CS201 Short Notes

What is C++?

C++ is a cross-platform language that can be used to create high-performance applications.

C++ was developed by Bjarne Stroustrup, as an extension to the C language.

C++ gives programmers a high level of control over system resources and memory.

The language was updated 3 major times in 2011, 2014, and 2017 to C++11, C++14, and C++17.

Why Use C++

C++ is one of the world's most popular programming languages.

C++ can be found in today's operating systems, Graphical User Interfaces, and embedded systems.

C++ is an object-oriented programming language which gives a clear structure to programs and allows code to be reused, lowering development costs.

C++ is portable and can be used to develop applications that can be adapted to multiple platforms.

C++ is fun and easy to learn!

As C++ is close to C# and Java, it makes it easy for programmers to switch to C++ or vice versa

Get Started

This tutorial will teach you the basics of C++.

It is not necessary to have any prior programming experience.

C++ Get Started

To start using C++, you need two things:

A text editor, like Notepad, to write C++ code A compiler, like GCC, to translate the C++ code into a language that the computer will understand There are many text editors and compilers to choose from. In this tutorial, we will use an IDE (see below).

C++ Install IDE

An IDE (Integrated Development Environment) is used to edit AND compile the code.

Popular IDE's include Code::Blocks, Eclipse, and Visual Studio. These are all free, and they can be used to both edit and debug C++ code.

Note: Web-based IDE's can work as well, but functionality is limited.

We will use Code::Blocks in our tutorial, which we believe is a good place to start.

You can find the latest version of Codeblocks at . Download the mingw-setup.exe file, which will install the text editor with a compiler.

C++ Quickstart

Let's create our first C++ file.

Open Codeblocks and go to File > New > Empty File.

Write the following C++ code and save the file as myfirstprogram.cpp (File > Save File as):

int main() {

return 0;

Don't worry if you don't understand the code above - we will discuss it in detail in later chapters. For now, focus on how to run the code.

In Codeblocks, it should look like this: Then, go to Build > Build and Run to run (execute) the program. The result will look something to this:

Process returned 0 (0x0) execution time : 0.011 s Press any key to continue.

Congratulations! You have now written and executed your first C++ program.

When learning C++ at , you can use our " Run Example" tool, which shows both the code and the result. This will make it easier for you to understand every part as we move forward:

Code:

int main() {

return 0;