Continuing from this question (new question - now unrelated)
So I have a thorough background in programming already (algorithms, math, logic, graphing problems, etc.) however I've never attempted to code a game before. In fact, I've never had anything more than minimal input from a user during the execution of a program. Generally input was given from a file or passed through console, all necessary functions were performed, then the program terminated with an output. I decided to try and get in on the world of game development. From several posts I've seen around gamedev.stackexchange.com XNA seems to be a favorite, and it was recommended to me when I asked where to start.
I've downloaded and installed Visual Studio 2010 along with the XNA Framework and now I can't seem to get moving in the right direction.
I started out looking on Google for "xna game studio tutorial", "xna game development beginners", "my first xna game", etc. I found lots of crap. The official "Introduction to Game Studio 4.0" gave me this (plus my own train of thought happily pasted on top thanks to MSPaint):
http://tinypic.com/r/2w1sgvq/7
The "Get Additional Help" link (my best guess, since there was no "Continue" or "Next" link) lead me to this page:
http://tinypic.com/r/2qa0dgx/7
I tried every page. The forum was the only thing that seemed helpful, however searching for "beginner", "newbie", "getting started", "first project", and similar on the forums turned up many threads with specific questions that are a bit above my level ("beginner to collision detection", for instance)
Disappointed I returned to the XNA Game Studio home page. Surely their own website would have some introduction, tutorial, or at least a useful link to a community. EVERYTHING on their website was about coding Windows Phone 7.... Everything.
http://tinypic.com/r/10eit8i/7
http://tinypic.com/r/120m9gl/7
Giving up on any official documentation after a while, I went back to Google. I managed to locate www.xnadevelopment.com. The website is built around XNA Game Studio 3.0, but how different can 3.0 be from 4.0?.... Apparently different enough.
http://tinypic.com/r/5d8mk9/7
http://tinypic.com/r/25hflli/7
Figuring that this was the correct folder, I right-clicked....
http://tinypic.com/r/24o94yu/7
Hmm... maybe by "Add Content Reference" they mean "Add a reference to an existing file (content)"? Let's try it (after all- it's my only option)
http://tinypic.com/r/2417eqt/7
At this point I gave up. I'm back. My original goal in my last question was to create a keyboard-navigable 3D world (no physics necessary, no logic or real game necessary). After my recent failures my goal has been revised. I want to display an image on the screen.
Hopefully in time I'll be able to move it with the keyboard.
