Learning to code the free way
Learning to code is inexpensive. All you need is some initiative and time. There are many online resources from video classes to self-study materials. Both work well. I prefer the self-study materials because I learn better by reading as opposed to watching videos. I find that I also get better at debugging, determining why the coding examples are not doing what they are supposed to do. However, people learn differently. Choose the method that works best for you.
Cousera and edX provide excellent online classes. You can audit the classes and for a reasonable price, you can receive a certificate and class credit.
Free Code Camp is an interesting site. You learn and have the opportunity to do some good as you put your skills to work. In their words,
“Welcome to Free Code Camp. We’re an open source community that helps you learn to code, then practice, by building projects for nonprofits.”
The Odin Project provides an in-depth course exploring many areas of coding. This course teaches you web development including how to code using HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Ruby, Rails, and JQuery. You also learn about databases and Git.
I’m enjoying the Learn Python the Hard Way and Learn Ruby the Hard Way. The free online books are great learning resources. If you prefer video lessons, you can purchase each set of videos for $29.99.
There are many more free resources available. Here are some categorized by the language they teach.
C
C#
CSS and HTML
Java
JavaScript
Linux/Unix Shell Programming
PHP
Python
Learn Python