well .. if you just want to get a basic understanding of coding, .. maybe PHP would be good.
there is ALOT of support for it on the web, it is free, and an excellent place to get your feet wet.
www.php.net
it would be web scripting though.. which is not a bad place to start for a n00b.
once you make a little web page or 2, .. you can download MySQL and start messing around with database interactions. very easy with php.
www.mysql.com <-- also a free database
if you are running windows, just install IIS as your web server, and php will install automatically after that.
if you want to get into non web programming, then java or c# would be better. they are far more strict though.
sorry to throw another wrench in the gears, .. but that's my advice. php to start. it's great for a beginner, .. and can be very powerful for advanced users too.