Or perhaps more specifically, for some of us: what is the first thing you <i>write</i> when experimenting with a new language?<p>Whenever I am trying out a new language, I like to tinker around sort of aimlessly, meandering about picking up on intricacies until I feel temporarily fulfilled. But I imagine that some, if not many, of us like to jump right into something specific that helps to provide us with some level of insight that we crave.<p>So what is the first thing that you write, trivial or otherwise, when you first get your hands on a programming language? What is that first technique you try, that first structure you implement, that first algorithm you hammer out? Is there a certain function or method you like to tackle? Or do you just explore without any real direction?
Ostensibly, if I want to learn two languages, I write an interpreter for the one in the other. In reality, I try to make a habit of using it whenever I need to do anything small (from simple arithmetic to implementing some graph algorithm I don't understand yet). Couple this with a habit of looking for better ways to do things that come out clunky and you're off! In real reality, I usually dismiss languages on first sight because I don't like their complicated syntax.
Typically I'm not patient enough to learn a new language very systematically, so instead I find myself following a pattern like this:<p>1. Hear about how great the macros are that Lisp has or the monads are that Haskell has enough times that I decide I need to try it<p>2. Independently have the idea for some new weekend project / mashup / potential startup and start obsessing about it<p>3. Persuade myself that this new language and new project are a match made in heaven and compulsively try to build the one with the other while furiously multitasking through tutorials<p>4. Get a little wiser and more sober about both of them through the experience<p>5. Hear about how great the asynchronous I/O is that node.js has...
I look at how it does strings as it seems everything practical involves strings.<p>If string handling sucks, then I'll probably skip it.<p>If string handling rocks, then I'll look at IO. If the IO libraries are no good, then I skip it.
Doesn't anyone write "Hello World"s anymore?<p>I usually write a simple hello world example then make it more and more complicated, usually following with IO next, data structures, networking, etc.