by Dren Martin
To start programming in C++ you're going to need a compiler, linker, and a debugger. Already scared? Don't be; it's not really that bad. When you write C++ code you're going to send that to a compiler which will translate it into object code. Once the compiler has translated all of your code it will send the translation to the linker where it will connect the translated (object) code modules together to make an executable code which will be binary code in the end. To make things a little easier, here is a diagram:
You'll probably end up seeing lots of people refer to the program they use to write C++ as an IDE. IDE is an acronym for Integrated Development Environment which is what most people use. An IDE puts the compiler, linker, and debugger into one big package. There are many free and many that are commercial software that cost money, but never fear! I will give you the top 3 most used IDE's right here in this tutorial.
- Microsoft Visual C++ 2005 (Express Edition) (I personally use this)
- Bloodshed Dev-C++
- Code::Blocks
