You need to learn programming languages that the PS3 supports in order to write code that you can execute.
On the PS3, there are several languages that you can use to run your own code. You can for instance write javascript or actionscript which you can execute in the ps3 browser.
You can also execute Lua & java micro edition code.
However the only way to make executable files that can run on a PS3 with CFW or HEN is to use either C or C++ which are the minimum requirements to becoming a ps3 programmer.
You can learn the fundamentals of C/C++ on any platform, that's the good thing about languages, they are the same on PC, on a console or on a smartphone, the main differences are rather related to the environment & the libraries (precompiled code made available to other devs) at your disposal.
So you can learn the fundamentals of C, its instructions & concepts by running code on the console directly or decide for practical reasons to do that part on your smartphone (you just need a C/C++ compiler for Android (like cxxdroid)), then later move on to work on the PS3.
There are many ways to approach the learning of coding/developing.
To compile your code, you must use a PS3 SDK, it offers compiling tools, libraries & samples + documentation.
The psl1ght sdk is free & open source.
The full official sdk from Sony requires buying license.
Additionally, some knowledge of the lower level language assembly language called ppc used by the PS3 CPU (CellBE) can be necessary for a number of specific advanced programming tasks. But that would be for later...
