Introduction to Programming: C/C++

In this course, students will learn elementary programming concepts with the C language, with an additional section studying C++ and the relation between the two languages. Learning C will allow students to develop the basic skills for procedural programming and the fundamentals of object orientation, as well as a short study of C++. Students can use this knowledge to take on learning higher-level languages such as C#, Java, and Python in an accelerated manner. The class will focus on building programming skills from fundamental keywords to high-level abstraction, in hopes that the student will then continue on to learn a high-level programming language afterward.

Students will learn the following aspects of programming using the C language:

Section 1:

-Introduction, how to succeed in the course

-What is C, understanding programming, setup

-Hello World

-Data Types

-Input and Output

-Commenting

-Operators

-Introducing Conditionals

-Conditionals

-Nested Conditionals, Switches

Section 2:

-Logic Operators

-Loops: for, while

-Functions

-Recursion

-Arrays, Matrices

Section 3:

-Strings/String Functions, ASCII

-Pointers

-Function Pointers

-The void Pointer, Static

-Structures

-Unions

Section 4:

-Memory Management

-Memory Functions: malloc, calloc, realloc

-Dynamic Strings and Arrays

-Error Handling

Section 5:

-Working With Files, Binary File I/O, Random Generation

-Preprocessor Directives, Scope, Headers

-Conditional Compilation Directives

-Preprocessor Operators

Section 6 - C++:

-Differences: new data types (strings, boolean), function/argument overloading

-Intro to Classes (constructors, objects)

-Intermediate Classes: class headers, namespaces, member initializer lists

-Advanced Classes: access keywords, 'this', 'friend', inheritance and polymorphism

-Abstract Classes/Interfaces, 'virtual', operator overloading

-Generic Types/Classes (Templates), Exceptions

-Files, Enumerations

Section 7 - Capstone:

-Final exam

-Capstone project

Optional textbooks:

-"C Programming Language, 2nd Edition" by Brian W. Kernighan and Dennis M. Ritchie (Various prices by format and rental); this book is extremely well-known in the programming community for being fundamental to developing one's skills with programming languages.

-"The C++ Standard Library: A Tutorial and Reference, 1st Edition" by Nicolai M. Josuttis (Various prices by format and rental, very cheap on eBay)