What is C++?
C++ is a cross-platform language that can be used to create high-performance applications. C++ was developed by Bjarne Stroustrup, as an extension of the C language.
C++ gives programmers a high level of control over system resources and memory. The language was updated 4 major times in 2011, 2014, 2017, and 2020 to C++11, C++14, C++17, and C++20.
Why Use C++
C++ is one of the world’s most popular programming languages. C++ can be found in today’s operating systems, Graphical User Interfaces, and embedded systems.
C++ is an object-oriented programming language that gives a clear structure to programs and allows code to be reused, lowering development costs. C++ is portable and can be used to develop applications that can be adapted to multiple platforms.C++ is fun and easy to learn! As C++ is close to C# and Java, it makes it easy for programmers to switch to C++ or vice versa. C++ was developed as an extension of C, and both languages have almost the same syntax.
The main difference between C and C++ is that C++ supports classes and objects, while C does not. C++ is a general-purpose programming language that was developed as an enhancement of the C language to include an object-oriented paradigm. It is an imperative and a compiled language.
C++ is a middle-level language, giving it the advantage of programming low-level (drivers, kernels) and even higher-level applications (games, GUI, desktop apps, etc.). The basic syntax and code structure of both C and C++ are the same.
Some of the features & key points to note about the programming language are as follows:
- Simple: It is a simple language in the sense that programs can be broken down into logical units and parts, and has rich library support and a variety of data types.
- Machine Independent but Platform Dependent: A C++ executable is not platform-independent (compiled programs on Linux won’t run on Windows), however, they are machine-independent.
- Mid-level language: It is a mid-level language as we can do both systems programming (drivers, kernels, networking, etc.) and build large-scale user applications (Media Players, Photoshop, Game Engines, etc.)
- Rich library support: Has rich library support (Both standard ~ built-in data structures, algorithms, etc.) as well 3rd party libraries (e.g. Boost libraries) for fast and rapid development.
- Speed of execution: C++ programs excel in execution speed. Since, it is a compiled language, and also hugely procedural. Newer languages have extra in-built default features such as garbage collection, dynamic typing, etc. which slow the execution of the program overall. Since there is no additional processing overhead like this in C++, it is blazing fast.
- Pointer and direct Memory-Access: C++ provides pointer support which aids users indirectly in manipulating rage addresses. This helps in doing low-level programming (where one might need to have explicit control over the storage of variables).
- Object-Oriented: One of the strongest points of the language which sets it apart from C. Object-Oriented support helps C++ to make maintainable and extensible programs. i.e. Large-scale applications can be built. Procedural code becomes difficult to maintain as code size grows.
- Compiled Language: C++ is a compiled language, contributing to its speed. The C++ was first invented by Bjarne Stroustrup in 1979 at Bell Laboratories in Murray Hill, New Jersey.
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Components of C++
Given below are the components of C++:
- First Component:- The first component in this program is the header file denoted by the #include<iostream> command, which contains the count command that is being used to print ‘Hello World’ in this case. There could be other header functions as well, depending on the problem statement.
- Second Component:- The second component is the ‘int main()’ statement which is the Master Program Function and is a prerequisite of every C++ program to have the main function at the beginning of execution. The opening parenthesis after the main should have a matching closing parenthesis. The ‘int’ is the return type that states the type of value that the program is returning.
3. Third Component:- The third component is the declaration of variables which in this case are ‘d’ and ‘i’. A variable is assigned a name with regards to which it stores data in the memory. It needs to support the C++ inbuilt data types. Declaration of variables should abide by the following rules:
The variables could be digits, letters, or underscores.
- A variable should start with an alphabetical letter.
- It is case-sensitive, i.e., small and capital letters would be considered as different variables.
- C++ has several reserved words which could not be used as a variable.
- The initial value could be assigned while declaring the variables, or it could be assigned later using the ‘=’ operator.
- Fourth Component:- The Program Statement is another component of C++. In this case, the for loop is used to copy values from one variable to another. Comments are also included in the program using the “//.”
- Fifth Component:- Operators are another component in C++.
The types of operators are:
- Logical Operators such as &&, ||, etc.
- Arithmetic Operators such as +, %, etc.
- Relational Operators such as ==. !=, etc.
Applications
The application of C++ is diversified in various domains because of its flexibility and reliability.
Below are some of the few areas where C++ could be used:
- C++ is widely used in the Gaming industry. Various companies hire people with a knowledge of C++ to build interactive games for them.
- One of the other applications of C++ is creating Graphical User Interface, which simplifies the user’s interaction with an application.
- In software like Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator, C++ is used as well.
- We can use C++ to create web browsers like Mozilla Firefox and compilers.
- The operating systems are also programmed in C++.
- The medical industry used C++ to build most of its software.
- Few of the other programming languages like Java are built using the C++ language.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Question No 1:- Why is C++ so big?
Ans:-C++ directly supports (i.e., in the language) what some other languages support through libraries, so the language part will be relatively larger. On the other hand, if you want to write a “typical modern application”, you need to consider operating system interfaces, GUI, databases, web interfaces, etc.
Question No 2:- Is C++ a simple language?
Ans:-C++ is a simple and practical approach to describe the concepts of C++ for beginners Archived 2020-07-13 at the Wayback Machine to advanced software engineers. C++ is a general-purpose programing language which means that it can be used to create different variety of applications.
Question No 3:- What is #include calls in C++?
Ans:- #include is a way of including a standard or user-defined file in the program and is mostly written at the beginning of any C/C++ program.
Question No 4:- What are the advantages of C++?
Ans:- Portability. C++ offers the feature of portability or platform independence which allows the user to run the same program on different operating systems or interfaces at ease
Question No 5:- Why is C + + an important language?
Ans:- It helps in optimizing the resources. It supports the multiplayer option with networking. uses of C++ allow procedural programming for intensive functions of CPU and to provide control over hardware, and this language is very fast because of which it is widely used in developing different games or in gaming engines.
