As joeyh said, jumping to an IDE seems premature. But another problem is the lack of need. Back in 1980, there just were not that many games and other apps. A computer was more or less an extension of electronics and was driven by "How does this thing work?". Now, computers are appliances. And even the most reliable appliances, as the old Maytag adverts used to show, require trained "technicians". But I, too, wonder how to recupe that wonder of "How things work" for the up-and-coming ranks of hackers.