Systems Programming: Rustc Outlook

Rust and C++ are both systems programming languages, meaning they are designed to be used for writing low-level, performance-critical code such as operating systems, device drivers, and game engines. However, they have some key differences:

• Memory safety: Rust has built-in safety features such as a borrow checker and an ownership model that help prevent common programming errors such as null pointer dereferences and buffer overflows. C++, on the other hand, does not have these built-in safety features and relies more on the programmer to manually manage memory and avoid these types of errors.
• Concurrency: Rust’s support for concurrent programming is built into the language and is designed to be safe and easy to use. C++, on the other hand, relies on libraries such as the C++ Standard Template Library (STL) and the Boost libraries to provide concurrency support, which can be more complex to use.
• Syntax: Rust has a modern, expressive syntax that is designed to be easy to read and understand. C++, on the other hand, has a more complex syntax with a lot of legacy features that can make it more difficult to read and understand.
• Community and ecosystem: Rust has a smaller and more niche community compared to C++, but it is growing rapidly. Rust’s ecosystem is also relatively new, but it is well-documented and has a growing number of libraries and frameworks available. C++ has a much larger and more established community, and its ecosystem is more mature, with a wide variety of libraries and frameworks available.

In summary, Rust and C++ both have their strengths and weaknesses, and the choice between them depends on the specific requirements of the project, and the preferences of the developer. Rust is considered to be more expressive and safer, but C++ is more established and has a larger ecosystem.

Getting started with Rust

To get started with Rust, you will first need to install the Rust programming language on your computer. You can do this by visiting the official Rust website (https://www.rust-lang.org/) and following the instructions for your operating system.

Once you have Rust installed, you can start writing your first program by creating a new file with the ".rs" file extension (for example, "hello.rs"). You can use any text editor to write your code.

You can then use the command "rustc" followed by the file name to compile the rust code

rustc hello.rs

This will create an executable file with the same name as your source file (without the ".rs" extension).

Now open the “hello.rs” file you created in the previous step and add

fn main(){
  println!("Hello, world!");
}

You can then run the program using

./hello

On windows run it from command-line with

hello.exe

You can also use Cargo, the package manager for Rust, to build and manage your projects. To create a new project using Cargo, use the command:

cargo new myproject

This will create a new directory called "myproject" with the basic structure of a Rust project, including a "src" directory for your source code and a "Cargo.toml" file for managing dependencies.

Once you have your project set up, you can use Cargo to build and run your code with the following command

cargo run

You can also use other Cargo command like cargo build, cargo test and cargo doc

Rust support is available for the many IDEs:

1. VS CODE
2. SUBLIME TEXT
3. ATOM
4. INTELLIJ IDEA
5. ECLIPSE
6. VIM
7. EMACS
8. GEANY

To learn more about Rust and its features, you can refer to the official Rust documentation (https://doc.rust-lang.org/) and other online resources such as the Rust Programming book (https://doc.rust-lang.org/book/)