New to C++, any good books out there?

[mrspm2003]

Hey there, I know this has probably been asked before alot, but I did a search and didn't come out with anything I wanted. Well, a little history about me. I'm in high school, junior year, and for about the last 2 years I've been mostly focused primarly on the hardware end of PCs, having little concern about software. Well, I just changed my mind, and I'm going to go software based, and try to learn C++ for starters. I already signed up for a C++ class, but that doesn't start until Aug. of this year, so I wanted to get some basics in before the class starts. Any books you guys might recommend reading? I would rather have an easy to read book, sort of for begginners, however I don't want it to skip anything if possible. I know some HTML, that's basically my background in programmming. Thanks for any tips, also, what else should I look into? I already purchased Linux RedHat Personal Ed. from newegg, so I can learn my way around that, any suggestions? Again, thanks! :)

[Tekime]

I am also learning C++. I have some experience with C, BASIC and various web programming languages, so we are approaching it from a slightly different background though.

IMHO the best book I could find was "The C++ Programming Language Special Edition" by Bjarne Stroustrup. It's big, heavy, and crammed full of information. It's not a beginners book, by any means, but so far I am totally happy with my choice.

Although I can't recommend an entry level C++ book, IMHO you can learn all of the basics on any number of websites on the 'Net. Here are a couple I have used. There are certainly more, just try a google.com search for c++ programming tutorials:


http://www.cprogramming.com/
http://www.cs.wustl.edu/~schmidt/C++/
http://www.desy.de/gna/html/cc/Tutorial/tutorial.html
Bruce Eckel's "Thinking in C++" (http://www.codeguru.com/cpp/tic/index.shtml)

[Nephalim]

The most comprehensive and easy to use introduction to C++ is Ivor Horton's Beginning C++ book from Wrox Publishing. I learned previous to finding this book and was downright amazed at its simplicity. Good luck and enjoy!

[Zoma]

Stroustrup is the standard, but a bit tough for beginners. The Complete C++ Reference is, obviously, mainly a reference. However, it can be learned from, especially when used with another book.

[Posidon]

I'm a junior Computer Science Student at Ball State University. For our first class in programming, we use a book called "Problem Solving, Abstraction, Design Using C++" by Frank L. Friedman and Elliot B. Koffman

Heres the link to the class that I had. The Syllabus follows the book fairly well and it breaks everything down and explains it really well:

http://www.cs.bsu.edu/homepages/tanksale/cs120/fall2002/

The projects and labs we did for the class are also there, if you'd like to use those for some practice.

The book will take you through data types, operators, logical operators, and structures.

The follow up to the first book that we use for the second semester of C++ is called "Data Structures and Other Objects Using C++" by Michael Main and Walter Savitch. This book takes you through the rest of what you need. You should be able to find both on amazon.com or sites of the like.

I highly recommend both of these. I don't think they would have been over my head when I was in high school as long as you stick with it and have the desire to learn. If you have any further questions, feel free to shoot me an email.

~Posidon

[god_shiva]

Call me conventional, but I really like Deitel and Deitel's C++ How to Program. It's what I learned from.

Just bought it real cheap off half.com, a copy for my wife.

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[Ra\/eN]

Originally posted by god_shiva
Call me conventional, but I really like Deitel and Deitel's C++ How to Program. It's what I learned from.

Just bought it real cheap off half.com, a copy for my wife.

-

that is what I have.. and their java one .. very easy to read and comprehend

[Vindir]

If you'll be using a linux os to learn c/c++ try and pick up a book targetted at programming in linux or maybe a more simple route, find a hello world program on the net using iostream.h and make sure it compiles properly in the default compiler. Some newer versions of gcc throw out warnings that iostream is antiquated and won't compile it :\ I would guess it's possible to find a linux compiler that will though.

[Isezumi]

man talk about Kharma, I came here to ask just this specific question.

[richardginn]

Originally posted by god_shiva
Call me conventional, but I really like Deitel and Deitel's C++ How to Program. It's what I learned from.

Just bought it real cheap off half.com, a copy for my wife.

-

I used that book as well, They know programming books.

[puff_1]

I just started c++ a few weeks ago. I'm also using the Deitel & Deitel. It is a good book for beginners. It starts very basic.

[webraycer]

I recommend Deitel & Deitel (C++ How to Program) as well. It contains everything in the C++ standard, and is also good for a beginner. My c++ prof. said this is the best learning book he has seen.

The Stroustroup (sp?) book is, of course, essential for someone who will be doing c++ for a long time (Because it is written by the C++ God himself). But I am in the 3rd level c++ course at virginia tech and he says we will not be ready for that book until the end of the semester.

[Mo]

I would have to go with The Waite Group's C++ Primer Plus, you can also get the Object Oriented Programming...pretty helpful with large programs.

[mrspm2003]

Thanks guys, I bought several books you guys recommended, I picked them up cheap at www.computerbooksdirect.com if anyone's interested. I hope to get a grasp of C++, I also signed up for Computer Science (C++/Java) for next year in high school, hope this helps me out along the way. I also got into networking protocols, now to continue to try and grasp the concept of TCP/IP :) .

Thanks again!