The #define directive is a preprocessor directive; the preprocessor replaces those macros by their body before the compiler even sees it. Think of it as an automatic search and replace of your source code.A const variable declaration declares an actual variable in the language, which you can use like a real variable: take its address, pass it around, cast it, convert it, etc.Without compiler optimizations, there is a hidden cost of memory allocation associated with both of these in different cases. But with proper optimizations they are more or less the same. Also, preprocessor macros don't have any scope, while ... Read More

C++ is regarded as a middle-level language, as it comprises a combination of both high-level and low-level language features. It is a superset of C, and that virtually any legal C program is a legal C++ program. C++ runs on a variety of platforms, such as Windows, Mac OS, and the various versions of UNIX. Following are some of the features of C++ that make it stand out among other programming languages −Multi-paradigm language − C++ is a language that supports procedural, object-oriented and generic programming. This makes it very versatile.Use of pointers and references − C++ supports pointers and ... Read More

We use the const qualifier to declare a variable as constant. That means that we cannot change the value once the variable has been initialized. Using const has a very big benefit. For example, if you have a constant value like the value of PI, you wouldn't like any part of the program to modify that value. So you should declare that as a const.Objects declared with const-qualified types may be placed in read-only memory by the compiler, and if the address of a const object is never taken in a program, it may not be stored at all.  For ... Read More

The C++ programming language has a history going back to 1979, when Bjarne Stroustrup was doing work for his Ph.D. thesis. He began work on "C with Classes", which as the name implies was meant to be a superset of the C language. His goal was to add object-oriented programming into the C language, which was and still is a language well-respected for its portability without sacrificing speed or low-level functionality.His language included classes, basic inheritance, inlining, default function arguments, and strong type checking in addition to all the features of the C language. The first C with Classes compiler ... Read More

The following is the same for both local and global variables. Basically, whenever you declare a variable, the compiler will call its default constructor unless you specify otherwise.The language level types (e.g. pointers, 'int', 'float', 'bool', etc) "default constructor" does absolutely nothing, it just leaves the memory as it is when it is declared.  This means that they can be pretty much anything because you usually can't be sure what was in that memory previously or even where the memory came from.If you create a class that doesn't have a constructor, the compiler will create one for you which simply ... Read More

There are a lot of versions of the C++ programming language. These versions of the language are implementations of compilers based on specifications constructed by the ISO C++ community, the community that oversees the development of the language. The following are the versions of the language − C++98 (ISO/IEC 14882:1998) is the first edition. C++03 (ISO/IEC 14882:2003) is the second edition. C++11 is the third edition. C++14 is the fourth edition. C++17 is the fifth edition. All of these versions have a lot of differences, mainly additions to the standard library and expansion of APIs. These standards also ... Read More

If you would like an application that works directly with computer hardware or deals with the desktop app development, C++ is an good option. C++ programs include server-side applications, networking, gaming, and even device drivers for your PC. However, if you need to code truly tiny systems, using C will result in less overhead than C++.C++ is well-rounded in terms of platforms and target applications, so if your project is focused on extremely low-level processing, then you may want to use C++. C++ is often used for large-scale, multi-man, complex projects where separate people need to work on modularised components. ... Read More

Following are some of the differences between C and C++.When compared to C++, C is a subset of C++. All valid C programs are valid C++ programs.C is a structural or procedural programming language, while C++ is an object oriented programming language.In C, Functions are the fundamental building blocks, while in C++, Objects are the fundamental building blocks.C doesn't have variable references, while C++ has variable references.C uses malloc and free for memory allocation while C++ uses new and delete for memory allocation.C does not provide direct support for error handling, while C++ supports exception handling that helps in error ... Read More

There are many resources on the web that can help you learn C++. I've tried to give you a compiled list of some of the best resources out there to learn C++ −C++ − This is a great place to learn C++ as it covers almost all basic and intermediate topics in C++ in depth and is overall a great resource to learn C++.A Tour of C++ (Bjarne Stroustrup) − The “tour” is a quick tutorial overview of all of standard C++ (language and standard library, and using C++11) at a moderately high level for people who already know C++ ... Read More

So you've decided to learn how to program in C++ but don't know where to start. Here's a brief overview of how you can get started. Get a C++ Compiler This is the first step you'd want to do before starting learning to program in C++. There are good free C++ compilers available for all major OS platforms. Download one that suits your platform or you can use the tutorialspoint.com's online compiler on www.tutorialspoint.com/compile_cpp_online.php GCC − GCC is the GNU Compiler chain that is basically a collection of a bunch of different compilers created by GNU. You can download ... Read More