As a plugin developer I get asked this question a lot, so I'm going to spend some time actually sitting down and telling you guys just exactly how I learned to program, and, at the end, I'll even have a link to a download of one of my very first Java programs!

The Beginning

I started off learning HTML using a cheap program from a computer store when I was around 12 or 13. I don't even remember the name of the website, but I remember using swiftsite to publish my very first website and my experience with ProFTP, and a few other FTP programs. The experience was quite fun and I enjoyed it. Around the age of 14 I decided to learn Java.

I went to the local library and picked out the "Java 2 Black Book second edition by Steve Holzner". I read the book from cover to cover and started working through the examples. I checked out the book twice and even read the bonus swing tutorials from the CD. (I got the book for my birthday from my grandparents, so I returned the library's copy) Along the way I borrowed a C++ book from a friend (I don't remember which one), but it had a gem of a program called "Shadow Land" that I took and re-coded for Java as a challenge (I even fixed a few annoying bugs in it and added custom levels, I never made a level editor though). It was a console game and I put a whole GUI around it and, well, the rest is history.

Shadow Land, Java version

Download

You can download the game here: http://jrtechsupport.com/filemgmt/index.php?id=22&comments=1

How to play

The game is a text based game and was originally a console game.
The game consists of actions, and has a very small vocabulary of words you can use. Here's the list:
Actions: Move, turn, smell, look, listen, put, get, eat, inventory, and where
Objects in the game: Lamp, sandwich, keys
Directions: East, west, north, south, forward, backward, right, left, down
Valid Command Examples:

• look
  
• look south
  
• move forward
  
• eat lamp
  
• where
  

Object of the game: Locate the keys, pick them up, and place them in the kitchen.

If any of you want instructions on how to make your own levels I would be more than happy to provide instructions on doing so. Please remember that this program was made way back when I was around 15, which was 9 years ago.