I think this is a good idea - having taught programming at the university level for many years, I know that intorductory programming classes are not about learning the language, they are about learning how to program. When you already know how to construct a program, picking up a new langauge is a matter of learning the idosyncrasies of a new syntax, not trying to figure out how to code a control break to start each new account on a separate page.
The first thing you should do is to read code - look over real world examples of how the langauge is used. Typically, textbooks are of little use in this situation - the author won't include any example programs that take up more than a page of text. Start with some open source projects that were written in one of the languages you're interested in. Step one - go use that application first - see how it looks and how a user interacts with it. Then go get the source and start reading - see how the coders set up the data stuctures and how the code was structured. As you read, refer back to the textbook or language reference manual to see what some specific syntax was used.
Once you get familiar with reading code, then write code. Pick a problem you already know how to solve - even if you have to go back to the programming exercises from the COBOL 101 course you took in college. You need to get past the hurdle of becoming familiar with the new syntax, and the only way to do that is to write, compile, correct syntax errors and repeat. Expect to refer to the langauge reference manual frequently, and learn to curse the compiler writers who delight in obscure compiler syntax error messages.
The largest hurdle to learning OOP is learning the class structure and becoming familiar with the pre-defined methods that go with it. The old procedural langages had but a handful of basic data types, all of which were exposed to the procedural code. The object oriented model has the procedural functions inextricably linked to the data structures they serve, so the challenge in OOP is to first figure out what data structures you will use, and then put together the program using the methods allowed for those structures.
If Apple was following the PCI (Payment Card Industry) requirements, any credit card info that was associated users itunes account should have been encrypted, thereby making it difficult for anyone who hacked the site to access the credit card data. Was Apple properly encrypting stored credit card details? Another question to add to the growing list.
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I think this is a good idea - having taught programming at the university level for many years, I know that intorductory programming classes are not about learning the language, they are about learning how to program. When you already know how to construct a program, picking up a new langauge is a matter of learning the idosyncrasies of a new syntax, not trying to figure out how to code a control break to start each new account on a separate page. The first thing you should do is to read code - look over real world examples of how the langauge is used. Typically, textbooks are of little use in this situation - the author won't include any example programs that take up more than a page of text. Start with some open source projects that were written in one of the languages you're interested in. Step one - go use that application first - see how it looks and how a user interacts with it. Then go get the source and start reading - see how the coders set up the data stuctures and how the code was structured. As you read, refer back to the textbook or language reference manual to see what some specific syntax was used. Once you get familiar with reading code, then write code. Pick a problem you already know how to solve - even if you have to go back to the programming exercises from the COBOL 101 course you took in college. You need to get past the hurdle of becoming familiar with the new syntax, and the only way to do that is to write, compile, correct syntax errors and repeat. Expect to refer to the langauge reference manual frequently, and learn to curse the compiler writers who delight in obscure compiler syntax error messages. The largest hurdle to learning OOP is learning the class structure and becoming familiar with the pre-defined methods that go with it. The old procedural langages had but a handful of basic data types, all of which were exposed to the procedural code. The object oriented model has the procedural functions inextricably linked to the data structures they serve, so the challenge in OOP is to first figure out what data structures you will use, and then put together the program using the methods allowed for those structures.
If Apple was following the PCI (Payment Card Industry) requirements, any credit card info that was associated users itunes account should have been encrypted, thereby making it difficult for anyone who hacked the site to access the credit card data. Was Apple properly encrypting stored credit card details? Another question to add to the growing list.