Want to learn how to program in C++ immediately? Want to start writing better, more powerful C++ programs today? Accelerated C++'s uniquely modern approach will help you learn faster and more fluently than you ever believed possible. Based on the authors' intensive summer C++ courses at Stanford University, Accelerated C++ covers virtually every concept that most professional C++ programmers will ever use -- but it turns the "traditional" C++ curriculum upside down, starting with the high-level C++ data structures and algorithms that let you write robust programs immediately. Once you're getting results, Accelerated C++ takes you "under the hood," introducing complex language features such as memory management in context, and explaining exactly how and when to use them. From start to finish, the book concentrates on solving problems, rather than learning language and library features for their own sake. The result: You'll be writing real-world programs in no time -- and outstanding code faster than you ever imagined.
We assume that you want to learn quickly how to write useful C++ programs. Therefore, we start by explaining the most useful parts of C++. This strategy may seem obvious when we put it that way, but it has the radical implication that we do not begin by teaching C, even though C++ builds on C. Instead, we use high-level data structures from the start, explaining only later the foundations on which those data structures rest. This approach lets you to begin writing idiomatic C++ programs immediately.
Accelerated C : Practical Progra
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Our approach is unusual in another way: We concentrate on solving problems, rather than on exploring language and library features. We explain the features, of course, but we do so in order to support the programs, rather than using the programs as an excuse to demonstrate the features.
Because this book teaches C++ programming, not just features, it is particularly useful for readers who already know some C++, and who want to use the language in a more natural, effective style. Too often, people new to C++ learn the language mechanics without learning how to apply the language to everyday problems.
Our approach works--for beginners and experienced programmers We used to teach a week-long intensive C++ course every summer at Stanford University. We originally adopted a traditional approach to that course: Assuming that the students already knew C, we started by showing them how to define classes, and then moved systematically through the rest of the language. We found that our students would be confused and frustrated for about two days--until they had learned enough that they could start writing useful programs. Once they got to that point, they learned quickly.
When we got our hands on a C++ implementation that supported enough of what was then the brand-new standard library, we overhauled the course. The new course used the library right from the beginning, concentrated on writing useful programs, and went into details only after the students had learned enough to use those details productively.
The results were dramatic: After one day in the classroom, our students were able to write programs that had taken them most of the week in the old course. Moreover, their frustration vanished.
Abstraction Our approach is possible only because C++, and our understanding of it, has had time to mature. That maturity has let us ignore many of the low-level ideas that were the mainstay of earlier C++ programs and programmers.
We define abstraction as selective ignorance--concentrating on the ideas that are relevant to the task at hand, and ignoring everything else--and we think that it is the most important idea in modern programming. The key to writing a successful program is knowing which parts of the problem to take into account, and which parts to ignore. Every programming langauge offers tools for creating useful abstractions, and every successful programmer knows how to use those tools.
This statement is not as paradoxical as it sounds. No book this size can contain everything you'll ever need to know about C++, because different programmers and applications require different knowledge. Therefore, any book that covers all of C++--such as Stroustrup's The C++ Programming Language (Addison-Wesley, 2000)--will inevitably tell you a lot that you don't need to know. Someone else will need it, even if you don't.
On the other hand, many parts of C++ are so universally important that it is hard to be productive without understanding them. We have concentrated on those parts. It is possible to write a wide variety of useful programs using only the information in this book. Indeed, one of our reviewers, who is the lead programmer for a substantial commercial system written in C++, told us that this book covers essentially all of the facilities that he uses in his work.
Using these facilities, you can write true C++ programs--not C++ programs in the style of C, or any other language. Once you have mastered the material in this book, you will know enough to figure out what else you want to learn, and how to go about it. Amateur telescope makers have a saying that it is easier to make a 3-inch mirror and then to make a 6-inch mirror than to make a 6-inch mirror from scratch.
We cover only standard C++, and ignore proprietary extensions. This approach has the advantage that the programs that we teach you to write will work just about anywhere. However, it also implies that we do not talk about how to write programs that run in windowing environments, because such programs are invariably tied to a specific environment, and often to a specific vendor. If you want to write programs that will work only in a particular environment, you will have to turn elsewhere to learn how to do so--but don't put this book down quite yet! Because our approach is universal, you will be able to use everything that you learn here in whatever environments you use in the future. By all means, go ahead and read that book about GUI applications that you were considering--but please read this one first.
When you learn a new programming language, you may be tempted to write programs in a style that is familiar from the languages that you already know. Our approach seeks to avoid that temptation by using high-level abstractions from the C++ standard library right from the start. If you are already an experienced C or C++ programmer, this approach contains some good news and some bad news--and it's the same news. The news is that you are likely to be surprised at how little of your knowledge will help you understand C++ as we present it. You will have more to learn at first than you might expect (which is bad), but you will learn more quickly than you might expect (which is good). In particular, if you already know C++, you probably learned first how to program in C, which means that your C++ programming style is built on a C foundation. There is nothing wrong with that approach, but our approach is so different that we think you'll see a side of C++ that you haven't seen before.
Structure of this book You may find it convenient to think of this book as being in two parts. The first part, through Chapter 7, concentrates on programs that use standard-library abstractions. The second part, starting with Chapter 8. talks about defining your own abstractions.
Presenting the library first is an unusual idea, but we think it's right. Much of the C++ language--especially the harder parts--exists mostly for the benefit of library authors. Library users don't need to know those parts of the language at all. By ignoring those parts of the language until the second part of the book, we make it possible to write useful C++ programs much more quickly than if we had adopted a more conventional approach.
Getting the most out of this book Every book about programming includes example programs, and this one is no different. In order to understand how these programs work, there is no substitute for running them on a computer. Such computers abound, and new ones appear constantly--which means that anything we might say about them would be inaccurate by the time you read these words. Therefore, if you do not yet know how to compile and execute a C++ program, please visit and see what we have to say there. We will update that website from time to time with information and advice about the mechanics of running C++ programs. The site also offers machine-readable versions of some of the example programs, and other information that you might find interesting.
I need to learn C++. Because I like the book's concept and I can already program in several other languages I thought "Accelerated C++: Practical Programming by Example" would be the best choice. However, the book is over 12 years old. Is it still a good idea to pick it up or would I be missing too many important new features of the language?
It remains one of the best books around. It's based on C++98, but C++03 is more bug fixes than anything else, and most programmers can't use anything more recent anyway. As with most languages that have been around for awhile, recent evolutions can be thought of as either fine tuning, or additional features to handle new issues (like threading).
The 12-month Accelerated Baccalaureate Program is designed for students who have already completed a bachelor's degree, either at the State University of New York at Stony Brook or another comparable institution. The concentrated nursing curriculum leads to a Bachelor of Science degree with a major in nursing. Graduates of the program are eligible to sit for the NCLEX-RN exam.
What you may not instantly realise is how radical their approach to learning C++ would be. The declared target readership is those that are either very quick studies, or who have prior experience of some form of programming.
Whilst the full range of the Standard C++ Library is introduced early and on a basis of need (and that includes early introduction of STL containers, algorithms etc.) writing your own template types is just covered lightly later on. I believe this is entirely correct. All C++ programmers should be using the tools provided by the language, but designing types, particularly generic types is not a necessity, and certainly not needed early on. The theme might be summarised as learn to use the tools provided before trying to design your own tools. 2ff7e9595c
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