I just got A+ certified

I know you'll all scoff and regard me as a scrub, but I'm making /prog/ress towards achieving Satori. It's not much, but it's a start.

I've messed around with Ruby before, but what language would be good to take up seriously and learn in-depth? The most I've done with Ruby is make some shitty text-based games.

I'm not sure if this will impact your suggested language for me to learn, but I'm currently enrolled in CIS introduction classes for next semester, planning on getting into database administration later on. However, I want to learn how to program as a hobby.

I know I'll have to learn SQL some time in the near future, but I'm wondering if there's anything else I should take up.

In before elitist sages, conflicting suggestions, and inane comments.

>>28
Fuck your face. What did you find objectionable about my post?

I'll be completely blunt here, reading SICP to start off is a stupid fucking idea. It might be a fantastic text for anyone who's actually familiar with programming, yes; but it's really much better for re-learning and expanding knowledge of the field, than as a flat-out introduction. No one just getting into computers needs an introduction to all that shit, it's overwhelming and not helpful. Anyone starting off with SICP and little to no existing programming background, if they're not actually MIT quality, will surely be lost. And if they are, they're probably already going to MIT.

Go ahead and tell people to read SICP if they have the smallest shred of possibility that they'll be able to keep up and comprehend the text. Don't send people blindly off a goddamn cliff. You're doing a disservice to many potential future coders by setting them up for inevitable discouragement. Get them started with something practical, something they're able to experiment and learn with, and then bring up SICP.