Howdy! My names Toast and I’ve been floating around Roblox since ~2018. Recently I’ve gotten more into the development side of things, specifically working as a game designer, which I’ve found to be fairly enjoyable. However at this point I want to be able to script my ideas myself, and so want to learn Lua.
This is NOT my first time working with code. I am proficient already in HTML and CSS, and I know the basics of Lua, but not enough to code a game. I’ve watched tons of “This is the best way to learn Lua!” videos, and at this point I think Im best off just asking some actual scripters.
So, I leave you with this question: How did you learn scripting, and if you could go back and learn scripting again from day 1 knowing what you do now, (How to best become knowledgeable about it that is) how would you go about learning it?
Thanks to anybody who takes the time to respond, its greatly appreciated!
This is simply how I learnt scripting. If I didn’t know what to do, I look up what to do. And if I can’t find the solution, I simply ask a bunch of questions. I also didn’t remember the code I asked questions about on the spot for the solutions I found. If they couldn’t answer, then I just have to experiment around. Most likely, they will have an answer.
But the important thing is once you have those solutions, understand each line of code and what it does. If I didn’t understand? I just mess with the code, take a break from the frustration. Eventually over time, you will learn.
Conclusion, It is essential to test things out and ask questions. Memorization is important, but understanding is necessary.
Thanks, that’s also a really interesting way of looking at it that I honestly hadn’t before, understanding over memorization. Appreciate the help and feedback!
I started learning to code start of april, now at the end of august i have alot of knowledge and i can code things that i though i would never learn to do and im still learning everyday. All these tutorials now a days simply follow the way they were taught. There is no perfect way for you to learn because you learn differently.
#1 identify the way you learn best the best way info sticks to your head and it will give you a better understanding.
#2 you start from the complete basics and build your way up at your own pace. Even though you have understanding of other languages dont think skipping the basics will do you any good.
My personal advice is to use forums or the api refrence and firstly get familar with what different objects, data structures, instances, types are. When you learn what everything does you will be set. Dont forget to ask questions here, and always always experiment code by yourself. You have an error in the code you made from scratch? Figure out the problem and understand why it haplened and how to fix it. Good luck to you.
Well the best way to learn to code is to watch tutorials and use this forum. Theyre much more free than buying roblox coding books(which are actually great and i recommend if you feel like it), but alvinblox and thedevking are great.
Learn the basics first! Do NOT rush it, i made this mistake and tried to code big systems from day 1 because i thought i was so cool and it set me back. Learn loops, if statements, functions, what the different types of scripts are and how to use them, and how to use remote events.
I would recommend starting with learning GUI because its an important part of any game and an easy place to start.
Finally, if you really want to learn, watch basic fundamental tutorials and then try to make a small random game that is pretty basic. Just to test your skills and try to code systems on your own. IMPORTANT: Do not become too reliant on tutorials, it hurt me and it will hurt you.
Also, remember, trial and error is a crucial part of learning. So try not to get too frustrated and just try to figure it out by testing new things!
Anyways, good luck on your future endeavors and i hope you become famous one day and i can say, “I talked to that guy.” No buy for real, good luck!
You wanna pick a way that best works for you, because it’s not other people’s ways that will always work for you. Here are some popular methods to learn YouTube
Pros: Someone to walk you through each component of the thing you’re learning, you can also drop a comment to ask a question
Cons: Your questions may not always be answered owing to the mass base of the viewers. Documentation
Pros: It has the latest reference to each and every component in Roblox studio, I kid you not, every single thing. Which is why it’s the go to if you come across a scripting term you do not understand like :SetNetworkOwner (wth is that )
Cons: Sometime the reference is just so vague and they do not elaborate much. They also sometimes use language that could be alien to you which you may not understand Devforum
Pros: People are actually always present to jump to help solve your problem (like here) and unlike youtube, you can guarantee that your question can get answered within 1-2 hours. It is also, unlike documentation, where the people use language that doesn’t come from outer space for you to understand better
Cons: Your post may take a very long time, if not never, to get solved. There are topics that were created in 2015 that were still not solved till now. So you need to be patient to get a solution Breaking down free models
Pros: Gain exposure to new scripting terms that you won’t be able to receive at your junior scripting levels. This method does hand-in-hand with the documentation which is a tool to learn what that term is. This method is also done at your own pace which is very convenient.
Cons: This method is often time-taking as you need a lot of patience to break down the model completely. So giving up using this method is not unheard of
Summary
There are various methods for you to learn lua successfully. While each method has its own charm, you need to pick up that suits your needs and time. If you have a lot of time and patience, go for breaking down free models. If you are willing to learn from the source and don’t mind vagueness, go for the docs. If you are patient enough to wait for help, learn from the dev forum. In the end, it boils down to how you want to learn. But the most important thing out of all is to practice. All these methods are pointless if you don’t practice everyday so make sure to practice. You will become a good scripter in no time!
I learnt scripting through community college courses in C++ and Python. Having a basis in high level programming languages certainly made the transition to Luau much easier, but it isn’t necessary. I say knowing the basics in Lua is already enough to start scripting whatever ideas you’ve got floating around.
It seems a bit intimidating to start working on a game when you’re barely know anything, but to be honest, I don’t know what I’m doing either. When I started working on my game, if I ran into a road block, I’d Google some solutions and stumble my way into various classes in the API documentation. This is how I learnt about raycasting, CFrames, and a whole host of other concepts. In short, I strongly believe that just doing it is the best way to learn. It’s been working well so far, so I wouldn’t change a thing.
That said, this reply is no better than the videos trying to sell you an easy way to learn Luau. I won’t bore you in repeating what Ascention and DrMystery have already said; they’re both right that there’s no one-size-fits-all way of learning. Start experimenting. I’m sure both of us are excited to see what you’ll create.
Thank you to everyone who took the time to respond! I have read all of them and appreciate all of you! I will keep you all updated on my progress (By posting on my page that is). Thanks again and have an excellent rest of your days! I hope to one day look back and say that all of you were the foundation of my success.
been developing games for about 3 years entirely for fun. never been serious about it necessarily until recently. been scripting for about a year and recently started understanding a lot more. here’s how my journey went:
start: tutorials.
went on YouTube and watched countless tutorials on systems I was looking for, etc. I never took the free models and would follow the scripting, adjusting it for what I needed based off of whatever knowledge I had.
middle: burning out.
made multiple small projects and got so fed up with errors.
eventually, I gave up for a few months.
3 months ago - now
finally, here I am. getting into deeper understandings of code, reading the forum, scripting more advanced systems off of what I’ve learned.
tutorials were definitely not the way for me. it was good at the very beginning but now they’re practically useless since I can create and modify my own scripts.
hopefully I continue to improve at this, I have a great idea for a huge project coming soon. inspired from epic mini games, I just want to make my own version of that game with various different maps, etc.
luck wished to any beginning developers out there!
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