Product Description

Want to learn how to program in C++ immediately? Want to start writing better, more powerful C++ programs today? Accelerated C++'s uniquely modern approach will help you learn faster and more fluently than you ever believed possible. Based on the authors' intensive summer C++ courses at Stanford University, Accelerated C++ covers virtually every concept that most professional C++ programmers will ever use -- but it turns the "traditional" C++ curriculum upside down, starting with the high-level C++ data structures and algorithms that let you write robust programs immediately. Once you're getting results, Accelerated C++ takes you "under the hood," introducing complex language features such as memory management in context, and explaining exactly how and when to use them. From start to finish, the book concentrates on solving problems, rather than learning language and library features for their own sake. The result: You'll be writing real-world programs in no time -- and outstanding code faster than you ever imagined.

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #13601 in Books
• Published on: 2000-09-08
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 352 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
If you don't have a lot of time, but you still want to learn the latest in C++, you don't have to learn C first. You might learn more by digging into existing language features and classes from the very beginning. That's the approach offered by Accelerated C++, a text that delves into more advanced C++ features like templates and Standard Template Library (STL) collection classes early on. This book can arguably get a motivated beginning programmer into C++ more quickly than other available tutorials.

What separates this title from the rest of the pack is that it jumps right in with samples that take advantage of today's Standard C++, from streams to built-in container classes such as vectors and linked lists. Early examples are more complex than in other books, but the thoroughness and relaxed pace of the explanations will bring the novice up to speed. (Though it ships at a slender 350 pages, Accelerated C++ is packed with samples, tips and example problems--about 10 per chapter.)

After a tour of basic C++, the book looks at more advanced C++ features such as templates, including built-in support for containers. Besides tapping the strength of Standard C++, you will also learn to design with your own templates. (Other tutorials would defer this material until later on.) The authors have tested the approach in the book in their own teaching and have honed a set of worthwhile examples that will help anyone get familiar with these powerful language features. All examples make use of the command line and console (without GUI programs), but the advantage is that this code should run on any of today's operating systems and compilers. Later sections cover the basics of class design, including good coverage of operator overloading and inheritance.

With its innovative approach to teaching the language, Accelerated C++ will challenge readers in the right way. It suggests you don't need to learn C to be productive in C++. Written in an approachable style, it deserves a close look from any C++ novice. --Richard Dragan

From the Back Cover

This is a first-rate introductory book that takes a practical approach to solving problems using C++. It covers a much wider scope of C++ programming than other introductory books I've seen, and in a surprisingly compact format.

--Dag Brück, founding member of the ANSI/ISO C++ committee

The authors present a clear, cogent introduction to C++ programming in a way that gets the student writing nontrivial programs immediately.

--Stephen Clamage, Sun Microsystems, Inc., and chair of the ANSI C++ committee

Anyone reading just this one book and working through the examples and exercises will have the same skills as many professional programmers.

--Jeffrey D. Oldham, Stanford University

Why is Accelerated C++ so effective? Because it

• Starts with the most useful concepts rather than the most primitive ones: You can begin writing programs immediately.
• Describes real problems and solutions, not just language features: You see not only what each feature is, but also how to use it.
• Covers the language and standard library together: You can use the library right from the start.

The authors proved this approach in their professional-education course at Stanford University, where students learned how to write substantial programs on their first day in the classroom.

Whether you are eager to get started writing your first C++ programs, or you are already using C++ and seeking deeper understanding, the authors' unique approach and expertise make Accelerated C++ an indispensable addition to your library.

020170353XB04062001

About the Author

Andrew Koenig is a member of the Large-Scale Programming Research Department at AT&T's Shannon Laboratory, and the Project Editor of the C++ standards committee. A programmer for more than 30 years, 15 of them in C++, he has published more than 150 articles about C++, and speaks on the topic worldwide.

Barbara E. Moo is an independent consultant with 20 years' experience in the software field. During her nearly 15 years at AT&T, she worked on one of the first commercial products ever written in C++, managed the company's first C++ compiler project, and directed the development of AT&T's award-winning WorldNet Internet service business.

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Customer Reviews

Daunted beginner, now not so daunted
Before reading Accelerated C++, I had only a limited knowledge of programming, and knew nothing of C or C++. I tried a few other beginner books first, but found that they introduced new concepts without explaining them properly. The best thing about this book is that first come the examples, then the explanations. You're not inundated with technical details of a new concept, until after you're shown how it can be used in a practical way.

I've seen other books that try to teach you C++ from the ground up, not giving useful advice until they've bored you with pointers and memory management and so on. Let me say, the way these folks do it (high-level library functions first, primitive data structures later, then OO at the end) is surely the way to go. What's more, this book gets you in the habit of elegant, modular programming, although its main focus is on problem-solving, not style.

Not a chunky read, as programming books go, but every page is worth its weight in gold. The small size of the book (300-odd pages) reflects what I noticed throughout: an emphasis on quality, not quantity.

A C++ book that keeps on giving
This is a tutorial book on C++, but it goes well beyond the basics. In fact, I'm pretty sure it covers pretty much every major language feature and implementation detail you need for robust C++ coding. As such, it merits re-reading as your understanding of C++ grows, and I say that as someone who rarely re-reads computer books. Don't worry - it packs all the important bits of C++ in under 300 pages. And allow yourself a smug pat on the back when you're confident about everything that's written here.

C++ books historically assume the reader is migrating to C++ from C, and adopt a 'ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny' style approach, introducing low level details from C, before the more advanced features. This has the effect of swamping a beginner with unnecessary complications, when in fact the abstractions of modern C++ hide memory managment and pointer issues entirely. The authors of Accelerated C++ have recognised this and introduce the likes of strings and vectors very early, so their examples actually do something practical. They use an extended example of keeping track of student homework records for many of these early chapters, and the skill with which they are able to slowly introduce new features as they extend the scope of the code is very impressive.

As a result, someone with experience of procedural programming can probably get through the first six chapters, which is just under the half the book. By which time, they've been introduced to the standard library's string class, plus various containers and algorithms. All this and not a mention of a pointer or a malloc.

After this point, however, the discussion becomes a little less hands-on, and focuses on defining your own types. The authors do this by walking through the creation of basic versions of the vector and string class. This covers issues ranging from templates to constructors and destructors, to overloading operators, and I would advise previous exposure to basic object oriented principles like encapsulation to be able to follow it fully.

Pointers and arrays are eventually introduced, and then there's a fairly involved chapter on using 'smart' pointers to manage memory. At this point, I would recommend having been previously exposed to C and to be comfortable with pointers and allocating and freeing memory.

Finally, there's a chapter on object-oriented programming, making use of polymorphism. This is not the strongest part of the book. The mechanics of polymorphism in C++ are well described, but the underlying design issues are not.

If you're looking for a book that will teach you C++ from the ground up in one sitting, forget about it. No book can do that, C++ straddles too many programming paradigms. But this book comes close. I would suggest reading as far as you can until your brain hurts, then following up with a book that has a more traditional arrangement of topics - if you have knowledge of C, then Bruce Eckel's Thinking in C++ is perfect. Then, come back to this one, you'll probably find you can get a little further before getting stuck.

With that in mind, this is a book I would unhesitatingly recommend for anyone seeking to learn C++, whatever their level of expertise. Unlike other introductory books, experienced programmers will not find themselves skipping large chunks of the introductory chapters. And if you're already using C++, but treating it just as an improved C, this will open your eyes to the C++ way of doing things.

Of all the books published on C++ over the years, some titles crop up again and again on the recommended reading lists. This unique book is one of them and it's entirely deserved. If only there were more out there like this one...

Introduction to C++ without frustration ... and very fast
This excellent book, go right into programming, giving you an appropriate examples. It is defenitely recomended for anyone, especially for beginners who want to be able writing programs from very beggining. Authors teach us C++ by presenting programming problems to be solved used the library right from the start, concentrated on writing useful programs. Explainations of the C++ features are in willing to support the programs, rather than using them as an excuse to demonstrate the features. This book is a nice approach to the new methods of explaining programming language and it is really way to ACCELERATE of learning C++ (without frustration how to write my first program). Once again... warmly recomended.