C++ was developed by Bjarne Stroustrup in the year 1979 as an extension of the C language.
It is a very popular programming language and also ranks 4th in the index of the world’s most popular programming languages. It is a very fast-growing programming language.
It is a general-purpose, mid-level programming language with features from both low-level and high-level languages as well as it is helpful in understanding the machine level work.
It is a very efficient and cross-platform language. It is used to create high-performance applications. Moreover, it is easy to learn and has a simple syntax.
C++ is especially a very good language for students who want to build their career in software.
There are many reasons why you should learn C++.
Why Learn C++
1. C++ will help you learn other languages very fast
It is believed, tried, and tested that once you have mastered C++, you can learn any other language completely within 1 month as C++ helps you to not only master the functionalities, applications, and use of a language but also the theory behind it.
Most of the other high-level programming languages like Java, Python, JavaScript, have their libraries built in the C++ language, making the learning easier.
The core of JVM, JavaScript V8 engine, Python interpreter, all of these as well as many modules for different packages and libraries of different languages are implemented in C++.
As you know, C++ is derived from C, hence you will learn most of the concepts of C automatically if you learn C++.
2. Fast and Efficient in performance
C++ is the fastest object-oriented programming language. For the same reason, it is used with gaming and banking servers because they require a quick runtime.
Though there are few other languages that are faster than C++, those languages do not offer the same versatility as C++.
When it comes to efficiency, C++ helps you write efficient and better performance code. Other languages help you write better performance codes with the help of already existing functionalities but C++ helps you in analyzing the code and gives you the idea of how the code runs and how the execution takes place at its lowest level.
Hence, it is easier to debug and further improvise your code.
3. Huge Library and Community Support
C++ has a huge number of libraries.
The STL library of C++ helps you write compact codes.
The Standard Template Library (STL) has many generic functions and containers. It also has several algorithms like sorting, searching, etc, and iterators that help you to work upon a sequence of data.
The containers consist of the classes which further implements the data structures.
Moreover If at any point you require any support or help with your code or anything related to C++, there are various free open-source online resources to help you out and the student community of C++ is also great.
4. It has a vast area of application
Being a modern programming language, C++ supports exception handling and thus is used widely in areas like writing databases such as MongoDB, MySQL.
The databases written in C++ are used by many online applications like Twitter, WordPress, Facebook, etc.
Because of the high speed, Operating systems like Windows, IOS, Linux, Android, Ubuntu, are also written mostly in C++.
The Web applications and android applications are either written using only C++ or written using a combination of C++ with other languages.
Adding to the above applications, Graphics, Web browsers, Compilers, Smart Watches, MP3 Players, Integrated Circuits, and much more hardware and software are also coded using C++.
We can say that C++ is all around us and contributes to almost all the major aspects of technology.
5. It helps you understand the fundamentals of computers better
The operating system, computer architecture, computer networking, compilers are the fundamentals of a computer system.
These fundamentals are easier to understand if you know C++ because these are based on C++.
In any other programming language, such details are considered not so important for the programmers and are thus kept hidden. But it is important to know these if you want to develop something new and C++ helps you in learning those details.
Thus C++ helps you build your own reliable protocols, API interfaces, network integration, and its implementation in Operating System.
6. C++ for students
It is one of the best languages for any engineering as well as the non-engineering student who is interested in coding. C++ has all the data structures and works best with all the algorithms.
There are a lot of online/offline coding competitions that keep on happening on various websites.
All of these competitions allow you to code in C++.
Also, if you are coding in C++, it is easier, faster and your code is more efficient in terms of performance due to the great memory utilization and speed.
For competitive coding, no doubt C++ is the best language.
7. Other Advantages and Features
It has the concept of pointers and references which is absent in many other languages.
The interface in C++ is well defined which enables you to use and run your code on different compilers and different versions.
It is a multi-paradigm language with generic, procedural, and object-oriented styles of coding.
It has features like inheritance, polymorphism, data abstraction, encapsulation real-time class, and object creation, which makes the work easier.
Features like method overloading and overriding are also present in C++.
It offers code reusability and has powerful templates. It is also a language with considerably good security.
Conclusion
It is always a good option to learn C++ if you want to be a developer or want to start your career in the software industry.
Though there are little disadvantages that come up with this language, like the complexity of code, inability to program in a high-level language, etc. it is still a good option and is above many other programming languages.
While other programming languages does the work on assumptions of what work you want to do, C++ does exactly what you make it to do.
