C++ compiler

[Cheeseboy]

Hi, I am starting C++ and i am wondering what is the best compiler to use. I dont have a clue or know of any.


Thanks

[rpgfan3233]

For Windows, there are numerous compilers available. My personal favorite is the MinGW port of gcc/g++, which you can download with the Dev-C++ (http://www.bloodshed.net/devcpp.html) IDE (hint: if you choose this one, download v5.0 Beta. v4.0.x is WAAY too old).

Microsoft Visual C++.NET 2005 Express Edition (http://msdn.microsoft.com/vstudio/express/visualc/default.aspx) is free but large, and it is even larger if you download the Platform SDK, which is required to build "native Windows applications".

There are other compilers, but those two seem to be the most common.

[paulq]

Microsoft Visual C++.NET 2005 Express Edition (http://msdn.microsoft.com/vstudio/express/visualc/default.aspx) is free but large, and it is even larger if you download the Platform SDK, which is required to build "native Windows applications".


With the price of large harddrives very low, I doubt you'd have any problem handling MSVC++ .NET 2005 Express Edition. Go with that, it is the easiest to use for beginners and since so many people use it, there will be lots of help and documentation if you ever have any questions.

[oracleguy]

With the price of large harddrives very low, I doubt you'd have any problem handling MSVC++ .NET 2005 Express Edition. Go with that, it is the easiest to use for beginners and since so many people use it, there will be lots of help and documentation if you ever have any questions.

Yeah it isn't too bad. There are some fustrating parts to it if you have to use the express version after using the professional version a lot though.

[rpgfan3233]

With the price of large harddrives very low, I doubt you'd have any problem handling MSVC++ .NET 2005 Express Edition. Go with that, it is the easiest to use for beginners and since so many people use it, there will be lots of help and documentation if you ever have any questions.
Actually, I was looking at download time. People still use dial-up connections, which rely on the phone line. If you have a single phone line, you stand a decent chance of getting kicked offline by somebody trying to call. This interrupted download can be a hassle. Minimum HDD requirements is 500 MB. That takes about 5-20 minutes on a cable modem, depending on the connection. Dev-C++ includes the compiler and IDE (it also comes with a code completion feature, though I personally find it annoying) for a total download size of approximately 9 MB. Actually, IIRC, 1MB takes a while on 56K modems. . .

[paulq]

People still use dial-up connections, which rely on the phone line. That is the saddest thing I have ever heard. Forget eliminating world hunger, we need to help those that are starving of bandwidth first! :p

[DELOCH]

uhh about compiler, you mean GUI?

if not you can just download Visual Studio 2005 Express Edition and go to it's location and go to bin and find cl.exe

add the location of cl.exe to autoexec.bat on windows and you can compile by hand after restarting by opening a command prompt and using command

cl Filename.cpp

otherwise Visual C++ 2005, and Visual C++ 6 are the best