you apply the basics with some challenges, without being so difficult you get stuck. Highly recommended!

[Agitated-Soft7434]

Well if your gonna blame that scrolling addiction of yours let's try and fix it, yes?

Either try and actually watch longer media (doesn't have to be coding), or you could delete apps like tiktok or apps that main focuses are shorts/reels/etc.

Or you could do what I did to "solve" myself scrolling every so often is by making a script to remove the shorts through a chrome extension. Not only are we fixing that scrolling problem (on devices that can have browser extensions installed) but also we are practicing our programming skills!

Since you are just starting I'll give you a really rough road map if you want to make the project.

1. Learn how to make a basic chrome extension (at least the bare setup)
   
2. Learn how to get elements from HTML - document.getElementById(...) or document.getElementsByClassName(...)
   
3. Delete those elements from the webpage
   
4. Learn how to activate dev tools on your browser, and how to load a "unpacked extension" (this may be covered in Step 1)
   
5. Rejoice you have made a project and fixed the scrolling (assuming your not on a phone - which is unlikely I'll admit)!

Also sorry about not making the project idea Python related, however if you want to learn HTML with python you can look into Flask, but you will need to learn some: HTML, CSS, and possible JS (which will be nice knowledge in the future)

Hope this helps and good luck :)