How do game programmer learned their codes?

[Earthkanu]

I went to DeVry (private school), they only taught us C++ and taught us direct x 9 by simply copying the codes. That didn't help me on understanding the codes at all.

I've been reading "Beginning Direct X 9" by Wendy Jone and it's confusing.

How do professional game programmer gain their knowledge from?

 

[Neo-Dragon]

Reading that book is a good start as that is how I began learning Objective-C and now I have two apps up on the app store for the iphone/ipod touch.

I also am going into my second year on studying game development in college here in Dublin.
The first year was so important as it laid down all the basics for me and helped me understand developing for the bigger picture.
It also pretty much showed me that if you already know one programming language, or understand the basics of programming, you'll be able to pick others up depending on the time you invest in learning them.

Follow as many video tutorials as you can (youtube lol), do as many written tutorials as you can (find lots on google) and keep reading that book as you are practising the code for yourself. It's important you do as much practical work as you can so that the code will stick a bit better in your head.

Edit:
I can't decided if your serious or not with that sig. (spam bot?).
I'll leave your thread open for now.

 

[Alexandre]

I like to class programmers into two groups. Trial-&-Error and Scratchers. For example, I am a Trial and error developer. I scour different existing codes and modify it until it works, that is also how I learn the tricks of the trade. A scratcher would code from the ground up to do the same thing, if I attempted to do that, I would fail miserably. I haven't read a single book on coding (apart from a quick guide to windows and scenes in RGSS), and I consider my self an intermidate scripter.

 

[Redcard]

Programming is just laying out what you want to do (spec) and planning.. then execution. For example, I'm writing a Pokemon-like engine in C#. Right now, I'm writing out the spec. That means I'm declaring everything I want the product to have.

After that, I'll start designing the aspects of the product in code, to meet the specifications set in front of me.

But ultimately, there's no "secrets" to programming. It's just all the basic stuff that are in the books built one on top of another to build systems that interact with each other and meet the spec.

The trick is, there is no trick. Just planning and hard work.