Thread: Help: Which programming language is most suitable for process optimization?

I am a beginner computer programming fan. My currently challenge is to help our community to optimize the process and course of action of building a snooker room. Basically I just need to illustrate and convince (but forget Microsoft Powerpoint for the moment, I need something more data/facts driven than fancy slides!), but some of these procedures are under tight deadline constraints, so preferably I can program and integrate all the factors into the timeline. I first looked to Microsoft Project, but it is way too unintuitive and unwieldy, plus its forbidden price which neither me nor our community want to invest. Can anybody suggest a relatively easy programming capable or good at this kind of thing? To be specific, Java vs. Visual Basic, which one is better? Please do include some explanations rather than just a simple A or B. Thanks.

Originally Posted by helloworld922

I'm somewhat confused at what it is you're after... are you trying to design an actual snooker room and then go about building it? If that's the case, what you want is CAD software and Architecture/Civil Engineering experience rather than computer science. Good CAD software is not cheap, and unless you're a trained engineer, you can't implement your design in real life (best to just hire a construction company).

If you want a timeline, use something as simple as Excel (or if you're like me and don't want to pay for Microsoft Office, use Open Office Calc. It's just as good and completely free and open source). These will let you create a quick timeline with nice graphs much quicker (and very likely better) than using Java or Visual Basic, especially for beginner programmers.

From a general programming standpoint, both Visual Basic and Java have their pros and cons. Personally I prefer Java for most programming tasks because it's a much more powerful language than Visual Basic (I am quite biased, I haven't used Visual Basic much). I also tend to think that Java is more "intuitive", though that could be because I come from a C/C++ background which has the same basic syntax as Java.

Visual Basic was designed to integrate well with some Microsoft programs (such as Microsoft Office), and you'll have a hard time using Java to manipulate these programs in a similar fashion (sometimes it may not even be possible).

Each tool has it's uses, so decide what it is you want to do, then weigh the pros/cons of the different tools you have available before choosing which one to use.

Thank you helloworld922. No I'm not designing a room. Basically, it is a project that involves many threads of information: finance, timing, human resources, and expected benefits for the local people, and of course, profits for community.I want to write a simple program that can integrate all those thread together, without needing to open different files every now and then when the meeting is held.
Thanks for the hint on excel and Calc, I will check it out. I probably go for Calc because my computer is very slow and I need to run it on Linux. By the way, is Gambus analogous to Visual Basic in terms of integration with OpenOffice? Many thanks!