Best C++ Books
by Bradley Nice, Content Manager at ClickHelp.com — software documentation tool
Let’s ask Wikipedia the general information about the language:
C++ is a general-purpose programming language. It has imperative, object-oriented and generic programming features, while also providing facilities for low-level memory manipulation.
It was designed with a bias toward system programming and embedded, resource-constrained and large systems, with performance, efficiency and flexibility of use as its design highlights. C++ has also been found useful in many other contexts, with key strengths being software infrastructure and resource-constrained applications, including desktop applications, servers (e.g. e-commerce, web search or SQL servers), and performance-critical applications (e.g. telephone switches or space probes).
So, what are the top C++ books nowadays?
Starting Out with C++ from Control Structures to Objects (paperback — $166.35)
Starting Out with C++: From Control Structures through Objects covers control structures, functions, arrays, and pointers before objects and classes in Tony Gaddis’s hallmark accessible, step-by-step presentation. His books help beginning students understand the important details necessary to become skilled programmers at an introductory level. Gaddis motivates the study of both programming skills and the C++ programming language by presenting all the details needed to understand the “how” and the “why”–but never losing sight of the fact that most beginners struggle with this material. His approach is gradual and highly accessible, ensuring that students understand the logic behind developing high-quality programs. As with all Gaddis texts, clear and easy-to-read code listings, concise and practical real-world examples, and an abundance of exercises appear in every chapter. Updates to the 9th Edition include revised, improved problems throughout and a new chapter featuring completely rewritten and expanded material on the Standard Template Library (STL).
The C++ Standard Library: A Tutorial and Reference (eTextbook — $60.40, hardcover — $60.06, paperback — $44.96)
The C++ Standard Library provides a set of common classes and interfaces that greatly extend the core C++ language. The library, however, is not self-explanatory. To make full use of its components — and to benefit from their power — you need a resource that does far more than list the classes and their functions.
The C++ Standard Library: A Tutorial and Reference, Second Edition, describes this library as now incorporated into the new ANSI/ISO C++ language standard (C++11). The book provides comprehensive documentation of each library component, including an introduction to its purpose and design; clearly written explanations of complex concepts; the practical programming details needed for effective use; traps and pitfalls; the exact signature and definition of the most important classes and functions; and numerous examples of working code. The book focuses in particular on the Standard Template Library (STL), examining containers, iterators, function objects, and STL algorithms.
The book covers all the new C++11 library components, including
- Concurrency;
- Fractional arithmetic;
- Clocks and timers;
- Tuples;
- New STL containers;
- New STL algorithms;
- New smart pointers;
- New locale facets;
- Random numbers and distributions;
- Type traits and utilities;
- Regular expressions.
The book also examines the new C++ programming style and its effect on the standard library, including lambdas, range-based for loops, move semantics, and variadic templates.
The C++ Programming Language (Kindle — $60.40, hardcover — $67.47, paperback — $62.47)
The brand-new edition of the world’s most trusted and widely read guide to C++, it has been comprehensively updated for the long-awaited C++11 standard. Extensively rewritten to present the C++11 language, standard library, and key design techniques as an integrated whole, Stroustrup thoroughly addresses changes that make C++11 feel like a whole new language, offering definitive guidance for leveraging its improvements in performance, reliability, and clarity. C++ programmers around the world recognize Bjarne Stoustrup as the go-to expert for the absolutely authoritative and exceptionally useful information they need to write outstanding C++ programs.
Effective Modern C++: 42 Specific Ways to Improve Your Use of C++11 and C++14 (Kindle — $29.49, paperback — $40.77)
Coming to grips with C++11 and C++14 is more than a matter of familiarizing yourself with the features they introduce (e.g., auto type declarations, move semantics, lambda expressions, and concurrency support). The challenge is learning to use those features effectively — so that your software is correct, efficient, maintainable, and portable. That’s where this practical book comes in. It describes how to write truly great software using C++11 and C++14 — i.e. using modern C++.
Topics include:
- The pros and cons of braced initialization, noexcept specifications, perfect forwarding, and smart pointer make functions;
- The relationships among std::move, std::forward, rvalue references, and universal references;
- Techniques for writing clear, correct, effective lambda expressions;
- How std::atomic differs from volatile, how each should be used, and how they relate to C++’s concurrency API;
- How best practices in “old” C++ programming (i.e., C++98) require revision for software development in modern C++.
Effective Modern C++ follows the proven guideline-based, example-driven format of Scott Meyers’ earlier books, but covers entirely new material.
C++ Primer (eTextbook — $41.94, paperback — $37.41)
C++ Primer, Fifth Edition, introduces the C++ standard library from the outset, drawing on its common functions and facilities to help you write useful programs without first having to master every language detail. The book’s many examples have been revised to use the new language features and demonstrate how to make the best use of them. This book is a proven tutorial for those new to C++, an authoritative discussion of core C++ concepts and techniques, and a valuable resource for experienced programmers, especially those eager to see C++11 enhancements illuminated.
Start Fast and Achieve More
- Learn how to use the new C++11 language features and the standard library to build robust programs quickly, and get comfortable with high-level programming;
- Learn through examples that illuminate today’s best coding styles and program design techniques;
- Understand the “rationale behind the rules”: why C++11 works as it does;
- Use the extensive crossreferences to help you connect related concepts and insights;
- Benefit from up-to-date learning aids and exercises that emphasize key points, help you to avoid pitfalls, promote good practices, and reinforce what you’ve learned.
C++ Primer, Fifth Edition, features an enhanced, layflat binding, which allows the book to stay open more easily when placed on a flat surface. This special binding method — notable by a small space inside the spine — also increases durability.
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Have a nice day!
Bradley Nice,
Content Manager at ClickHelp.com — best online documentation tool for SaaS vendors
