What are some of the best ways to start?

What are the best ways to start scripting and understanding what everything does? I am sort of new and determined to learn. I have done a lot of reading and still don't get the big picture. I would appreciate any help at all.



Thanks,

I'd recommend trying a class. Look in the Events listing for an introductory scripting class.

I did attend Scripting 101, but got lost. There wasn't much explanation on what each line actually accomplishes once you run it. All that was put out is format and such. Format is obvious I think.

Depends if you already have experience or not. If you're new to scripting in general, then taking afew classes and learning the formatting and how to make everything works is best. If you're familiar with programming to any degree that you can make a working program in a current language, then it may be better for you to look at a free script and build from there.

If you want line by line explanations on functions and such...

www.badgeometry.com/wiki/

I have read most of the Bad Geometry website and no I don't have any prior scripting experience. The next step for me I guess is to take Advanced Scripting. Maybe I can pick up something there. Thanks for all the help everyone. I didn't expect it to be easy.

Just a clarification: when you say you have no prior scripting experience, do you mean you have no programming experience at all? You said that "format is obvious," which suggests that you know what source code looks like.

Scripting in Second Life is easy. I think it's funny how a lot of people I have talked to seem to think that you have to either be a programmer or a "computer guy/gal" to understand it...it's not that way. I agree, if you wanted to build something from the ground up, yeh, you'd have to know all about it.
If you're like me, however, you aren't in SL to do one certain thing, you're in there to poke around and have fun and maybe build a few fun things..
What I did was take a few free scripts that are editable, put em in an object and try em out...for example: a gun. I wanted to make my own lil custom gun..so I took a free pistol, saw how it worked ,and then played with the parameters one at a time till i basically figured out what does what. I just play with stuff. Granted, without experienced scripters and "computer guys/gals" I'd have no scripts to play with, but through my exploring I have learned so much I am starting to write my own.
This is the great thing about SL and it's community..lot's of FREE stuff and lot's of cool people willing to share ideas.
So, all in all, I'd recommend you pick up one of those free script box thingies, start messin' around...editing (a little at a time though..) and take some classes. Rememeber that feeling when yer first in a game and you can't figure anything out, then two weeks later it's down pat...well same thing can happen with scripting, it just takes a lil time.

Maybe I can help a little.

When an LSL script is executed, before any of the commands are acted out, the entire thing is read, and if there are variables, they are initialized, and functions are put into memory (again not acted on yet).

Now, the first thing that gets acted on is the code in your default section.

Sometimes you will specify an event such as Whatever you have in there is acted on as on_rez The Wiki pages have some good stuff in them. It's taking me a little while to get used to reading them but once you know your way around in there... you will be ok.

It's going to help to let people know what kind of a background you have so they can help you more.

And don't think that this is one of those places where people will help and not show up, GOOD people like Jake will send you an IM and offer to help you do what you are doing. There are LOTS of good people, and they respond quickly!

Ask something specific and see!!

Please don't get me wrong. I am not impatient about this. I just really want to learn it. I spent hours yesterday messing with a vendor that I built from scratch. I followed all of the instructions for the vendor script on the Bad Geometry website and nothing happened. I am not fustrated, just confused now lol. I thought I would put the vendor together and might learn something since a vendor would come in handy for me. I am picking up clothing really quick and could use it to sell my stuff. I am really trying to take baby steps here. I have been trying to learn this for months. I will definately take the advice and attend another class this week. I do appreciate all of the input very much.

It would be helpful if someone wouldn't mind checking out my vendor and maybe explaining what I did wrong. I am not looking for anyone to solve my problem for me. Just want to understand.

I find the most useful way to learn a new language is by picking apart other people's scripts. Grab some stuff from the script libray on here, or from the USL in game, and just play.

True, you don't have to be a computer programer or tech wiz to script in LSL. You really don't. But when we ask about prior experience, it's not because we're trying to be elitist. Rather, while -scripting- itself is fairly easy, there is a lot of information that you can't neccesarily learn just by looking at stuff.

For instance, formatting and commenting is important among programmers. It seems silly to a beginner, but any scripter who goes beyond a short single state script knows that keeping everything documented and organized helps tremendously in maintaince and scripting (especially if you're going to be sharing it).

Also, as someone else pointed out, why/when you have to initialized and declare variables and such. This you might figure out, but you might not. The same with the Listen () function; not killing it might not seem a big a deal at first until you know why it's a good idea to do it.

And other intangibles as well. And blah blah blah. Scripting is easy; scripting well is more difficult.

Which is why we ask; if someone already knows the book and concept side of things, then we don't need to teach them those things.

I have no modern experience that is. I took a programming class way back in 1989 when I was in 5th grade. On very old Apple Computers. I haven't touched it sense. The past few months I have read all the forums, SL tutorials, and Bad Geometry. I have even just typed a few long scripts that I could find just to get used to the format. I even bought and read a Java book. I hope this clarifies my experience.

Alex,

It sounds like you could do with a 1-0n-1 scripting lesson, which I'd be happy to give you whenever you're free ingame if you want.

If you want to learn howto program scripts or any other programs really, you need to be interrested enough to try and figure out what you can do with it.

Get ideas, what do you really want todo by learning it,.. do you just want to learn it or actually use the knowledge.

Get your ideas down on paper, what things you want todo.

Do you want to create a cannon, write it down.. do you want to make a moving cube that follows you around, write that down.
Make a list if what you really feel you can do with the script knowledge.

I know there is difficult to grasp what you can do with it, but really.. you can do almost anything.
So write down your ideas, and sort em out and pick the one that seems most simple.
And do your projects.

Write down on paper how you want the script to function.
A tip is to get knowledge on howto make MindMaps.
When you have your ideas down on paper.. go to the Wiki page and look around for functions that can be used for your project.

Use the Pageindex on that site and do a find on whatever you are trying to find.

Write down whatever functions you want todo, and play with them.. try and see what they can be used for.

Learn about how the interraction with the script works when its online.
the touch function, the sensor, the listen etc etc.
Experiment.

And whatever you dont understand, read up on howto use it, read other peoples codes, read examples and see how they use them.

The best way to learn is to have your own ideas and get help/read on howto make it work.
That way you store the information deeper in your mind.

Start small. Start simple. Be patient (which you appear to already have mastered).

If you know nothing, or nearly nothing about scripting/coding, then starting with basic script routines will teach you better than trying to make a vendor, gun, or other complex/semi-complex script.

Learn how to make a cube move on voice/touch commands. Simple! But once you master that (and mastering is the key to coding -- it's a called "language" because it's complex, just like a spoken language is -- but once you know some basic "grammer" and some simple "words", by heart, then you're on the road to mastering said language (LSL)).
Build off your simple cube and make it do something else. Keep adding to it, or just make a new project to learn about some other aspect of LSL.

Learn about variables, how and when to declare them, and why this is important. Learn how about type conversions.

Examine simple scripts, pass on the complex ones until you're comfortable with creating simple scripts. IMHO, you'll just drive yourself batty trying to work with too much info.

Have a simple idea, want to learn how to do it? Well plenty of us are happy enough to help others learn. Just ask for help (someone already offered a 1-on-1 tutoring for ya, grab that offer. Ask for more tutoring, I'm sure a few of us will offer assistance.

And always ask questions, there's a lot of knowledgable and helpful folks on this forum that are happy to lend support.

Bos

Take a visit to the University of Second Life Library in Montara. There are several dozens of example scripts and objects that can help while learning how to script in LSL.

Thanks you all for such great advice! I really do appreciate all of it. I will follow each and every piece of it. Wish me luck. Rysidian I would love to take you up on that 1-on-1 offer. I will IM you the next time I am on, so we can set something up. If any of you ever need anything please don't hesitate to ask. Thanks again