Golang Tutorial for Beginners | Full Go Course

Introduction

This tutorial is designed to introduce you to the Go programming language, commonly known as Golang. You'll learn the basics of Go while building a simple Command Line Interface (CLI) application. By the end of this tutorial, you'll understand why Go was developed, its unique characteristics, and how to write basic Go programs.

Step 1: Understand Go

• What is Go?
  Go is an open-source programming language that simplifies the process of building reliable and efficient software. It is designed for cloud engineering and concurrent programming.

• Why Go?
  Go is favored for its simplicity, performance, and strong support for concurrent programming. It's particularly useful in cloud services, web development, and DevOps.

• Characteristics of Go

  • Statically typed
  • Compiled language
  • Built-in support for concurrency
  • Simple and readable syntax

Step 2: Set Up Your Environment

• Install Go

  1. Download the Go installer from the official Go website.
  2. Follow the installation instructions specific to your operating system (Windows, macOS, or Linux).

• Choose an Editor
  Popular editors for Go development include:

  • Visual Studio Code
  • GoLand
  • Atom

Step 3: Write Your First Go Program

• Create a Go File

  1. Open your chosen editor.
  2. Create a new file named main.go.

• Basic Structure of a Go File

  package main
  
  import "fmt"
  
  func main() {
      fmt.Println("Hello, World!")
  }
  

• Run Your Program

  • Open your terminal or command prompt.
  • Navigate to the directory containing main.go.
  • Run the command:

    go run main.go
    

Step 4: Explore Variables and Constants

• Variables in Go
  Use the var keyword to declare variables.

  var name string = "John"
  

• Constants
  Use the const keyword for constants that do not change.

  const pi = 3.14
  

Step 5: Learn Data Types

• Common Data Types
  • Integers: int, int32, int64
  • Floating point: float32, float64
  • Strings: string
  • Booleans: bool

Step 6: Get User Input

• Using fmt.Scan
  To get user input, use:

  var input string
  fmt.Scan(&input)
  

Step 7: Understand Pointers

• What is a Pointer?
  A pointer is a variable that stores the memory address of another variable. Use the & operator to get the address.

  var a int = 58
  var p *int = &a
  

Step 8: Learn Control Structures

• Loops
  Use for to create loops.

  for i := 0; i < 5; i++ {
      fmt.Println(i)
  }
  

• Conditionals
  Use if and else statements for decision making.

  if a > 10 {
      fmt.Println("a is greater than 10")
  }
  

Step 9: Functions and Packages

• Define Functions

  func greet(name string) {
      fmt.Println("Hello, " + name)
  }
  

• Using Packages
  Organize your code into packages for better structure.

Step 10: Advanced Concepts

• Maps
  Use maps for key-value pairs.

  var scores = map[string]int{"Alice": 90, "Bob": 85}
  

• Structs
  Create custom data types.

  type Person struct {
      Name string
      Age  int
  }
  

• Goroutines
  Use goroutines for concurrent execution.

  go func() {
      fmt.Println("This runs concurrently")
  }()
  

Conclusion

This tutorial covered the essential aspects of Golang, from installation to writing your first program. You learned about variables, data types, control structures, functions, and more. As you continue to explore Go, consider building more complex applications and diving deeper into its concurrency features. For further learning, check out additional resources or courses to enhance your skills in Go programming.