What should I learn before learning coding ?

The most important question, before we learn anything

That’s an interesting question, and I often wonder why more people do not think like that. It always important to think in terms of prerequisites whenever trying to learn or build anything.

I teach Android and Web development at Coding Blocks — which is a software development bootcamp in New Delhi, India, and this is a question that I have to answer to many people (sometimes even when it’s not asked directly).

So the list is not too big.

• Mathematics — Not differential calculus or anything, but the basics should be good. Quadratic and linear equations should not be a problem for you. You should be able to see the math behind it when you look at most daily problems — like how to shop groceries for an impending house party.
• Boolean Algebra and Binary — Try to get a good understanding of thinking in binary — in YES and NO. In true and false. Wrap your head around how decisions are taken. Every choice we make is a binary one.
  You might like to read this — Ideas are bulletproof — Coding Blocks which expands on this idea.
• Also practice converting decimal numbers to binary and back, to get a grip on the binary number system.
• How Computers Work — There are many places to read up on this. If not clearly, but get a foggy idea of what processing, storage etc terms mean. What can a computer do and what I can’t.
  A computer can do arithmetic, process boolean logic, take binary decisions, and store data. That’s pretty much it. Having that in mind, goes a long way in making you a good coder.

Beyond these, there are no other major prerequisites for learning to code. I wish you all the luck in your endeavors and hope to see a great coder on the other side :)