[swagtricker]

One other point of praise for this approach: being able to run in a web browser via Repl.it is a huge win given the combination of the rise of tablets, as well as the popularity of locked down Windows/Chromebook laptops for students. Many students today and more going forward may not have access to a PC/Mac that they could easily install Python on (or convince an adult to do it for them). Repl.it with the turtle graphics works just dandy on the Chrome browser for my 4 year old iPad Air (disclaimer - I'm a Repl.it subscriber).

[Aperocky]

I'm on the fence about this one as it seem to abstract a dangerous level of stuff away.

[smoldesu]

I agree. I used to be a huge fan of Repl, but the limitations start to present themselves pretty early on. My advice is still the same for people who want to code: go on Ebay and buy a used Thinkpad, install Linux on it and write code. By step two, most people can self-educate themselves on where to go next.

[Aperocky]

Funny that is your suggestion, I started (serious) programming by ordering a $200 laptop from Amazon and installing Linux on it. THIS is the exact advice I give to people. It gives me chills how you captured my path to software so succinctly.

[qsort]

Step two is extremely underrated. There's always been a family computer in my home, but I couldn't do whatever I wanted on it.

My irremediable descent into nerddom started when I got a cheap netbook. It was an awful machine, but I could freely poke around and learn stuff.

If you're just starting, a potato computer that you fully, exclusively own is much better than a great machine that you share with other people.

But of course it's a big time investment and not everyone is interested. If you just want to learn the basics of programming, a fully managed environment is also fine. So much is being abstracted by the programming language itself that the underlying stack is almost a detail.