Learning C++ Confusion
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Hello everyone, I hope you all can help me with my problem :). I decided to learn C++ because of it's power and because it's cross platform (I guess the typical reasons). I use Windows so that will be the platform I will be programming for until I learn enough to venture to other platforms. It seems everything related to Windows programming is going to managed .Net code. In light of this, what is the best way to learn C++ the language, not a platform or framework? As I understand from similar posts, in order to learn C++ for any platform, one must learn the language then the interested platforms/frameworks. Should I look into tools by Borland, use Visual Studio 6, or Visual Studio.Net? What books should I read? I am just generally confused on the process of learning C++ when the platform I will be programming for is making a drastic change. :P Any input on the learning process will be extremely helpful. Lonnie
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Hello everyone, I hope you all can help me with my problem :). I decided to learn C++ because of it's power and because it's cross platform (I guess the typical reasons). I use Windows so that will be the platform I will be programming for until I learn enough to venture to other platforms. It seems everything related to Windows programming is going to managed .Net code. In light of this, what is the best way to learn C++ the language, not a platform or framework? As I understand from similar posts, in order to learn C++ for any platform, one must learn the language then the interested platforms/frameworks. Should I look into tools by Borland, use Visual Studio 6, or Visual Studio.Net? What books should I read? I am just generally confused on the process of learning C++ when the platform I will be programming for is making a drastic change. :P Any input on the learning process will be extremely helpful. Lonnie
Generally, it does not matter what platform you work under when programming in C++ because each platform requires extensive knowledge and experience with the C++ language. Just pick a platform and learn it well. Then move to another platform. The key is to not jump around until you have mastered a platform. Kuphryn
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Hello everyone, I hope you all can help me with my problem :). I decided to learn C++ because of it's power and because it's cross platform (I guess the typical reasons). I use Windows so that will be the platform I will be programming for until I learn enough to venture to other platforms. It seems everything related to Windows programming is going to managed .Net code. In light of this, what is the best way to learn C++ the language, not a platform or framework? As I understand from similar posts, in order to learn C++ for any platform, one must learn the language then the interested platforms/frameworks. Should I look into tools by Borland, use Visual Studio 6, or Visual Studio.Net? What books should I read? I am just generally confused on the process of learning C++ when the platform I will be programming for is making a drastic change. :P Any input on the learning process will be extremely helpful. Lonnie
While it is true that Longhorn promotes managed code, there is backward compatibility the Win32 API. Without it, I don't think anyone would upgrade to Longhorn to see hundreds (or thousands) of dollars of legacy software not run on their new system. Also, just look on this site...there is a lot of good public domain C++/MFC code that likely won't be "ported" to managed code anytime soon. There are a lot of solidly written apps that rely on MFC which would be expensive to rewrite in managed code. So while it is true that MS is pushing the industry hard in the managed code direction, it has to overcome a tremendous amount of inertia. The history books haven't been written yet. So don't worry, start with learning the core C++ language (many good books) including standard C/C++ library and STL. The direction you take from there can be many depending on your goals (i.e Win32 API, MFC, .NET, WinFX, device drivers/Native API, COM/ATL, etc.).
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While it is true that Longhorn promotes managed code, there is backward compatibility the Win32 API. Without it, I don't think anyone would upgrade to Longhorn to see hundreds (or thousands) of dollars of legacy software not run on their new system. Also, just look on this site...there is a lot of good public domain C++/MFC code that likely won't be "ported" to managed code anytime soon. There are a lot of solidly written apps that rely on MFC which would be expensive to rewrite in managed code. So while it is true that MS is pushing the industry hard in the managed code direction, it has to overcome a tremendous amount of inertia. The history books haven't been written yet. So don't worry, start with learning the core C++ language (many good books) including standard C/C++ library and STL. The direction you take from there can be many depending on your goals (i.e Win32 API, MFC, .NET, WinFX, device drivers/Native API, COM/ATL, etc.).
Thanks to both of you for replying. Your answers helped a great deal. Now it's time to get busy. But one thing though. In light of the fact unmanaged code isn't going anywhere anytime soon and it's the language that counts, does it really matter what version of Visual Studio I use to learn or program in C++? I have Visual Studio 6 Pro and would rather invest in books and learning material than another IDE. Besides, all the books I've looked at for C++, the language not MS Visual C++, have never said anything about what tools or compiler to use and that confused me too. Lonnie
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Thanks to both of you for replying. Your answers helped a great deal. Now it's time to get busy. But one thing though. In light of the fact unmanaged code isn't going anywhere anytime soon and it's the language that counts, does it really matter what version of Visual Studio I use to learn or program in C++? I have Visual Studio 6 Pro and would rather invest in books and learning material than another IDE. Besides, all the books I've looked at for C++, the language not MS Visual C++, have never said anything about what tools or compiler to use and that confused me too. Lonnie
Many introductory C++ programming books try to stay platform/compiler independent. So you are left figuring out your IDE on your own. Or worse yet, if you don't have an IDE then you will have to figure out how to build on the command line...ouch! Okay, I admit I tinker around with gcc but only for fun of it.;P I use VS .NET Pro 2003. Whether you use the .NET framework or not, in my opinion, this is a major improvement over the VC 6.0 for several reasons. Its compliance with the ISO/ANSI C++ Standard is just shy of 100%. Improved Intellisense. Improved debugger. Improved class browser (includes base classes, marcros, message maps). Improved IDE. More stable. MFC 7.0 is improvement over 6.0. Probably other reasons I can't think of right now. VC 6.0 is fine for learning the language, though. If you were going to buy one thing, I highly recommend Visual Assist from Whole Tomato (www.wholetomato.com). It's worth its weight in gold. You can still get the VC 6.0 version.