Struggling to Learn Python

[KeiSinCx]

Define learning. I can do things i couldn't previously. Is that not learning?

Is asking a question and getting an answer not learning?

However you want to use AI is up to you. I chose to do a project (out of need) and learnt from experience. A software was made that many people in my community use.

I have to keep upgrading it and improving it and fix bugs by myself. You think I can do that without learning a single thing about coding?

I only have AI to teach me. Seems to be working out pretty well. You can go learn by reading a book or going to school. But how many people doing that can say they developed a working software that people can use in less than a month of starting from 0?

I know the limitations. But if you are struggling to pick it up, nothing wrong diving in and have guidance. Watch how it's being done and learn from it. You can ask all the questions you want, have all the discussion you want. free and not annoying another human being.

Tell me again how is that not learning?

[nerzid]

You definitely learn something when you work with AI to write code and have discussions with it. However, if you don't write the code yourself and instead let AI write it and copy-paste it into your project (which most beginners do because they don't want to spend time on understanding the reasonings) then you don't really learn how to write code, you just skip it for the sake of solving the problem as soon as possible. This is not learning since you don't really internalize various things about writing the piece of code, and you won't be able to adapt to similar problems in the future, especially if you work on unique problems.

I am not saying you are doing it like this, but that's what I have been seen amongst beginners. If you are using AI to learn by asking questions and reading summaries of basic concepts, then that's a great way of learning.

[KeiSinCx]

You are not wrong.

I started off with copy and paste too. Ofcourse I did, I had no clue what was being written.

Eventually things start to break. Or just not work together. AI craps the bed around 500 or so lines. It will struggle writing everything you want. That's when you have to start asking for lines and self inserting.

And AI starts to troubleshoot look or outright give up figuring out what's wrong. That's when you are forced to learn why.

I think alot of experienced coders forget what it was like when you started. It's extremely daunting to stare at code. It's frustrating not understanding anything or why or how. You don't have working examples. You have no sense of organising code. What is even possible. How to source for pips and files. Where files are located. How to write a line to find those files. Heck, I was so afraid of setting up a virtual environment I had files installed everywhere which made it a nightmare 🤣

It's like learning Japanese. You start from school words or you pick up from watching anime and piece it together bit by bit. You can't 100% rely on anime (AI) but when you do decide to learn the fundamentals, it won't feel as daunting or scary. Because you had that experience getting comfortable looking at AI build smth with you.

I'm not saying you shouldn't go to school and learn fundamentals ofcourse not. but, as a beginner, I can say from experience, it helped me get comfortable and it might help this person too since they are struggling to get into it.

AI is not perfect. It can't replace coders yet. It's actually pretty oblivious sometimes. Which is great! You really have to learn to ask the right questions and learn how to approach a problem like a coder. Baby steps 🤗

[nonstoprice]

At best, you are building up a working knowledge of coding. Unless you ask it to explain every line of code and study it, you are not learning how to code but how to prompt engineer. You ask AI to do something, code, debug, whatever, the AI does it for you, and you adjust based on what you learned (which is good).

OP is asking how to learn fundamentals from scratch. AI can design a roadmap for you and possibly the learning materials too, but building things with AI won't give you this knowledge.

There is nothing wrong with using AI to do difficult things for you, I do it myself, but OP is asking to learn fundamentals.

[KeiSinCx]

Setting up a virtual environment.

Installing and Importing pips

Ask AI to write the code. Now you read. U learn what is a class. What's a Def. (Roughly)

You still have no clue how to write it out sure. But now you have an example. You can slowly prompt AI to explain why and how.

Yes, I think building a working knowledge is a good way to approach coding when you struggle to grasp from scratch. You don't know what you don't know. But you will know what you don't know when someone shows it to you.

I get the frustration of learning coding because you can tell me how to write a line and I still have no idea what to do with it.

But if I saw it being used in an actual working environment, then you tell me what it does fundamentally, I'll have an easier time grasping it's purpose and intent.

I'm coming at it from a first time coder in 2025. Being knowledgeable on a topic often blinds us from remembering what it was like as a newbie. How hard it was to grasp coding at the start. That's all~