Why choose VB.Net as your programming language

Quite simply put....choose it because it fits your personal preference. In order to answer this question there are a few things that must be understood.

There are a multitude of programming languages to choose from. It is important to understand the advantages, as well as the disadvantages of your chosen programming language. In most of my postings I will refer to designing applications; it is very important to understand that there are many different definitions in the programming world for the word “application”. In my references I will default to the definition of a software program that is intended for either productivity or informational purposes. This is very important to understand that these references are not aimed at designing games. Game programming has a whole different set of rules, methods and terminology.

You will find when talking with experienced programmers, most will have an opinion on why their chosen language is the ‘best’ language to use. From my past experiences I have found that most programming languages have its strong points for specific types of software programs. The one constant thing I have found is that just about all of the programming languages can be used to make at least 85% of the applications you will design (read the above paragraph for my definition / use of ‘applications’). I can say this with the utmost confidence because 85% of the software applications released do not require a complex set of graphics coding. You will find that Visual Basic.Net, Visual C#, C++, Delphi, and many other languages can accomplish the same ending results. The real differences in these languages are in specific features, methods of accomplishment, ease of Rapid Application Design (RAD), and coding language specifications.

You will also find that game programming has a much more distinct choice of programming language. Game programming will require a thorough understanding of the advantages vs. disadvantages of each possible language. This isn’t to say that using a program such as VB.Net isn’t suitable for creating the next top-end game; I am simply stating that you will find many more disadvantages to using a language such as VB over C++ for this type of programming.

There are no easy ways in determining what the best language is to learn; I suggest getting proficient in one at first and then slowly add on other languages that compliment your primary language. I cannot stress enough that you will find each language to have its advantages and disadvantages. I will provide a posting that will discuss these advantages / disadvantages for VB.

The major thing to keep in mind when choosing a language is your personal preference and what you feel will best suit your wanted results, rather it be to learn a language that has a smaller talent-pool to increase your market value as an employee, or you simple want to choose the language that has a huge support system (meaning many experienced programmers to talk to, many self-teaching books, etc) or you just want to choose a language that you feel is simpler to learn.

I would encourage learning VB as your first language because it is a verbose language. Once you have the basic understanding of the VB language you will find that you can read the language as though it were written as a book.