   Yeah! I'm new! Got any tips?
  I'm going to start learning C plus plus.I ordered this book:http://www.gamedev.net/columns/books/bookdetails.asp?productid=379And I'm planning on using the Dev-C++ compiler.Anything you think that would be helpful for me to know before I begin?Anything you wish you knew before you started?Thanks!   
  Start -->here<--   ;  Yes, look at noteworthy threads, especially  What is a good C++ book/tutorial?Somebody here set up a workshop for c++, lot's of smart people there answering questions and giving advice. Read everything there.If you make many small steps, you will succeed many times and feel good. Don't start on something big.Listen to Fruny.Good luck.   ;Quote:Original post by DeadXorAliveListen to Fruny.;Quote:Quote:Original post by Alpha_ProgDesQuote:Original post by DeadXorAliveListen to Fruny.Listen to DeadXorAlive;Quote:Original post by the_night_ninjaAnd I'm planning on using the Dev-C++ compiler.Having had a bad experience with Dev-C++, I recommend people to use Code::Blocks instead -- they both use MinGW32 GCC as their compiler. But in the end, it is a personal choice. I would suggest you also download Visual C++ 2005 Express and use both compilers to test your code on.Quote:Anything you think that would be helpful for me to know before I begin?Don't hesitate to use the Standard C++ Library (and other libraries). A lot of the problems you find yourself trying to solve have already been solved by somebody else.People disagree on whether it is better to first learn how to use something, or to first learn how to build it. Figure out what is best for you. Knowing how something is built can help you understand how to best use it. Knowing how something is used can help you understand why it is built the way it is.Learn what the various compiler error messages mean. They are there to help you,  frustrating as they are.Keep in mind that there is more to C++ than what is in the book. Be curious. Investigate.Do not worry too much. If you're not having fun, it's not worth it.Learn the jargon - it is invaluable when searching for help.Pay attention to algorithms and data structures, when to use which, what it the tradeoff. There is always a tradeoff (generally between time and memory).Quote:Anything you wish you knew before you started?The computer does what you tell it to do, not what you think you told it to do.Simply learning English does not make you a great playwright. Simply learning C++ does not make you a great programmer. Practice. Expand your vocabulary. Experiment. Learn the idioms. Write, write, write. Be creative.   ;  I recommend using Visual Studio 2005 Express, if for no other reason than the debugger.  Learn the debugger, learn it early, use it often.  It is a programmers greatest tool   ;Quote:Original post by JBourrieQuote:Quote:Original post by Alpha_ProgDesQuote:Original post by DeadXorAliveListen to Fruny.Listen to DeadXorAliveListen to JBourrie[grin]Codeblocks or VC2005 Express would be good, way better than dev-cpp. For codeblocks, I would strongly recommend to try download an nightly build, you can find it in the forum here. This has so much better debugger support amongst other good stuff. If you do this, you'll have to download the compiler yourself though, it's not included. But it's very simple, codeblocks has some instructions in their wiki.   ;Quote:Original post by DeadXorAliveQuote:Original post by JBourrieQuote:Original post by Alpha_ProgDesQuote:Original post by DeadXorAliveListen to Fruny.Listen to DeadXorAliveListen to JBourrie[grin]Don't listen to me.[grin]   ;Quote:Original post by JohnBoltonQuote:Original post by DeadXorAliveQuote:Original post by JBourrieQuote:Original post by Alpha_ProgDesQuote:Original post by DeadXorAliveListen to Fruny.Listen to DeadXorAliveListen to JBourrie[grin]Don't listen to me.[grin]or meBut seriously, what helped me a bunch when i started was a good foundation in math, really, it will take you farther than you think it will.Start off with small simple programs that output text, then output lots of text using some loops, then use input, then combine the two, etc.my point is, add small steps at a time, and then see if you can combine them with what you have already learned.   