Chapter 6: The C++ Language

 

Choosing a Language

 

You might have thought this section was dedicated to my convincing you to use C++.  I won’t.  If you’re reading this book then you must already want or are required to learn C++.  But!  I would like to lay down some of my own opinions that have been boiled out of my brain after reading several websites and books on C++.  And these don’t just apply to C++, but to all languages and the zealous opinions of their blind followers and hateful enemies.  Although I have my biases and preference, I would like to think I am open-minded about programming languages; at least much more than I used to be.  In fact I am a recovering opinionated evangelist – some never recover from this!

 

The result of using a particular programming language is very minor compared to the result of the programmer’s skill.  You could very well make an Assembler program slower than the slowest Java applets and likewise a Java application that is faster than Microsoft Office (not too great a task J).  Every programming language has its own potentials of grace and pit-fall, but these in themselves are only potentials.  They must be realized by the programmer.  And sometimes there are things beyond even that control.  For example an exceedingly computationally-rich application will be slow in any language.

 

To be done:

History of C++

 

I will save this section for later … you can find this information anywhere and it doesn’t take a genius to understand it.