Helplessly new

Getting Started Newbie Questions
#1

So I bought a brand new iMac, bought the Adobe Master Suite, and a ipod Touch. I downloaded the GameSalad trial and the Corona Trial version to see which one I am going to purchase. GameSalad sucks in my opinion, so looks like its gonna be Corona. Only problem is I have ZERO coding experience!

Where I’m at: I’ve been watching videos and practicing building simple apps using main.lua

Problem: I am now trying to run menu.lua, instruction.lua, and various other pages I created to transition through using the director.lua Ricardo Rauber created. I cant figure out how to run these files in the simulator to see if there working, and I cant figure out how to use that debugger Corona has. I did the sample they have on the website but its quite confusing.

Does anyone have any advice on some tutorials or where I can get a good start with all this?

Thanks guys!

  • jc [import]uid: 66871 topic_id: 11143 reply_id: 311143[/import]
#2

Double click ‘Corona Terminal’ to boot Corona simulator instead of just Corona Simulator this gives you the terminal and some much needed feedback on what’s going on. Open your project as you know and you will get output to the terminal.

Don’t bother with the debugger as no-one really knows how to use it and as a beginner it’s a waste of time.

Now you can see your errors you can look around the forums and ask questions.

Beyond this just keep watching those videos and reading as much as you can on this website and if you want to further your knowledge purchase Programming in Lua as it’s a great read and will make understanding the underpinnings a little easier.

Also visit the API section and get familiar with all your options.

But most of all just enjoy copying a few videos and start getting things to work as you expect. On average you will go through 2 weeks of pain and misunderstanding, after that things start to gel and come together…

– Chris [import]uid: 33866 topic_id: 11143 reply_id: 40432[/import]

#3

JC,

I’ve been maintaining a list of tutorials for Corona SDK, it might prove helpful for you:
http://www.learningcorona.com/

In particular, I’d point you to Peach Pellen’s website http://www.techority.com and Cheetomosquito’s youtube videos (they’re listed on the learning corona link above). Those are probably the best lessons to start with if you have zero coding experience.

Peach Pellen has a 3-part series called “Corona SDK for Newbies” that is a very gentle starting point for novices.

Also, I’d recommend you start using Corona *without* the Director class. Director is a great library, but if you want to simplify things for yourself, learn the absolute basics of the Corona SDK before you dive into the libraries that extend the capabilities of the SDK.

-Dave
[import]uid: 25988 topic_id: 11143 reply_id: 40437[/import]

#4

Wow! Thanks Dave! This is a great website! Your right about the scattering of tutorials. I appreciate the time you spent compiling this and thank you for the reply! I’ll get to it

Thanks,

  • jc [import]uid: 66871 topic_id: 11143 reply_id: 40445[/import]
#5

Oh ok lol, I see now. Thanks for the tip Chris! The terminal tells me what line of code is messed up. Now I just have to figure out how to fix it. No more hunting at least! Thank you for your time in replying to me, its much appreciated!

  • jc [import]uid: 66871 topic_id: 11143 reply_id: 40448[/import]
#6

Thanks for the Techority love Dave :slight_smile:

Jc, best of luck to you - and I’ll second Dave’s advice on putting off Director until you feel confident with the basics.

Peach :slight_smile: [import]uid: 52491 topic_id: 11143 reply_id: 40514[/import]