Other game creation techniques and programs/engines

 (If this doesn't go here, please move.)

(This is going to be cross-posted so I can get more ideas and opinions on the matter.)

As some of you may already know, I'm taking classes at college to learn about game programming and such. I'm currently working on an interactive entertainment certificate (which is great, but they're in limbo in the degree application process) and my school used to offer an associates degree in Interactive Game Programming. (It was scrapped due to insufficient enrollment issues.) I, now, see that the program has been reinstated. I was browsing through the courses and noticed that it takes more of a programming approach (whereas the certificate I'm going for puts more of an emphasis on logic and design).

What I'm getting at is: have you ever used programming languages like C#.NET, Flash (Actionscript), GDI (Graphics Device Interface), or DirectX? Would it be beneficial to learn all there is to know about game programming/design? What would you suggest in regards to computer system requirements (this laptop isn't powerful enough as it is)? I also see there are classes that require the student to make game playing robots....anyone ever heard of this? Thank you in advance for your input.

i use flash but actionscript is icky.
the robots you refer to are ai. your search bar does this to some extent guessing what you might want to see on the top of the list. for more info i suggest you add smarterchild@hotmail.com hes an ai bot

C+ and C++ is a pain to learn. There are also VisualBasic and Java.
Although, Actionscript is really useful nowadays where we see flash basically everywhere.

Game playing robots are not that hard to make, but only to a certain extent. Once you get pass the easy part, the rest will make your brain implode.

C+ and C++ is a pain to learn. There are also VisualBasic and Java.

There is no C+. It's C and C++. There is also C#, which is .NET based (Microsoft) nowadays, but can be used on Mac OS and Linux with a new-ish project named Mono. Visual Basic is an easier language than most, using a graphical environment to program user interfaces. The code is all basic English (no pun intended). However, VB can't be used as a language in robots or other devices, because it is Microsoft Windows-only. C++ is the language of all languages to learn, in my opinion. Delphi is also the greatest of all RAD (rapid application development) tools, like Visual Basic. It is far more advanced than Visual Basic, but takes much longer to learn.