C++ resources

[rANGER11]

Hey, I have been trying to teach myself c++ for quite some time now but I always fall short of finding good online resources for tutorials and examples, does any one have a good site that I can check out?

 

[xtra crispy]

Buy a book. Online resources can only go so far and most tend to just barely touch on topics. Try Teach Yourself C++ in 21 Days.

 

[esung]

Books from Waite Group Press, Wrox Press, and O'Relly are very good.

IMHO those "instant" programming books from Sams or Que can only teach you the mechanics of the programming, which is not enough.

 

[IJump]

I agree with esung, If you don't know how to think "like a programmer", learning the syntax of the language is not going to help much. I taught myself VB by hanging around as many of the programmer's "think sessions" as possible. I learned a lot about the programming logic that way. Then I got VB from the Ground Up. That taught me the language. It didn't take very long to learn VB. I also had a lot of help from experienced programmers when I had a question. In short:

1. Learn the logic of programming in general.
2. Learn C++.
3. Find a good resource to bounce questions off of when you need it. This is when online resources also come in handy.

Try www.planetsourcecode.com

 

[miniMUNCH]

If your new to C++, I strongly recommend "Beginning Visual C++ 6.0" from Wrox, think it was written by Igor Horton.

This book is excellent, teachee you C++ from the ground up with attention to detail then will give a solid intro to using MFC's, the active template library, and will introduce you to COM, ActiveX, and OLE...from there you can expand your knowledge in several different directions: COM + ATL, design patterns, data structures and algorithms, and hardware.

Don't forget...the more you know about hardware, that is: how your code will compile and what the CPU will actually do with the compiled instructions, the better you will be as a programmer / engineer.

PM me if you want several quality titles on these subjects.

 

[miniMUNCH]

Yes...like esung and IJump stated before me, syntax isn;t worth sh!t. I only know C/C++, and a wink of Pascal, ADA, and ASM. I also used to know BASIC. But I could laern any language I want within two or three weeks by just using it. I would not know all the little tricks, etc...that often takes a lot more time.

You must learn solid design skills and data structures to start...hardware is good too like I said above.

Here are some good books for design/structures/hardware:

Design Patterns - good design books to get you thinking!

Effective C++ CD - good tutorial suppliment for C++ beginners

Code Complete - good programming book for everybody

COM+ programming - haven't read it but heard it's really good, on my read list

The famous MIT algorithm/data strcuture monster

Bebop byte back - a truly amazing and fun intro to computer hardware If you program and don't how cpu's actually work then you really should read this book and do all the "labs". Most fun tech book I ever read!

And the intro C++ book:

Beginning Visual C++

 

[rANGER11]

thanks for all the help guys... I really liked the online links

 

[Pretender]

Y'know, it pains me to say it, but it worked for me, so I'll throw it up as advise (take with grain of salt, shake, stir, modify, call me in the morning):


1) Fvck the books. Books are great, they teach the facts, but that's all. If you rely on books, your ass might as well start working on something that actually requires multiple books - say, do you wanna learn theoretical quantum physics?

2) Read and write actual code. Download some pre-written, semi-complex code (my personal suggestion - CircleMUD. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not advocating major MUD playing, but a few years ago when I started programming in C/C++, I did so to program a MUD. I've stopped the MUD programming, but just dealing with the efficient, annoying code has taught me many lessons. Being able to see others' code and their tricks also helped.

3) Try it yourself. First, what do you want to do? Make games? Make business apps? Make windows-related apps? Whatever you want to do, just try to make it. Figure out what needs to be done, and how. Chances are someone has already done some, if not all, of what you want to do (the internet is a big place, and search engines are great. Learn them. Love them).

4) Do other stuff. When you get bored, do something else. Play a game, go to work, school, etc. As tempting as it is to stare at code for hours, the light which burns brightest burns fastest (or something like that), and you could find yourself frustrated at the whole ordeal.

Once again, this goes against what most people say, but that could be why most people give up on programming: because it's (or seems) "too hard". Will this work for you? Maybe, maybe not.

 

[miniMUNCH]

No, pretender, your absolutely right...you have to use the language and code regularly to really learn it.

That's why I recommend the Visual C++ book first...it has alot of dirty work in it. But must keep on programming otherwise reading is worthless. SO get a programming job/internship or something, screw around, make your computer crash like crazy...

The other books I think should be read as one progress...I haven't finished all of them yet!

 

[esung]

Pretender: you are right, but there are a lot of knowledge you need to acquire from the books and/or actual courses as well. Like the logics, algorithms, and theories. Of course nothing beats the actual hands on practice to gain the knowledge, but if you already know how to implement a quicksort or mergesort, you don't have to brainstorm until you drop dead to implement a efficent sorting algorithm. And it's hard to read from the actual code to understand how does a linked list function, or why you want a linked list instead of a static array. You'll also learn a good coding/implemeting styles which will speed up your time to write your program.

Again, those knowledge is nothing if you don't actually sit down and use them and write programs(and learn from other people's code).

 

[Pretender]

Don't get me wrong, classes are a good supplement IMHO. Actually, this year I took my first actual C++ class (AP comp sci), and it's filling in the gaps that simply reading and writing code has left. For example: Although I already knew the essence of linked lists, I was horrible (personal thing) with pointers, and strayed away from them completely. Now I can use them efficiently. It might just be a personal thing, but I think that if I'd started out my programming experience with the class instead of the way I did, I might've decided a different career path (I'm still only in high school, but I'll be sticking with programming). The class is so boring and also leaves out some gaps of its own - too theoretical and not enough actual coding.

 

[esung]

Pretender: don't worry, the colledge level compsci should make you sweat. They'll teach you all the stuff you need to know to do the job (unless the college totally suck!)