The C++ Programming Language

Click below to go directly to a specific section:
History | Significant Language Features | Areas of Application | Sample Programs
Related Links | Printed References | Acknowledgments

History

The C++ programming languages is an extension of C that was developed by Bjarne Stroustrup in the early 1980s at Bell Laboratories. C++ provides a number of features that "spruce up" the C language, but more importantly, it provides capabilities for object-oriented programming.

Significant Language Features

Object-oriented programs are easier to understand, correct and modify. Many other object-oriented languages have been developed, including most notably, Smalltalk. The best features of C++ are:

C++ is a hybrid language-it is possible to program in either a C-like style, an object-oriented style, or both.
C++ programs consist of pieces called classes and functions. You can program each piece you may need to form a C++ program. The advantage of creating your own functions and classes is that you will know exactly how they work. You will be able to examine the C++ code.

Areas of Application

C++ provides a collection of predefined classes, along with the capability of user-defined classes. The classes of C++ are data types,which can be instantiated any number of times. Class definitions specify data objects (called data members) and functions (called member function). Classes can name one or more parent classes, providing inheritance and multiple inheritance, respectively. Classes inherit the data members and member functions of the parent class that are specified to be inheritable. Therefore it is mainly used for:

Software Engineering
Graphics

Sample Programs

Related Links

CIS290 C++ Programming Language
Course description. Taught at the University of Michigan- Dearborn.
Comp.Lang.C++
This site has FAQ's in this newsgroup.
Comp.Std.C++ frequently asked questions
This site contains: Administrative issue, C++ standard and the standardization committee, the C++ language.
FAQ on C++
This site contains: An extensive FAQ on C++.
C/C++ User Journal
This site is the homepage for the C/C++ User's Journal.
C/C++ Home Page
This site has various articles and tutorials on C and C++.
Inquiry.com - Answers for IT professionals
Contains various information on C++ and several other languages.

Printed References

H.M. DEITEL/P.J. DEITEL(1994). C++ How to Program. PRENTICE HALL, Englewood cliffs, New Jersey.
Robert W. Sebesta, Third edition, (1996). Concepts of Programming Languages. Addison-Wesley Publishing, CA.

Acknowledgments

The Hello World! program was written with the help of the Hello, World Page!.

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Last modified: 11:07 PM on 11/13/1999

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