Best non-classroom way to learn to program?

Python will be the easiest of the three to learn...

http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Python_Programming

Hello world in the three different languages...

Python:

#!/usr/bin/env python
print "Hello, World!"

Java:

class HelloWorld {
public static void main(String[] args) {
System.out.println("Hello World!" );
} }

public static void main(String[] args);

C++:

#include <iostream>
using namespace std;

int main ()
{
cout << "Hello World!";
return 0;
}

Yes, and no...

Basic is a perfectly acceptable first language depending upon your needs. If your goal is to learn a modern object oriented programming language, then no, basic is not the right choice. However there is something to be said for simplicity as your first language. If not we would all be learning assembler, forth, or machine language as our first language.

I personally think that learning Java, or C++ as a first language sets the learner up for a hard time. They are both object oriented languages but they are heavily influenced by functional programming. Ruby, Python, Smalltalk and others like them have greater emphasis on object oriented design and implementation. The higher level languages also take some of the grunt work out of programming. You have less syntax to learn, and can focus more on the fundamentals of programming.

If the ultimate goal is to program for the web, then a programming language such as Ruby, Python, Javascript or Java would be more appropriate. If they are wanting to program for desktop application then C++, Python or VisualBasic might be the best way to go.

The reason I suggested Python is that it is easy to learn, its very object oriented, it is well suited to the web, or as a desktop language, and it has lots of Monty Python references in the documentation.

Actually Ruby fits a lot of those criteria as well, but he specifically mentioned python in his first post.

Java or C# are both good languages, and both similar enough that you could learn one and pick up the other without too much relearning. VB.NET (I assume you don't mean VB 6.0 or VBA) is much too wordy a language IMO. You will learn the same .NET framework in both VB.Net and C#, but the latter will be better on a resume/CV, since more software is developed in C#. Learning both is better still.