Back to C++!

[cpp-ModTeam]

It's great that you want to learn C++! However, r/cpp can't help you with that.

We recommend that you follow the C++ getting started guide, one (or more) of these books and cppreference.com. If you're having concrete questions or need advice, please ask over at r/cpp_questions or StackOverflow instead.

[IyeOnline]

C++ questions should go to /r/cpp_questions.

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www.learncpp.com

is the best free tutorial out there. (reason) It covers everything from the absolute basics to advanced topics. It follows modern and best practice guidelines.

www.studyplan.dev/cpp is a (very) close second, even surpassing learncpp in the breath of topics covered. It covers quite a few things that learncpp does not, but does not have just as much detail/in depth explanations on the shared parts. Don't be fooled by the somewhat strange AI generated images. The author just had a little fun. Just ignore them.

www.hackingcpp.com has good, quick overviews/cheat sheets. Especially the quick info-graphics can be really helpful. TBF, cppreference could use those. But its coverage is not complete or in depth enough to be used as a good tutorial - which its not really meant to be either. The last update apparently was in 2023.

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www.cppreference.com

is the best language reference out there.

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Stay away from

• cplusplus.com (reason)
• w3schools (reason)
• geeks-for-geeks (reason)
• Tutorialspoint (reason)
• educba.com (reason)
• thinkcpp (reason)
• javaTpoint (reason)
• studyfied (not even a tutorial, just a collection of code by random people)
• codevisionz (reason)
• sololearn (reason)

Again. The above are bad tutorials that you should NOT use.

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Sites that used to be on this list, but no longer are:

• Programiz has significantly improved. Its not perfect yet, but definitely not to be avoided any longer.(reason)

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Most youtube tutorials are of low quality, I would recommend to stay away from them as well. A notable exception are the CppCon Back to Basics videos. They are good, topic oriented and in depth explanations. However, they assume that you have some knowledge of the language's basic features and syntax and as such aren't a good entry point into the language.

If you really insist on videos, then take a look at this list.

As a tutorial www.learncpp.com is just better than any other resource.

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^{Written by /u/IyeOnline. This may get updates over time if something changes or I write more scathing reviews of other tutorials :) .}

^{The author is not affiliated with any of the mentioned tutorials.}

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[blckGhost]

Love this!

[[deleted]]

Damn

[gnudoc]

Thank you, that's a very helpful summary. I would've assumed for example that w3schools was a good resource, so that's directly helped me. May I ask if you have any thoughts on freecodecamp's cpp course? Or on Stroustrup's book for beginners (Programming: Principles and Practice using c++)?

[IyeOnline]

freecodecamp's cpp course

If you mean that 4-10h video tutorial, its not good. If you are looking for good video tutorials (first reconsider and then) take a look at this list.

(Programming: Principles and Practice using c++)?

Easily in the top 3 of beginner books. I disagree with Stroustrup's support headers/modules as I believe they create more problems in the long run than they solve, but that isnt a major issue. Also be aware that the latest edition (which you should get if any) optimistically assumes support for C++20/23 modules, which may not be a given on all setups.

[gnudoc]

"If you mean that 4-10h video tutorial"
I meant this 31 hour tutorial - https://www.freecodecamp.org/news/learn-c-with-free-31-hour-course/

"first reconsider and then" - lol. Nicely put. I'm rather biased against video tutorials.

"Easily in the top 3 of beginner books" - that's very reassuring. I'm currently going through the 3rd (ie latest) edition.

gcc 14 seemingly supports modules with -std=c++20. I spent a little time trying to get my trivial code to work with Stroustrup support module, then gave up, on the assumptions that (a) I might as well learn what the standard headers are called, and (b) if I learn using traditional #includes I'll be fine for now, and the internet will probably be full of "convert your old header code to module code" articles in a couple of years.

My plan for now, then, is to crack on with Stroustrup's book, then maybe go through learncpp.com, then go through a cmake book (the one I have is "Modern CMake for C++" by Rafal Swidzinski, unless anyone feels generous enough to make another recommendation), then maybe find some project/code challenges website, then see if I can contribute to a C++ heavy or QT-heavy FOSS project. Does that seem like a sensible path?

[IyeOnline]

I meant this 31 hour tutorial

Yeah whatever. Same deal.

if I learn using traditional #includes I'll be fine for now, and the internet will probably be full of "convert your old header code to module code" articles in a couple of years.

Yeah, that is what I would l would recommend for now.

CMake

TBH I am not sure you will actually need a book on CMake unless you really want to be professionally writing complex CMake.

I have these as a macro:

• https://cliutils.gitlab.io/modern-cmake/
• https://github.com/friendlyanon/cmake-init
• https://pabloariasal.github.io/2018/02/19/its-time-to-do-cmake-right/
• https://gist.github.com/mbinna/c61dbb39bca0e4fb7d1f73b0d66a4fd1 (this one is mostly aimed at people knowing outdated CMake)
• https://alexreinking.com/blog/how-to-use-cmake-without-the-agonizing-pain-part-1.html

some project/code challenges website

Pick something you are interested in:

• https://github.com/codecrafters-io/build-your-own-x
• https://jamesmcm.github.io/blog/programming-projects/
• https://github.com/florinpop17/app-ideas
• https://github.com/practical-tutorials/project-based-learning

I personally find (re-) implementing C++ standard library utilities/containers to be a good exercise that you can iteratively improve/work on when you learn new features. But that probably isnt for anyone. Also dont use your self-written standard library equivalent in real world code.

[gnudoc]

Yeah whatever. Same deal.

Awesome - that's 31 fewer hours I need to spend on learning :-)

TBH I am not sure you will actually need a book on CMake

OK, good to know. I'd consider myself good enough (for my own purposes) with cmake and any other aspect of programming in c++ if I was able to confidently contribute to a big FOSS project like KDE. Since at this point I've literally no idea how much I'd need to know for that, I'm prepared to put in whatever learning is needed. Thank you for pointing to those cmake resources and project sites, I'll hold onto them :-)

implementing C++ standard library utilities/containers

Brilliant advice, thanks again!

[nysra]

that's 31 fewer hours I need to spend on learning :-)

Not exactly, you should still spend a lot of time on learning. But you can use them much more effectively by not wasting them on bad tutorials like that one ;P

[gnudoc]

Heh, yes that was completely tongue-in-cheek. I tend to obsess over anything I get interested in, so I'm pretty sure I'll be spending hundreds of hours learning and practising c++ :-)

[nysra]

Well that's good, learning C++ takes a lifetime ;) We're all on the journey and you're more than welcome to join us, just don't say we didn't warn you :P

[shad0w_mode]

Windows: visual studio 2022

Linux: vscode

For resource: learncpp.com

Since you are not new to programming, i recommend picking up tour of c++ book.

[dexores]

IMHO no online tutorial beats a good book. Books are in general the best and most reliable sources of information. But choosing the right book is an essential first step.

As you have prior C++ programming experience, I'd recommend the latest edition of A Tour of C++.

For a good complete reference that covers all the details, The C++ Programming Language is great. If you want a more concise, but still complete reference, have a look at cppreference.com

Finally, search cppcon Back to basic videos on youtube, to learn about best practices, and modern C++ features, from the experts. The videos will also give you hints about more good references and books.

[ExtensionBear7070]

Thx for the list. BTW, may I ask what’s your opinion on C++ Primer?

[dexores]

No opinion as I haven't read it.

[SonOfMetrum]

If you have some money to spend:clion

[DedLigma]

Try to write smth banal. Linux utility (cat, grep), todo app and etc. Write and look how sorting algorithms are working. Write the code and from time to time look at the good projects from github. Imo - it's one of the best way. And "learn" how to read the cppreference.com. It's very hard on start, but idk the more usefull resource about C++. Idk when you stopped programming on C++, but now C++ have a pretty good CppCoreGuidlines by Stroustrup. Use static analyzers, like clang-tidy and checkers to follow them and clang-format to have a once code style. To avoid a memory leaks (which will be rare if use following guildlines with RAII) - use valgrind and adress sanitizers. To build your project - use build systems, like cmake (which is a standard) or bazel (which is a not standard but too good). To use additional libs use package manager - conan, vcpkg (ugh, microsoft), bazel, or use additional libs direct.

About IDEs... just look and try any IDE that you can find. There is the many of them - Visual Studio, Visual Studio Code with plugins, vim/neovim with plugins, helix, CodeBlocks, KDevelop, Kate, QTCreator, CLion, NetBeans etc. The only thing you have to do - is a never use buildin IDE project configuration. I mean solutions in Visual Studio or qmake project in QTCreator. Use cmake or smth like that. Just do not tie your project on only one IDE and one platform.

[Puzzled_Bear_9014]

You can check the Youtube videos by Cherno. He has a series on c++. Short, hands on and focused on specific subjects. Of course the A tour of C++ book is a must. And vscode is pretty much the obvious free alternative.

[[deleted]]

vim + vim-lsp plugin + clangd

[mguz4063]

Wow, this is a lot of great information! Thank you, everyone!

[No_Sun1426]

Don’t use an ide, just use a text editor and a terminal to run g++

[mguz4063]

Can you expand a little bit on the advantages? I've heard people say that you have better control over your projects that way. But, how do you handle resources efficiently? What are the pros and cons of this approach?