<p>I'm a prospective compsci major. I know nothing about programming or computer science, I'm just interested in compsci and want to choose a good intro course to gauge my interest. Can anyone tell me which is better, and also about the difficulty/courseload etc.</p>
<p>183 is C++, 182 is a fairly new class and I think it’s mostly Java (or at least not C++). The start of the programming track (EECS 280, 281) is all taught in C++, so I would strongly recommend 183.</p>
<p>Also, at least when I “took” it in W09, I thought it was structured very well for new programmers (though I personally never attended).</p>
<p>*Edit: 182 appears to be taught in Python. The description from the [lsa</a> online course guide](<a href=“FA 2011 | EECS 182 - Building Applications for Information Environments | Section 001”>FA 2011 | EECS 182 - Building Applications for Information Environments | Section 001) looks rather informative but also tl;dr.</p>
<p>Thanks a lot Michiganstick</p>
<p>Do you think 183 was graded hardly or a lot of work?</p>
<p>I don’t know anything about languages, so is python an important language in programming or in computer science in general?</p>
<p>I’m gonna jump in here because I know a fair amount about comp sci.
Python is a very widely used language in the software world with top companies such as google and facebook using it on a regular basis. So I would say you can’t go wrong with either of these classes, but there are a greater majority of comp sci classes taught in C++ and it is still a very widely used language in the industry and you will have to know it eventually, so I would take 183</p>
<p>I thought the grading in 183 was fair. Most of it was project based (something like 90% autograder, 10% “style points” aka readability of code) and exam based. There was also something like online problem sets that we had to buy in lieu of a textbook, but those were really easy and very useful for learning/drilling coding fundamentals.</p>
<p>C++ is used for game programming (among other things), could be the more fun of the two. I know Michigan State starts out its comp sci people with Python, perhaps it makes programming easier to understand (?) but my son has had both and was kinda bored with Python, I think.</p>
<p>One question first:</p>
<ol>
<li>What college are you in? (Engineering or other)</li>
</ol>
<p>If you’re in the engineering college then you’ll have to take ENGR 101 (Computer Programming & Algorithms) anyways since it’s required. So you shouldn’t even worry about an EECS class. If you’re in LS&A, then you should take 183 first. That course has been very well-developed and is really good. Then you can go on and take 182 if you’re interested.</p>
<p>I’ve learned both Python and C++, and my take on it is that C++ is the best <em>first</em> language for any new programmer to learn in an academic setting. It’s usually taught in a way that you really get an intuitive feel for what basic programming is really like. Since Python is a tad easier to code it’s better for someone who really understands what’s going on.</p>
<p>Side note: I just graduated from Nuclear Engineering and currently have an internship where I do scientific programming all day.</p>