Technology

C++

C++ is a programming language. C++ has certain characteristics over other programming languages. Most remarkable are:

Object-oriented programming The possibility to orientate programming to objects allows the programmer to design applications from a point of view more like a communication between objects that on a structured sequence of code. In addition it allows the reusability of code in a more logical and productive way.

Portability You can practically compile the same C++ code in almost any type of computer and operating system without hardly making changes. C++ is one of the most used and ported to different platforms programming language.

Brevity Code written in C++ is very short in comparison with other languages, since the use of special characters is preferred before key words, saving effort (and prolonging the life of our keyboards).

Modular programming An application's body in C++ can be made up of several source code files that are compiled separately and then linked together. Saving time since it is not needed to recompile the complete application when making a single change but only the file that contains it. In addition, this characteristic allows to link C++ code with code produced in other languages like Assembler or C.

C Compatibility Any code written in C can easily be included in a C++ program without hardly making changes.

Speed The resulting code from a C++ compilation is very efficient, due indeed to its duality as high-level and low-level language and to the reduced size of the language itself.

C++ is a simple and clear language in its expressions. It is true that a piece of code written with C++ may be seen by a stranger of programming a bit more cryptic than other languages due to the intensive use of special characters ({}[]*&!|...), but once known the meaning of such characters it can be even more schematic and clear than other languages. Also, the simplification of the input/output interface of C++ in comparison with C for simple tasks, makes the communication in a program written in C++ does not to have anything to envy to the simplicity of other languages, without losing for that the power that offers this language.

ANSI-C++ is the name by it is known the international ANSI/ISO standard for the C++ language. To program adjusting to this standard means that your programs will enjoy a greater portability to other systems or interfaces that also support it.

So that a compiler fully supports the ANSI-C++ standard must, by logic, be newer than the publication of it, in November of 1997. Anyway many older compilers adjust to almost all the well-known criteria of the standard. If you have doubts check if your compiler supports the bool, using namespace and template keywords. You can use a program like the following one to do so: # include using namespace std; template bool ansisupported (T x) { return true; } int main() { if (ansisupported(1)) cout << "ANSI OK"; return 0; }

In order to make programs for Windows you need a C++ compiler that can link code for Windows and the libraries and include files necessary to develop applications for this environment.

Visual C++ is the name of a C++ compiler with an integrated environment from Microsoft. This one includes special tools that simplify the development of great applications, as well as specific libraries. Its use is known as visual programming. There are other similar environments with their own tools and libraries developed by other manufacturers, like Borland C++, Visual Age, etc...