I didn't learn programming when I was 12

It's good to know there are others out there (though I'm even later in the game - I'm 22.)

I don't know what it was - I was always surrounded by the Internet and always fascinated by the Internet, but I never breached that gap. I guess my attention span was too short.

But honestly it's a lot easier to learn now. You don't have to go read tons of stuff to get started, with the likes of Codecademy you can start programming immediately and learn by doing with a little bit of structure. That's been all the difference for me.

Best of luck to the OP.

I started learning when I was 30. It's now one year later. I don't feel its too late at all.

Age doesn't matter. I'm 18 and I started when I was 14 or 15, not when I was 12. The nice thing about programming is that most people in developed countries already have most of what they need to start doing it: a computer, an internet connection, and the desire to build something cool. I was drawn to programming because I liked (still do, actually) to build cool things.

I started out trying to make robots but the mental and physical costs were too high. My father works with furniture but even with his resources and expertise building anything all that interesting took more skill than I cared to learn. Programming let me do cool things within a couple of hours of starting out. I still feel like I took the "easy" way out compared to a physical craft like woodworking or electrical engineering, and I'd like to learn more about those at some point. For now, programming will have to do.

EDIT: spacing.

It's never too late to start, especially today when the barrier to entry is so low (austenallred mentioned Codecademy, I also recommend Treehouse: http://teamtreehouse.com/). The important thing is that you're making the effort, and I applaud you for it.

Yes. In early twenties programming was just a part of job. Never did/thought anything about it after the office. But gradually it started feeling like that you've a super power without being aware of it. I think a lot of it has to do with the awareness of the 'community' - there are others like you feeling the same ecstasies and going through same problems. You can see passion getting transferred. SO and HN facilitated a lot in developing this sense in me.