I am looking for a few pointers, I got pointed to this site.
My primary interest is network programming. I have done quite a bit of reading and experimenting and am familiar with mechanisms of most protocols. Now I want to start writing code. I read introductory stuff on python and grasped it well too. I had just started playing with the python modules, when I met somebody(with a tall reputation) at the local lug meeting who told me that I could always learn python very easily later but C was the language I must know, specially given my interest on network programming. I did some research and thought maybe the guy is right. So I've been with a k&r for 4 weeks now. It didn't intimidate me but I am progressing very very slowly and maybe that's why also slacking a bit. I am posting this because I'm at the stage where it's even worrying me now. I'm always thinking that in python i could be building stuff right now. I know python won't teach me low level things like memory management etc, but my progress is pain-stakingly slow in C.
Question: Should I continue battling with C like i'm now and write some working code in it or switch to python where i'll be at a bit more ease? Will a high level language spoil me too much to come back to C later?
I would recommend using Python. Because it is a higher level language than C, you can concentrate more on the "what" rather than the "how". This means that you can avoid the level of detail required by C in order to achieve what you need to get done right now.
This isn't to say that a low level of detail is never required. It certainly is, but at this time I'd recommend you ignore it and pick it up in the future, should you need to.
Network programming: Python vs. C for a complete beginner