What is the most effective way to learn to play the piano without lessons?

Question:I don't have money for lessons but i would love to learn how to play the piano. Is there a good book or computer program that is effective or that you would recommend?
Also i have a large keyboard and not an actual piano, does that make much of a difference?
Is it too late for me to start learning now? I am 19 and have been told by some people that it is too late to start now. Any advice or opinions would be appreciated thank you!

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: I don't have money for lessons but i would love to learn how to play the piano. Is there a good book or computer program that is effective or that you would recommend?
Also i have a large keyboard and not an actual piano, does that make much of a difference?
Is it too late for me to start learning now? I am 19 and have been told by some people that it is too late to start now. Any advice or opinions would be appreciated thank you!

It's never too late to learn! I have a keyboard too and I taught myself how to play, well partly play...I can't use my left hand just yet, but I'm getting there! There are a lot of sites that can help you learn keyboard/piano. You can Google it and there are even lots of Youtube videos also. The site I use most often is 8notes.com. It offers everything from online metronome, free sheet music for all instruments, and even training for scales, piano notes, and chords. It's a very helpful site and I highly recommend it! Well, I hope this helped you some and good luck! =)

good for you! gosh no, its not too late. i also have a friend who's starting to play piano rite now and hes about as old as you are. i think that some good ways to to teach yourself are to listen to some pianists. i recommend Yiruma. they can help inspire you to keep at learning.

its never too late to learn anything so dont listen to those people!!! i wanna learn violin on my own and im nearly 25! go for it

I have a 65-year-old student who just started lessons in January. She's having a blast!

Alfred Publishing makes several really good method books that are very easy to understand. Their Basic Adult Method, as well as their book called "Play Piano Now!", are both pretty good. I'd recommend either one of them if you're determined to teach yourself. (I'd recommend getting a teacher, though, if there's any way you can afford it).

The hardest thing about teaching yourself if that you lose the accountability that the teacher provides. There's nobody staying on you to practice, nobody keeping you moving forward. The teacher can help you understand the concepts in the book, to make sure your learning everything correctly. The teacher will hear mistakes in your playing long before you do.

But if you must do it on your own: Set up a practice schedule for yourself. Give yourself weekly goals. "I will learn these three songs this week." "I will fix the rhythm problems in this area this week." etc. If you give yourself weekly deadlines, like a teacher would, it might help you keep moving forward.