Rhiannon,
Interesting enough, programming a computer is common to all languages as it's a language of it's own depending on the language you are programming in.....not dependent at all on the language you speak.....codes do certain things & get put together in certain ways to accomplish certain functions....not forming any type of written communication language.....& actually when you get right down to in in the computer....all it is are 1's & 0's that make the computer run even when it's written in a programming language...lol.

Marjan
Think you would be better off not just telling him you are finished with the documentation & sit there reading other things until he comes to you. If you really want to show him your initiative, you need to immediately go to him & ask him what part of the programming project you can be assigned to. Managers don't like it when the emloyees don't show drive.....that's when they tend to give them the junk assignments & give those that show more drive the good parts of the project.....know that's how it worked when I was an engineer.

I know what it's like to not like where you are working also....hard to show that kind of drive & initiative when you aren't happy with your surroundings.....but if engineering positions are as slim pickings as they were almost 18 years ago....sometimes you just have to deal with it & even fake it if you really want the choice parts to work on.

Noticed you are in Los Angeles......that was where I was living when I was an engineer also.....but in the San Fernando Valley....north of the City of LA