Which to learn first C or C++?

[dydx13]

Hello,
I'm currently attending a university majoring in Computer Science.
I took C and C++ at a community college and got an A in both
classes. That was three years ago. I have not programmed or
anything like that in three years. I want to get back into the
programming scene so I have a question: Which should I relearn
first, C or C++? I have forgotten a lot about both languages so
please tell me which i should relearn first!

Thanks!
--
--------------------------------- --- -- -
Posted with NewsLeecher v3.7 Final
Web @ http://www.newsleecher.com/?usenet
------------------- ----- ---- -- -

[Lahsen]

dy****@hotmail. com a écrit :

Hello,
I'm currently attending a university majoring in Computer Science.
I took C and C++ at a community college and got an A in both
classes. That was three years ago. I have not programmed or
anything like that in three years. I want to get back into the
programming scene so I have a question: Which should I relearn
first, C or C++? I have forgotten a lot about both languages so
please tell me which i should relearn first!

Thanks!
--
--------------------------------- --- -- -
Posted with NewsLeecher v3.7 Final
Web @ http://www.newsleecher.com/?usenet
------------------- ----- ---- -- -

C++ ;-)
It's better.
And high level.
Well power for science.
;-)

[Elan Magavi]

C

"Nathan Brown" <dy****@hotmail .comwrote in message
news:45******** **************@ unlimited.newsh osting.com...

Hello,
I'm currently attending a university majoring in Computer Science.
I took C and C++ at a community college and got an A in both
classes. That was three years ago. I have not programmed or
anything like that in three years. I want to get back into the
programming scene so I have a question: Which should I relearn
first, C or C++? I have forgotten a lot about both languages so
please tell me which i should relearn first!

Thanks!
--
--------------------------------- --- -- -
Posted with NewsLeecher v3.7 Final
Web @ http://www.newsleecher.com/?usenet
------------------- ----- ---- -- -

[Cinder6]

On Oct 24, 4:13 pm, Nathan Brown (dyd...@hotmail .com) wrote:
<snip>

Which should I relearn
first, C or C++? I have forgotten a lot about both languages so
please tell me which i should relearn first!

I would say it's valuable to know both of them. I would go with C
first, C++ second. It is really dependent on what you want to program
for. If you want to do OS-level coding, C is the traditional choice
(or so I'm told). Neither language is inherently "better" than the
other, and they have their own uses. One thing I've noticed, though,
is that many (most?) books assume you have prior knowledge of C and
programming.

On a personal note, when I first decided to learn C++, I learned C
first. Then, when I tried to learn C++, I didn't like it. I'm not
really sure why, but I just preferred the C way of doing things, and I
expected C++ to be more C-like (as if it were a superset of the
language, which it really isn't), so I halted on my C++ progress. It
was only recently that I decided to get over myself and learn C++ (and
I like it now). I don't know if other people have experienced this,
but I just wanted to put it out there.

[Jim Langston]

"Nathan Brown" <dy****@hotmail .comwrote in message
news:45******** **************@ unlimited.newsh osting.com...

Hello,
I'm currently attending a university majoring in Computer Science.
I took C and C++ at a community college and got an A in both
classes. That was three years ago. I have not programmed or
anything like that in three years. I want to get back into the
programming scene so I have a question: Which should I relearn
first, C or C++? I have forgotten a lot about both languages so
please tell me which i should relearn first!

Thanks!

It depends on your goal. If your goal is to get going quickly with
programmer, than relearning C will definately put you back coding faster.
But, C++ is really a different language, and I've found that it may be
better to learn C++ first than C so you don't have to unlearn some things
(using void pointers, etc..).

[Steve Pope]

dy****@hotmail. com <Nathan Brownwrote:

>I'm currently attending a university majoring in Computer Science.
I took C and C++ at a community college and got an A in both
classes. That was three years ago. I have not programmed or
anything like that in three years. I want to get back into the
programming scene so I have a question: Which should I relearn
first, C or C++? I have forgotten a lot about both languages so
please tell me which i should relearn first!

It can't possibly take you more than a couple weeks to re-learn
C to the point where you have the entire language memorized.
So I would do this, just to get it out of the way. Since C
is a subset of C++, and is the subset in which most/all procedural
code is written, you need to know C thoroughly to learn C++.

Steve

[Salt_Peter]

Steve Pope wrote:

dy****@hotmail. com <Nathan Brownwrote:

I'm currently attending a university majoring in Computer Science.
I took C and C++ at a community college and got an A in both
classes. That was three years ago. I have not programmed or
anything like that in three years. I want to get back into the
programming scene so I have a question: Which should I relearn
first, C or C++? I have forgotten a lot about both languages so
please tell me which i should relearn first!

It can't possibly take you more than a couple weeks to re-learn
C to the point where you have the entire language memorized.
So I would do this, just to get it out of the way. Since C
is a subset of C++, and is the subset in which most/all procedural
code is written, you need to know C thoroughly to learn C++.

Steve

I respectfully disagree with that point of view. C is not a subset of
C++.
I also happen to believe that learning C++ before C is healthier.

In the case of the OP, since its a re-learn and not a
do_it_from_scra tch operation, he could choose either path - or both. As
long as the C brain is working while coding in C and the C++ brain when
coding in C++.

Thats just a point of view, and not neccessarily the right one.
I'll say this: its very hard to undo C'isms from infecting C++ code.
Typically, the reverse is not true.

[Bart]

Steve Pope wrote:

It can't possibly take you more than a couple weeks to re-learn
C to the point where you have the entire language memorized.

There's a huge gap between 'memorized' and 'mastered'.

So I would do this, just to get it out of the way. Since C
is a subset of C++,

C is not a subset of C++. Lets see... reserved C++ keywords, void* not
being cast implicitly to other pointer types in C++, implicit
declarations of int returning functions in C, different semantics for
const objects, different rules for struct names and scope, character
litterals having type int in C and type char in C++, I could go on like
this...

you need to know C thoroughly to learn C++.

Not at all. C may actually be detrimental to your learning of C++ as it
may be necessary to unlearn things. For example, sane C++ developers
don't manipulate C-style char strings directly (except when interfacing
C code) and generally don't use the type unsafe mechanisms like void*
and varargs functions. You can usually judge how competent a C++
developper is just by looking at their use of C and C++ idioms.

Regards,
Bart.

[Gernot Frisch]

I'm currently attending a university majoring in Computer Science.
I took C and C++ at a community college and got an A in both
classes. That was three years ago. I have not programmed or
anything like that in three years. I want to get back into the
programming scene so I have a question: Which should I relearn
first, C or C++? I have forgotten a lot about both languages so
please tell me which i should relearn first!

I started with C and then tried to program C++. My C++ was C with
classes. Horrible. If I were you, I'd start with C++ directly. Then
you don't learn bad C habbits that you have to get rid of later.
String handling for one thing.

[pkirk25]

Learn C first.

People give all kind of reasons why learning C++ first is better. But
as someone who has jsut got into C++ after finishing K&R a month ago,
let me put the case for C.

1. C++ books either teach you a basic "C with classes" or are
incomprehensibl e without an understanding of C. Knowing C makes them
easier.
2. The majority of online articles and tutorials assume knowledge of C.
3. C is small. After 8 hours of K&R you will be able to download the
Linux kernel, read its code and understand it. C++ takes a lot longer
- it is way way bigger.
4. C makes C++ possible. My first steps into C++ have been C programs
with STL string and vector thrown in. Almost against my will my code
is using classes just because it does make things easier.

Of course thsi is only my opinion - it may be that your previous C++
skills mean you will be uo and running in no time.

Patrick