But, to get to the point where you can develop impressive things, whether for personal projects or for clients, coders must overcome one of the most difficult challenges: getting through the learning phase. Thankfully, there are many ways to make the process more fun and rewarding, and this article will outline how beginner coders can expand their skills and knowledge through free coding games and challenges.

What Are Coding Games and Challenges?

As the name suggests, coding games and challenges are activities that require coding as part of the process. The types of games and challenges can vary. Still, they will generally have a mutual goal of pushing the learner to create something capable of performing a specific function or set of functions without writing too much code.

These games and challenges will typically start with a tutorial that guides the player through writing some code, then lets them try on their own by repeating a similar task that requires slightly different coding. As the game progresses, the difficulty level increases and more code must be written to progress or win the challenge.

What Are the Benefits of Coding Games and Challenges?

While it may sound like fun and games (pun intended), playing coding offers dozens of benefits, from improving problem-solving skills to developing patience and taking on difficult tasks. Here are a few of the most mention-worthy benefits of playing these games and conquering these challenges:

Encourages Creativity

Besides the obvious, one of the benefits of coding games is that they require lots of creativity since there is not always one right answer. In many cases, it’s up to the player to decide how they want to write their code and the result they want to achieve. This means that the coder could need to choose between a series of code types, languages, structures, and more to come up with the best solution.

Improves Problem-Solving Skills

Problem-solving skills are important in every aspect of life, which means that even if a coder tries coding games and chooses not to pursue coding as a career, they can still benefit from the skills acquired by playing these games. Because so many obstacles appear during the coding process, coders need to be able to decide on the fly about the best way to proceed, and this is exactly what coding games make you do.

Opportunity to Try New Things

Sometimes, when we are pursuing a goal, we get tunnel vision and only aim for that goal. While this can be beneficial in some cases, trying new languages and coding techniques in the world of coding can lead to faster and better results. Simply put, by venturing outside your comfort zone, you could find strategies to help overcome a problem you are facing with an ongoing project. This is why coding games and challenges can be so beneficial since they get coders to experiment outside of what they are used to seeing and doing.

Develops Patience

One thing you need to succeed as a coder is patience, and a lot of it. Things can be going so smoothly until you hit a huge wall and can’t seem to go any further. Unfortunately, this is simply part of coding, and combining problem-solving skills and patience makes overcoming these progress interruptions much easier. Therefore, playing coding games and challenges can help you work on patience and develop this skill set.

Builds an Impressive Resume

Last but not least, having completed various coding challenges can be seen as an asset when it comes to applying for jobs. Many coding games and courses will give you a certificate upon completion, which you can use to support your application. With the increase in demand for coders, employers are always looking for people who can show strong coding skills, and certificates from coding challenges or games can help you stand out from the crowd.

What Kind of Coding Games Exist?

When it comes to coding games, there are many kinds out there, so it is easy to find one that appeals to you, no matter your learning style. Some of the most common include:

• Coding quizzes or challenges: These games usually involve completing coding questions or challenges against the clock.
• Strategy games: These are like strategy computer games but with an added coding element, such as learning a programming language to be able to play them.
• Puzzle and logic games: Puzzles and logic-based games help you understand problem-solving better, which is another key skill to becoming a successful coder.
• Simulation games: Games like these help players understand coding principles and get familiar with the code.
• Text adventures: These fun adventure games involve navigating through levels using text commands rather than graphics.

Because so many kinds of games and challenges are available to coders online, it’s worth trying as many of them as possible to find which ones best suit your learning style and what coding skills you need to master.

Where Can You Find Coding Games?

One of the best parts of coding games is that they are so accessible. Simply searching for “coding games” or “coding games for beginners” will show you hundreds of relevant results where you can find a wide variety of coding challenges and games. Some of the most well-known websites for coding games and challenges include:

• CodinGame
• CodeCombat
• Codewars
• Hackerrank
• CodinGame
• Codeforces

While these websites have built a reputation for being great coders’ resources, some may be more suitable for people of different skill levels. Therefore, if you try one website and find that the challenges require skills beyond your current level, all it takes is to try another site until you find one that pushes you to develop your skills without being too frustrating.

How Often Should You Play Coding Games and Challenges?

Determining how often to play these games is entirely up to you. While some coders enjoy spending hours advancing in various coding games and learning new skills, others prefer to play only occasionally and let their brains rest in between.

What is most important is to avoid burnout and to only play when you have the motivation to do so. This is especially true for people who code as part of their job because they will already spend many hours per day coding, and doing the same in their free time can lead to feeling overwhelmed and exhausted.

Moreover, never let games become a nuisance to your day. They are meant to be fun! If the games start consuming your free time, it is best to take breaks and do something that calms you.

Conclusion

From tutorial-based coding games to competitive challenges, there is no shortage of available game options on the internet for those wanting to learn new coding skills and treat themselves to some entertainment. From the creative aspect of these games to the possibility of gaining an edge over other applicants in the workplace, these games can play an important role in advancing your coding skills and knowledge. So, next time you are sitting around bored, why not play some coding games and see where they might take you? You never know. You might just become a master coder!

The post Elevate Skills With Free Coding Games and Challenges appeared first on Simple Tech-Code.

What are the most popular programming languages? And what are they used for? 

‌According to GitHub, an advanced programming platform that allows users to create, store and distribute software, these are the most used coding languages: 

1. JavaScript 
2. Python 
3. Java 
4. C/C++ 
5. Go  
6. Ruby 
7. PHP 
8. C# 
9. Swift 
10. Rust 

The ratings are based on the number of times each particular coding language was pulled from GitHub to be used, but they do not tell us about the actual uses for these languages or how suited they are for coding for beginners. Being on this list does not automatically mean that any of these constitute the best coding language for beginners, but being on this list does indicate popularity and common use. 

‌That being said, you can surmise that the most in-demand languages are highly sought after for a reason: the highest number of people found them to be valuable. 

JavaScript 

JavaScript is the most popular coding language for two simple reasons: it is highly versatile and is quite easy to learn. This makes it a good candidate for your first programming language. Once learned, it can be used to build everything, from websites to servers to apps. It allows users to work on both the server-side and the client-side — or front-end web development — giving a team more flexibility to share the workload. 

‌The most common careers that employ people able to use JavaScript are software engineers, mobile developers, front-end developers, and full-stack developers.  ‌

Python 

Python is a popular coding language because it can be used in a wide variety of situations and it is easy to learn, even for those who are new to coding. But don’t be fooled by its ease of use. Python is a powerful tool, used by giants in the digital world like Google and Facebook. 

‌Although Python can, and is, regularly used for website development, it can do so much more. It can be used for animating, scientific computing, machine learning, and creating, searching, and organizing data sets.  

‌There is a wide variety of careers in need of Python users as well, including data scientists, software developers and engineers, as well as analysts of all types.‌

Java 

Java has been one of the most popular languages for over 20 years because of its reliability, scalability and cross-platform compatibility, and is used by companies like Google, Uber, and Netflix. It is more complex and harder to learn than some of the newer languages, but that does not make it any less useful. It is commonly used to build mobile apps, back-ends, and especially used for machine learning because of its speed.

‌The careers that are looking for Java users include data analysts, scientists, and front-end, back-end, full-stack, and mobile developers. ‌

C/C++ 

While not the easiest coding language for a beginner to learn, tackling it may be a wise choice. Not only are its users in high demand, but comprehending the complexities of this language makes it that much easier to learn other programming languages. 

‌C is popular because of its speed and reliability, and because it is the root of so many other coding languages. C++ is an updated version that is frequently used for computer programming.  

C/C++ are frequently used for coding programs that are very graphics heavy- think gaming, photo and video editing apps, etc. Mobile developers are the most common employers of C/C++ coders. 

Go 

Go is a relatively new language that is growing in popularity because it is easy to learn and simple to use. Designed by Google as an alternative to some of the older languages, like Java and C++, it can tackle most of the applications in a more user-friendly way. 

‌While it is not in huge demand yet, it might be a wise choice for those just entering into the coding game, since there aren’t many experienced Go users out there. 

‌Go users generally work in the data science fields, but the options may increase as the popularity of this language continues to rise. 

Ruby 

‌Ruby is a scripting language that is used most frequently for web development. While it does not have a large variety of uses, it is still in demand because it is used by many major businesses, including Airbnb and Shopify. 

‌While there are not a tremendous number of jobs available using this language, its relative obscurity means that those who know it are in high demand and are frequently paid above industry standards. 

‌The most common careers that use Ruby are Software engineers and back-end developers.   

PHP  

‌While PHP’s popularity may be waning, it is far from a dead language. It is still very commonly used in website building and may be present in as many as 79% of those sites on the web today. 

While not the simplest coding language for beginners, its heavy use worldwide in websites means that those who know how to use it are always in demand. 

‌Most people who use PHP find careers as website developers. 

‌C# 

C# was developed by Microsoft principally to be used as part of their .NET framework for building Windows applications. Microsoft, and their .NET framework, is one of the most widely used software companies by businesses large and small, and so jobs for those who write C# are currently, and likely will continue to be, in high demand. 

Most users of C# end up in careers that revolve around mobile or game development. 

Swift 

Swift is a newer coding language created exclusively for use in the development of iOS and MacOS apps. It may not be the best coding language for beginners because of its narrow scope. However, those who can use it are well paid and enjoy a higher level of job security. 

‌At this point, careers for those who know Swift are largely limited to iOS developers. ‌

Rust 

Rust is a coding language that is well-liked by programmers because it offers a high level of memory safety as well as its high speed. Rust lets you work directly with the computer’s memory at a lower level than languages like Ruby and JavaScript. It can be more complicated to use, but it gives you more control over what the program is doing at a low level.

Because of this, is it frequently used by tech companies who understand the need for such security. 

‌There are not yet many jobs out there for those who use Rust, but that may change as companies outside the tech world see its advantages. 

‌Those who know Rust most often work in game or web development.  

• Easy to Learn – JavaScript, Ruby, Python, Go 
• In Demand – JavaScript, Python, Java, C/C++ 
• Best Growth Potential – JavaScript, Python, C/C++, Go 

Understanding both your short-term and long-term career goals will help you to choose which programming language you should learn first.  There are many variables that affect this decision, including how easy it is to learn, how in-demand those who use it are, and how likely you are to want to expand and grow within your career. 

The post What Coding Language is Best for Beginners? appeared first on Simple Tech-Code.

But which is the best programming language to learn? If you’re new to this, there are many choices to pick from, making it difficult to know where to start.

Programming languages are continually evolving—while one dies, it gets replaced by the new big thing. If you time it well, you stand to earn a lot of money. Or you can go with the tried and tested languages that have stood the test of time.

All of it is enough to make your head spin. Which programming language is best to learn? Which give the highest salaries? Are they easier to start learning? This list will guide you through everything you need to know about picking the best programming language to learn.

Let’s explore!

Every programming language is different. While each programming language has its unique syntax, how it’s written, run, and compiled can change everything.

Many developers prefer to work with certain types of languages. It’s also a lot easier to migrate between similar languages, so the first programming language you learn matters.

So what are the different types of programming languages? There’s a difference between scripting and programming languages? Let’s take a look.

• Programming languages can be just about anything, but they’re often best for software development as they can be used on various platforms and tend to be compiled rather than interpreted. Most programming languages are intended for software development, to develop programs you download and run on your device.
• Scripting languages are just the opposite. They’re often interpreted, which means their code runs on the fly rather than going through a compiling process inside a program. Web development languages are often scripting languages.
• Markup languages aren’t precisely programming languages, but they’re used for web development. These are human-readable tags used to format a document.
• Web development languages are specialized for creating websites, either in the frontend or backend.
• Frontend (or client-side) languages change a website in the user’s browser. For instance, clicking something on the website and producing an animation would result from frontend programming like CSS, HTML5, and JavaScript. It’s usually a combination of all the above languages.
• Backend (or server-side) languages change a site from the server or application layer. For example, submitting form data, or changing something in the database, is backend programming.

You should also note that many people just use “programming languages” to refer to all coding languages as a whole. A scripting language is a specialized programming language, but not all programming languages are scripting languages.

Not all languages below are programming languages in the strictest sense, but they’re all used for coding.

Which Programming Language Is the Best?

There’s no clear answer on which coding language is best. Each has its pros and cons and shines in different situations. But when it comes to specific categories, there are a few clear winners. These are the best languages for:

• Beginners: For the absolute easiest languages to learn, even if you have no experience at all, start with HTML/CSS, Go, Ruby, PHP, or Python.
• Web developers: HTML, CSS, and JavaScript are a necessity for frontend developers. Backend developers should look into Ruby, Python, PHP, and Go. And, of course, SQL for database management.
• Software developers: C++ is undoubtedly the most powerful. But don’t overlook Rust, Python, Scala, or C#. It all depends on the software you’re building.
• Mobile developers: Swift is best for iOS, and Kotlin for Android. But general-purpose languages like C++ and Java can work well too.
• High salary: Swift, Rust, Scala, Kotlin, and Go all help you earn about $100k/year, with Scala and Go generating the highest salaries.
• Popularity: Python is highly popular, and considering its versatility, it stands to stay at the top for a long time. JavaScript, Java, C#, and C++ are also quite popular themselves.
• Flexibility: C++ might be the giant in flexibility, but Rust, Java, Scala, Kotlin, and Python all work well cross-platform and in various situations.

The post What Is the Best Programming Language to Learn? appeared first on Simple Tech-Code.

• Closures unified with function pointers
• Tuples and multiple return values
• Generics
• Concise and fast iteration over a range or collection
• Structs that support methods, extensions, and protocols
• Functional programming patterns, e.g., map and filter
• Powerful error handling built-in
• Advanced control flow with do, guard, defer, and repeat keywords

Memory Management – 
Swift uses Automatic Reference Counting (ARC) to manage memory. Earlier, Apple used to require manual memory management in Objective-C, but after introducing ARC in 2011 memory allocation and de-allocation became easier.
Swift is managed as a collection of projects, each with its repositories. The current list of projects include: 
 

• The Swift compiler command-line tool
• The standard library bundled as part of the language
• Core libraries that provide higher-level functionality
• The Swift REPL included LLDB debugger
• Xcode playground support to enable playgrounds in Xcode.
• The Swift package manager for distributing and building Swift source code

Advantages – 

• Swift is open-sourced and easy to learn.
• Swift is fast, safe and expressive.
• Swift is approachable and familiar (C and C++ code can be added by Swift programmers into Swift applications.)
• Swift is the future of Apple development.
• Swift is enterprise-ready.

Disadvantages –

• The language is still quite young and the talent pool is limited.
• Swift is considered a “moving target” as it is a new language and the number of swift programmers is few.
• Poor interoperability with third-party tools and IDEs
• Lack of support for earlier iOS versions.

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