Where to Learn C++

This post is an attempt to list down resources I find interesting or useful for learning, polishing, debugging, or exploring C++ programming language. It is unlikely to provide an exhaustive list and I don't necessarily intend to create one. If you have any suggestions, I'm happy to read them.

An alternative title would be: where to read about C++ or my links about C++.

I organized this list into completely arbitrary items with no particular order. It is completely opinionated and each item has a very short explanatory description, link, instruction, and/or any other reference. I swear there is a reason for each entry...

  1. Literature
  2. Standard References
  3. Proposals
  4. The Standard
  5. Implementations
  6. Headers
  7. Source Code
  8. Boost
  9. Conferences
  10. Core Guidelines
  11. Code Style Guidelines
  12. Interactive Exploration
  13. Classes, Courses and Tutorials
  14. Stack Overflow and LLMs

Literature

There are three books on C++ that are good enough to be excluded from my usual "ban on books about programming languages, frameworks and libraries."

book covers

From left to right

  1. Effective Modern C++, Scott Meyers
  2. The C++ Programming Language, Bjarne Stroustrup
  3. C++ Primer, Stanley B. Lippman, Josée Lajole, Barbara E. Moo

If you are beginning your programming journey, you have better chance of learning something if you use the books as complementary resource to your class/course. If you are intermediate or higher, these books are good as "back-to-basics" and to solidify your foundations.

Standard References

These references explain C++ standard so that it can be consumed easier by language and library users. They may or may not reference implementation-specific details.

You are likely to use them the most compared to any other entry in this list. This is the case for me.

Both of these sites are also designed to act as an index for other resources, including but not limited to, standard compiler support matrices, tutorials, technical specifications, proposal or experimental references. If you never did, I encourage you to grab something to drink and explore one of them a bit.

Proposals

Proposals are my favourites. They are C++ standard committee papers that propose changes to the language or standard library. Their goals are to present an idea in understandable way and reason it. Make it look like a good idea. This part of their nature makes them often better to read than the actual C++ standard. This is especially evident when they are coming from the outside of usual working group and/or compiler circles.

You can find them at C++ Standards Committee Papers index.

Alternatively, if you are looking for proposal regarding a particular feature, you can:

  1. Go to cppreference.com.
  2. Find applicable C++ standard revision, e.g., C++17.
  3. Find feature in one of the matrices, e.g., Structured Bindings and associated P0217R3.
  4. P0217R3 describes wording changes but refers to P0144R2 as original proposal.

The Standard

Also known as ISO/IEC 14882.

c++ logo

This is the primary source. Or rather the working draft of the primary source. Standard is intended to define requirements for compiler and library implementations. It is not necessarily intended as your day-to-day reference document. Nonetheless, it is useful because it can provide you with an authoritative answer.

You can buy the actual standard revisions at the ISO Store.

Draft is available at eel.is/c++draft.

Standard C++ has a homepage at isocpp.org with a good amount of useful resources, i.a., Get Started!, Tour, and Super-FAQ.

Implementations

On the other side of the standard specifications are implementations of said requirements: compilers and standard libraries. It is as awkward to split them into separate list items as it is to have them both here. I rely mostly on standard specification and/or reference and use these from time to time, when I need to consult implementation-defined behaviour or details, options, recommendations.

Headers

The gist of it is, know your include paths. For example to start with:

  1. /usr/include/c++/14.1.1
  2. /usr/include/c++/14.1.1/x86_64-pc-linux-gnu
  3. /usr/include/c++/14.1.1/backward
  4. /usr/lib/gcc/x86_64-pc-linux-gnu/14.1.1/include
  5. /usr/local/include
  6. /usr/lib/gcc/x86_64-pc-linux-gnu/14.1.1/include-fixed
  7. /usr/include

Of course, depending on your compiler, library provider and targets these will vary. Consult your compiler documentation.

They may feel hit-or-miss. It gets especially bad when dealing with multi-target back-compatible headers as they quickly devolve into macro madness. Yet, they are your exact specification of what you are dealing with.

Source Code

I like reading what others wrote. I don't really care if it is bad or not, because I can learn from it nonetheless simply by asking a questions "why?" and "what does this excerpt exactly do?"

Selected pieces of software (alphabetical order):

In general, just take a look at whatever software you use. You might even end up contributing to it and that's always good.

Boost

I have a love-hate relationship with Boost. Nonetheless, its documentation has a number of good examples and recommendations. Even if you don't plan using Boost, it may provide you with solution patterns.

Docs version index is located at boost.org/doc.

Conferences

I'm socially awkward but I do like to listen to knowledgeable people. Even better if I'm interested in the topic they talk about. Isocpp.org maintains a list of worldwide conferences.

CppCon YouTube channel is probably the best place to start if you are looking for talks. They have a large variety of them: deep dives, lightning talks, back to basics, etc.

Core Guidelines

A document maintained by Bjarne Stroustrup and Herb Sutter with a whole lot of recommendations. It is available online at C++ Core Guidelines.

It's not necessary to read it like a book, but doing a full skim at least once would be beneficial to get an idea when to refer to the guideline. Choosing a random topic and reading it on a coffee break is also an option. Whatever the method - read it - it's good.

Code Style Guidelines

Even if you work alone these can be useful as rules may prevent trivial errors and make the code more maintainable in the long run.

Examples of coding styles (alphabetical order):

Interactive Exploration

A good way to build intuition around C++ is to watch the tools do what they are intended to do and inspect the results. An example of such tool is Compiler Explorer.

We can get similar results in local environment. For example, we can make GCC emit assembly output with -S flag. Another command, c++filt(1) can be used to demangle symbols in the output: 

$ g++ -O3 -S something.cpp -o - | c++filt

Other than assembly output, we can also view preprocessor output with -E flag or cpp(1) command. In general, building minimal examples to see certain behaviours is a decent debugging method. Of course, full blown debuggers are also an option for exploration.

Classes, Courses and Tutorials

I do not have any specific recommendations here at the moment.

Prefer university-driven courses if available. Next in line are any free online tutorials. Always complement with a book or technical documentation. Lastly, paid private "schools", online classes and bootcamps. I heard mixed opinions about them in general, so research your options.

Stack Overflow and LLMs

This is an equivalent to learning how to disarm explosives on a minefield with no tools whatsoever. Use these if you don't know how to bite a certain problem, if you look for a very specific recommendation, or if you have forgotten something trivial. You may find good answers. Always look or ask for answers with references to documentation or find relevant sources yourself. On Stack Overflow you may even find authoritative answers.