How to Code: Simple Data

This is an extraordinary course that I totally recommend taking for everyone looking to learn how to code!!!

You will start by learning BSL, the functional programming language used in the course. I promise you that learning BSL will be great, and that the simplicity of the language will soon prove itself to be very useful at the end of this course and in the next course in the series. How to code: Complex data. This is a functional programming language.

You will learn how to follow certain steps to breakdown a problem that may seem be very complex at first but that after you follow theses steps will become a natural extension of your coding process.

You will learn about recursion, functions, parameters, conditionals, type comments, templates, types of data and how data determines the structure of your code and how analyzing data in your problem determines how your program will look, Binary search trees and so much more.

As a verified student, you can have the great experience of participating in live sessions with Professor Kiczales and with Miss Erika who will answer all your questions LIVE!

At the end of the course, there is a final project where you will "Create your own game!" yes, that's right. You will be making a full arcade-type game all by yourself and you will see that by implementing what you've learned in the course, it will be so much easier than you initially thought.

Trust me, this course is worth it, and if you wish to continue the Micromasters it will be the foundation for your next courses. I am currently on How to Code: Complex Data and this course was the foundation for the next course with is more complex and where you will lean so many interesting elements of programming.

This is the first programming MOOC I have ever taken. Prior to taking it, I had attempted to read programming books with the intention of learning how code. It didn't take long before I realized that I hated reading books about programming. Not because the books I read were uninformative (though there are plenty that I could nominate as morbidly boring) but rather they lack the type of interaction to be found in a MOOC; which as a beginner is crucial because when you get stuck you need help from your peers.

The main lesson to take away from this course certainly has to be systems thinking which is emphasized throughout by the professor. As I build up my programming experience with each day that passes, I am slowly beginning to appreciate the massive advantages it offers. Whenever I wrote a program that didn't do what was required, more often than not it was because of adopting "verbal reasoning" as I punched in the code. As soon as I started asking myself the "why" and "what" certain pieces of code in the program were doing, I quickly found where I'd veered off course.

As a beginner, I did this course slower than most (just over a month) but I believe the extra time I spent on it will certainly pay dividends in the future. To sum up, I rate this MOOC very highly and look forward to completing SPD2 and SPD3.