C++ Programming Tutorial

C++ is a very popular and powerful programming language. It was developed by Bjarne Stroustrup in 1983 at Bell Laboratories as an extension of the C programming language. C++ is a general purpose language. C++ is the advanced version of C programming. C++ is used to develop web-based applications, desktop applications, games and so on.It supports different approaches to programming like procedural, object-oriented, functional, and so on. This makes C++ more powerful.

Features of C++

C++ is similar to the C language. It supports all the features offered with C with the addition to various other new features. Following are some of the most powerful features of C++:

  • Object-oriented: Unlike C is a procedural language, C++ is an object-oriented language. In C++, object-oriented concepts like data hiding, encapsulation, and data abstraction can easily be implemented using keyword class, private, public, and protected access specifiers. Object-oriented makes development and maintenance easier.
  • Platform or Machine Independent/Portable: Here, machine independent means the ability to transfer the program from one operating environment to another. For example, you have written a program in Microsoft Windows, and due to some reason you have to switch the environment to Linux. This program works the same as it did in windows. However, C++ is not platform independent.
  • Simple: C++ is user friendly. It provides a structural approach. If you are already familiar with C, then you don't have to worry about writing the program in C++. The syntax is quite similar to the C language. It has a rich set of library functions, data types, etc.
  • Mid-level/Intermediate programming language: C++ supports both low-level programming and high-level language so it is known as a mid-level and intermediate programming language. It is used to develop system applications such as kernel, driver, etc.
  • Compiler-based: C++ is a compiler-based programming language. This means that a program cannot be run without compilation. The resultant generated program is thus highly efficient and relatively much faster than PYTHON or JAVA, which is interpreter-based.
  • Dynamic Memory Allocation: Since C++ supports the use of pointers, it allows us to allocate memory dynamically. We may even use constructors and destructors while working with classes and objects in C++.

Structure of a C++ program

Here's a simple C++ code that prints "Hello, World!":

#include <iostream>
using namespace std;
int main() {
  cout << "Hello, World!";
  return 0;
}

Applications of C++

C++ is the most widely used programming language. Whether it is Windows, a web browser, developing games, or a video editing software, the uses of C++ can be found in almost all applications today. Some applications of C++ language are given below:

  • C++ is to develop operating systems. Most of the applications from Microsoft like Windows, Microsoft Office, IDE Visual Studio, and Internet Explorer are also written in C++.
  • Games are developed using C++. It simplifies the complexity of 3-D games and helps in resource optimization.
  • C++ is also used to develop GUI and desktop applications. The applications from Adobe like Photoshop, Illustrator, etc. are developed using C++.
  • Web browsers need to be fast in execution as the user does not like to wait for the page to load. C++ has faster execution, that is why most of the browsers are developed in C++ like Google Chrome, Mozilla, Safari, Opera, and many more.
  • C++ has faster speed, execution, closeness to the hardware, and multithreading support. It is perfect to develop banking applications.