[Jdraienier]

I really want learn Cocoa, but don't know where to start.

Please help me out. Thanks in advance.

[Chuckit]

The first thing to do, if you haven't already, is learn C. There aren't any books or sites yet that teach Objective-C without assuming you already know plain C. (I've actually been meaning to make one for a while, but I've never gotten around to it.)

Once you know C, you're ready to start learning Cocoa. Assuming you've got the developer tools, they include a lot of documentation on Cocoa. The Objective-C Programming Language (included with the devtools) is a great primer for Obj-C.

If you've got some money to throw around, Aaron Hillegass' Cocoa Programming for Mac OS X is highly recommended for learning Cocoa.

Some good sites are:
Cocoa Dev Central
O'Reilly's series of articles
Cocoa Dev (no relation to Cocoa Dev Central except that they're obvious names)

[zorn]

http://www.AppleStudentDevelopers.org

has some cocoa stuff as well: forums a tutorial or two, forums, and a new contest where the community will be building and documenting the creation of an open source app.

[Jdraienier]

What are some good books for learning C and objective-C?

[Rickster]

For C, I recommend the original The C Programming Language, by Kernighan & Ritchie. It's not set up in an easy tutorial step-by-step walkthrough format like a lot of other books are -- however, I consider this a good thing, because most of those other books expect you to be using a certain development package and/or certain higher-level libraries, so they just get confusing to the novice looking to start with Cocoa.

Next, look at Object-oriented Programming and the Objective-C Language. It's installed in PDF and HTML form with the Mac OS X Developer tools, and it's also available online and in printed form from http://developer.apple.com/techpubs.

Don't start coding right away. Just read those two books and absorb what's there. Then read Hillegass' Cocoa Programming for Mac OS X, and work on the examples and exercises as you go through the book, and go back to the K&R book as a quick reference whenever the C stuff gets confusing.

Also, sign up for one of the Cocoa development mailing lists, at http://lists.apple.com or http://www.omnigroup.com/developer/mailinglists. There'll be a lot of traffic that goes over your head for awhile, but over time it will come to be helpful. Hang out in the (virtual) company of experts long enough and some of their knowledge ought to rub off.

[Chuckit]

Originally posted by Rickster:
Next, look at Object-oriented Programming and the Objective-C Language. It's installed in PDF and HTML form with the Mac OS X Developer tools, and it's also available online and in printed form from http://developer.apple.com/techpubs.

Just to avoid any confusion, this is the same document as The Objective-C Programming Language that I referred to earlier. Apple recently decided to to do a major revamp, and they gave it a new, hip name to match.

[SandHillRoad]

I just finished going through the book COCOA PROGRAMMING FOR MAC OS X by AARON HILLEGASS and recommend it highly. I was in the same position - wanting to learn Cocoa - three months ago, and this book was recommended to me. I found few errors (none significant) so when something did not work, I knew it was my fault, not the books. Debugging my own code was the most valuable experience.

I have had some experience with C, but not a whole lot. It does help. I would not say that one has to be an experienced C programmer, but one should have had a good amount of experience in building algorithms in some language. At least in C you should know how to build loops and be familiar with structures. I doubt that you need to know any C++ using classes.

Object Oriented programming is different from straight, so-called flat coding. One key advantage is code re-use. That means, of course, that one has to become familiar with the object structure and the large number of objects that are available for use. I have used the Project Developer on the Mac OS X with what I would consider to be very good success.

I am not at this time, an experienced Cocoa programmer, but I can build a few small projects without referring to the book. I am sure that experience is the real key to becoming successful.

[Jdraienier]

I'm really excited
I just finished learning C#. I'm going to Barnes & Nobles to pick up a copy of COCOA PROGRAMMING FOR MAC OS X by AARON HILLEGASS.

Thanks all for the generous amount Info.

[Metzen]

Originally posted by Jdraienier:
I really want learn Cocoa, but don't know where to start.

Please help me out. Thanks in advance.

I keep dabbling in C, but I never, ever tend to finish a book

Anyways, I've found a few good online "teaching C" courses.

Here they are:
Introduction to C Programming by the Computer Center in the University of Leicester
Programming in C by A.D. Marshall
And once your done reading/testing applying/trying out everything you learned there, skim this site for other helpful hints.

Could a experienced programmer tell me if I'm wasting my time with the top 2 sites? It'd be much appreciated.

[butter71]

Originally posted by SandHillRoad:
I just finished going through the book COCOA PROGRAMMING FOR MAC OS X by AARON HILLEGASS and recommend it highly.

same here. great book.

i would avoid the o'reilly "learning cocoa" book. their other book, "building cocoa applications" is supposed to be much better.