Can anyone tell me where to find a free compiler? This is the main issue, I''m broke and I don''t think I can learn a language without having the capability of using it. Also, and this may be a bit stupid... I know *nothing* about C++, other than the fact that it''s what the pros use, so I should use it too... and one of the articles for beginners here said I should start by learning it with DOS, to avoid the complications of Windows... but the same article said Windows is what to use if you want a lot of people to see your game... So, I want to start out with Windows which I''ll ultimately be using anyway and just learn it, because learning with DOS which I''ll never need is a complication itself, why circumnavigate my goal? Is this a bad idea? Is Windows *way* more complicated than DOS? I know as a newbie I shouldn''t try to tackle too much or I''ll never get anything done, but I don''t think I''m being impatient, I think I''m just being efficient & logical... what do you think? Z e L b u l v o n

 Z  eL b ul vo nColin Powell - "Finding the Russian scientists may be a problem beingthat Russia does not have a Social Security System, as here in America,that allows us to monitor, track down and capture an American citizen."

PS, can someone tell me how to preserve the spacing of my signature, and maybe add colors? Yes, I''m trying to learn C++ when I can''t even remember simple HTML... you wanna make sumfin uv it?

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 Z  eL b ul vo nColin Powell - "Finding the Russian scientists may be a problem beingthat Russia does not have a Social Security System, as here in America,that allows us to monitor, track down and capture an American citizen."

Well I think so the right path to windows programming is throught learning c++ in dos. Windows is not tough but it builds on the concepts u learn in c++ in dos. dos programmes work sequentially while windows programmes waits for the event(mouse handling or keys or pressing the buttons etc..) but it still uses those c++ basic concepts. so get ur self in c++ first. And once u r good at it shifting towards windows is not difficult. I havent seen ne body going for win32 progamming directly at least in my life.

Ur question abt the compiler is a very interesting one. search on the net. search on google .I myself use VC so dont know abt other free compilers.

so dont get hasty. just work on c++. be THE expert in vc. it will help u ne where . it will help u learn java, win32 programming, other microsoft technologies like COM, MTS name ne thing. Name ne thing n u can learn IF U KNOW C++.



LUQI
"Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I''m not sure about the former." - Albert Einstein

most people who use free compilers use either borland or one of the gcc related ones...

check out borlands free compiler...
http://www.borland.com/bcppbuilder/freecompiler/

as for the gcc related ones...
search for DevC++ its one of them(used it for a while, interface that is similar to VC++, but there are more, just look around at a download site... search for gcc or something...

First: The free compiler
Borland offers its old IDE''s (a program that manages an entire project, often it also lets you do specific tasks more easily, like drawing windows) as a free download on www.borland.com , in the "museum" departement. They also have the compiler of their newest IDE as a free download, here you can download only the compiler. This is what I use (I speak plain C though, and I don''t use the win32 api, so I don''t need their expensive IDE).

Second: What to learn first
I think you''d better start off with console applications, apps that run in a DOS box. It keeps your mind on programming, you can always add an interface later (if the program is structured enough!!).

Third: What to do when I know C++ in a DOS box
Here you got quite a few options, you can go right into win32 programming, or you can learn a specific graphics library like OpenGL or directX. With OpenGL, you can use Glut, which is a wrapper around the basic input functions of the os. The main advantage is that you don''t need to mess around with hundreds of lines of code just to read mouse and keyboard, or to create your windows and make them ready for drawing. The disadvantage then is that it''s slightly slower.

Hope it helps...
Wouter

The main gcc (Gnu Compiler Collection) ports for Win32 are MinGW32 (Minimalist Gnu for Win32) and Cygwin (Cygnus Win-something-something).

As for your whitespace-in-signature question: Either use non-breakable spaces, written in html as: "&nbsp;" (not including the quotation marks). Or you can enclose your sig in a <pre> and </pre> pair ("pre" is for "preformatted text"). There are probably a few more ways to do it, but I don''t know very much html.

www.bloodshed.net have an excellent IDE which (I believe) uses the MingW compiler, or a port of it or something. That''s what I use.


Rottbott

quote: Original post by Zeb
Also, and this may be a bit stupid... I know *nothing* about C++, other than the fact that it''s what the pros use, so I should use it too... and one of the articles for beginners here said I should start by learning it with DOS, to avoid the complications of Windows... but the same article said Windows is what to use if you want a lot of people to see your game... So, I want to start out with Windows which I''ll ultimately be using anyway and just learn it, because learning with DOS which I''ll never need is a complication itself, why circumnavigate my goal? Is this a bad idea? Is Windows *way* more complicated than DOS? I know as a newbie I shouldn''t try to tackle too much or I''ll never get anything done, but I don''t think I''m being impatient, I think I''m just being efficient & logical... what do you think?

As has been pointed out, DevC++ is an excellent free IDE that uses the MinGW32 port of GCC. You can download it at bloodshed.net.

Next: Don''t learn C/C++ for DOS. Learn standard C/C++, which just happens to be in a console. After you know the language, then you should learn the Win32 API. Otherwise you''ll just be confused, since the Win32 API expects you to already know how to use C/C++.

[Resist Windows XP''s Invasive Production Activation Technology!]

Ok, I got my sig spaced properly, thanx for the 'pre' tag, Dactylos

I downloaded Dev-C++, for lack of a more definitive reason, kuz I don't care for the name "Borland". It looks like it has a tutorial, which I'm about to look at once I'm done writing this.

Null and Void (I love your handle, BTW), Dev-C++ says it can do console, windows, and DLL apps, and maybe some others. What are the distinctions between these? What does console mean exactly, and can a console app run in Windows, without DOS?

How long does it take people, on average, to learn the C++ language? Will it take me longer since I'm so confused on the fundamentals?

Tassadar wrote: "I think you'd better start off with console applications, apps that run in a DOS box. It keeps your mind on programming, you can always add an interface later (if the program is structured enough!!)."

So... console apps... don't have an interface? Not even text?

Tassadar also wrote: "you can go right into win32 programming, or you can learn a specific graphics library like OpenGL or directX."

OpenGL or directX? Is or the operative word, or can you use both?

Ahmad Luqman wrote: "dos programmes work sequentially while windows programmes waits for the event(mouse handling or keys or pressing the buttons etc..) but it still uses those c++ basic concepts."

Ok, umm... I used to use QBasic a little, and it had something called Inkey$, which let my programs respond to keystrokes (only I'd hardly call the things I made "programs"). QBasic ran in DOS, but it had Inkey$... so are QBasic files DOS programs or Windows Programs?

There were a bunch of words people used that I wanted deffinitions to, but I can't seem to find them now... API? I think I saw a def of API in the dictionary of this site, but it didn't make sense. Ok, API, console, I guess that's all

Oh, I just wanna say how rad I think this community is, and how grateful I am to have found it ~happy tears~

 Z  eL b ul vo nColin Powell - "Finding the Russian scientists maybe a problem being that Russia does not have a SocialSecurity System, as here in America, that allows us tomonitor, track down and capture an American citizen."    

Edited by - Zeb on June 27, 2001 2:00:06 PM

 Z  eL b ul vo nColin Powell - "Finding the Russian scientists may be a problem beingthat Russia does not have a Social Security System, as here in America,that allows us to monitor, track down and capture an American citizen."

for learning purposes, I would highly recomend DJGPP. just search for it on any search engine and you''ll find it''s homepage. It''s dos-based, but that means you don''t have to mess around with all that windows code. then, once you get a hang of the language, you can get something like dev-c++ or a similar compiler. I would recomend something more supported, however, like vc++ or borland.

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