roychang3 wrote: > Hey everyone, I was just wondering if anyone can suggest the best way > to learn C/C++. and what books. Thanks!
When you joined c-prog, you should have received an e-mail containing the group welcome message. In that message was a list of books that you should read. Just in case you missed the message, here is that list of books again and the order in which you should be reading them: "Accelerated C++" by Koenig and Moo (ISBN #020170353X) "Safe C++ Design Principles" by Thomas Hruska "The C++ Standard Library" by Nicolai Josuttis (ISBN #0201379260) "Effective C++" by Scott Meyers (ISBN #0201924889) "More Effective C++" by Scott Meyers (ISBN #020163371X) If you are learning or looking to learn C, consider learning C++ instead. It is much more versatile and offers powerful features that C doesn't offer. If you happen to be already reading something other than the books above, seriously consider supplementing or replacing your book with the above. If you can't afford the books mentioned, Bruce Eckel offers "Thinking in C++" for free from his website: http://www.eckelobjects.com/ And the group owner, Thomas Hruska, has generously donated his book "Safe C++ Design Principles" to c-prog group members for free: http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/c-prog/files/Books/ Beware any C/C++ author who does not adhere closely to the ANSI C/C++ Standard. One very popular author is Yashavant Kanetkar who is the author of "Let Us C". His writing may be simple to understand however his code is non-ANSI Standard. Similar great writers have shown up over the years who tell wonderful stories but don't adhere to the Standards defined by the ANSI C/C++ committees. You should also obtain at least copy of a draft copy of the ANSI C/C++ Standard. Draft copies are free and c-prog links to quite a few of them here: http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/c-prog/links/Standards_001012496381/ Additionally, you will need a C/C++ compiler suite. Finding a new compiler is quite easy. c-prog maintains a massive 'Links' section on its website. One of those sections is entitled "Compilers (free)": http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/c-prog/links/Compilers_000986587674/ There are hundreds of free compilers to choose from. However, there are just a handful that are popular, well supported, ANSI Standard, and free: Microsoft Visual C++ 2005 Express Bloodshed Dev-C++ MinGW gcc/g++ C++ compilers are usually backwards-compatible and will also compile C code. There are two commercial (non-free) compilers worth mentioning as well. Compilers that are not free have to provide a LOT of added value to justify their cost. Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 Professional - In general, if you plan on doing Microsoft Windows-specific GUI development (e.g. involving COM, ATL, MFC, Office, etc.), this is the development suite to have. Many developers enhance the environment with third-party tools such as Visual Assist X. Be prepared to pay Microsoft prices though. NOTE: Hold off on buying VS for a few more months. Orcas (VS2008) is just around the corner. Comeau C++ - This is the most ANSI Standards compliant compiler in existence. Period. And it is available for virtually every modern platform. They have an online code compiler so you can see if code that doesn't compile under your compiler but should will compile under theirs. And, of course, another great resource for learning is this amazing support group. Just watch the discussions and you'll learn a lot of things that can't be taught in books. Real professionals are on this list who write C/C++ code for a living...not some stuffy classroom lab exercise. -- Thomas Hruska CubicleSoft President Ph: 517-803-4197 *NEW* MyTaskFocus 1.1 Get on task. Stay on task. http://www.CubicleSoft.com/MyTaskFocus/
