[Chaaaosss]

Hi All --

Trying to find a really solid C++ book and I'm wondering if anyone is just *in love* with any one in particular. My use in particular isn't for casual reading but more for a professional reintroduction.

Thanks.

[ 05-16-2002: Message edited by: Chaaaosss ]

[smeger]

My all-time favorite is definitely "C++, The Complete Reference, Third Edition" by Schildt, published by Osborne. It's pricey and thick, but it covers the STL really really well. The same author also has a lightweight edition that doesn't go into as much depth, but can be used as a companion volume if you just need to quickly look stuff up.

Very nice combo...

[davecom]

I can tell you one I don't enjoy, C++ for Programmers, published by Weily.

[kamprath]

Originally posted by Chaaaosss:
<STRONG>Hi All --

Trying to find a really solid C++ book and I'm wondering if anyone is just *in love* with any one in particular. My use in particular isn't for casual reading but more for a professional reintroduction.

Thanks.

[ 05-16-2002: Message edited by: Chaaaosss ]</STRONG>

Undoubtedly it would be Bjarne Strousup's own book on the language he designed. It's not a book for the faint of heart of for someone who thinks all they need to do is make their way through a "Learn C++ in 24 hours" type book to be able to call themselves a "professional developer". However, for true professionals, it is an indispensable reference on ALL the nuances of C++.

[skipjack]

The O'Reilly book, "Practical C++ Programming", by Steve Oualline has good reviews. However, if you already know C++ and just want a refresher, "The C++ Programming Language", as mentioned above, would probably be a better investment.

[Amorph]

Schildt's books tend to be full of errors. There was a running joke in comp.lang.c that the C Standard was $110, Schildt's Annotated C Standard was $40, and the price differential reflected the quality of the annotations.

I have an older edition of Oualline's book, and I remember having one C-related gripe with it, but it's been long enough since I looked at it that I can't say. It might have been related to C expression semantics, and O'Reilly might have fixed it in a later edition. Generally, though, I was impressed; it's a very good book, particularly when he gets to discussing the more high-level capabilities of the language.

I've settled on the one-two combo of Stan Lippman's Essential C++ and Lippman and LaJoie's C++ Primer. Both are dense but well-written and correct. The first is a slim refresher, the latter is basically a narrated encyclopedia.

[Secret Vampire]

Avoid the Oreilly book, it was probably great in 1996, but it's so far out of date now that it's more a hinderance than a help - several newer bits of C++ are missing entirely.

My personal fave, though slightly less generic, is Tom Swan's Gnu C++ for Linux, published by QUE.

[Seb G]

I second kamprath's suggestion, Bjarne Stroustrup's The C++ Programming Language. It doesn't teach you programming as such (i.e. you should know some programming), but on the other hand it is complete - 13 chapters introducing all features of the language - and comes with a full language reference. Style is somewhat academic, and it takes considerably more than 24 hours to read it, but if you're serious about C++, it's the one.

[aleph_null]

Originally posted by kamprath:
<STRONG>
Undoubtedly it would be Bjarne Strousup's own book on the language he designed. It's not a book for the faint of heart of for someone who thinks all they need to do is make their way through a "Learn C++ in 24 hours" type book to be able to call themselves a "professional developer". However, for true professionals, it is an indispensable reference on ALL the nuances of C++.</STRONG>

i also agree with kamprath. it's very thorough, covers just about any question you might come up with. and yeah, i treat it as a reference, more than anything, but it's actually a pretty good read if you're already familliar with the basics ... i've sometimes found myself reading it just for the heck of it.

which scares me a little.