Thread: What is the future of console programming ?

Hi !!,
First of all i would apologise if anyone finds my question to be frustrating or may be even childish. I would like to know if mere console programming should be sufficient if i want to be a good C and C++ programmer ? I had joined classes for learning C and C++ on a UNIX (linux actually) platform. To get a better idea of how the code works my faculty told me that i should program on DOS with TC++ as a compiler as there is no F7 like utility available for UNIX platform that would let me see the flow of a program. I asked this qeustion to many a friends who are into programming but the answers could not make things clear. Could anyone please tell me would it be enough to learn console programming ?

What compiler and operating system do you have? Ofcourse console has a future. It is the best way to learn the definition of C and C++. Also, if people are telling you to use DOS, than they are misinformed.

Hi!!,
This place really answers the questions so fast !!
I was working on Linux 6.1 with GCC as compiler and on windows it is Turbo C++. Could you please elaborate as to what according to you could learning console programming help me ? Is there any demand for Console programmers still ? Thank you again for such a quick reply

On your Microsoft Windows system you should use a compiler called Visual C++6. Many introductory versions are available at little costs. Usually the cost of a textbook. This is the Windows industry standard compiler. As far as Linux goes, I can not comment. I do not know that environment.

They type of project workspace that you learn to program in with VC++6 is called a 'Win32 Console'. It has nothing to do with DOS or the DOS Virtual Machine that you will find on a professional Windows operating system.

Is there work for console programmers? Yes and no. The answer is that the console is where you learn to program. As soon as you learn to program you will use an interface called an API which will allow you to access hardware such as video. Do not concern yourself with this now. There is only one way to learn how to program. You begin in the console. I would abandon TC as soon as possible because that is not a good compiler. Feel free to ask more questions. We can eventually get you on the right path.

Hi !!,
Trust me, nobody made things so clearer to me in such a precise manner. I sincerely thank you for the help. I would also be asking a lot of questions here now that its clear that this is the only place where i get correct answers and-more important-
guidance that i am looking for.

BTW, DOS is not completely dead. Windows console programming is much better for most respects, but many DOS features are not available in the Win32 console. Some tasks are simplified in DOS programming, some simplified under Windows.

If you have a really old operating system than DOS is indeed different than Win32. If you have a professional operating system such as WinNT or Win2k or WinXP, than DOS is a DOS Virtual Machine, and infact it is Win32 simulated to run some DOS programs. Ultimately though it is nothing more than Win32.

I had joined classes for learning C and C++ on a UNIX (linux actually) platform. To get a better idea of how the code works my faculty told me that i should program on DOS with TC++ as a compiler as there is no F7 like utility available for UNIX platform that would let me see the flow of a program.

Well you can use gdb to do this. I've used gdb
so much that I've actually had gdb crash on a program.

First compile your program into some thing like p1 with -g
gcc -o p1 p1.c -g -Wall

Then type
gdb ./p1
To set a break point it is possible to say
break <function> or
break <filename>:<line#> or
break <label>
break <memory address>

stepi and nexti are for assembly instructions

step executes each c/c++ statement one by one and goes
into function calls.

If you type enter after a command it executes it
another type so you can do repeative steps.

run starts normal execution of the program.
continue starts the program after a break point.
list shows a view of source code near by.

next executes each c/c++ statement one by one and does
not go into function calls.

back does a stack trace of functions called. The stack can get screwed up, so this can give bad results.

You can use the print and x commands to view data.
So like to see the first byte of an array you could something
like
x /b a1
given that a1 is in gdb's symbol table.

make can be used inside gdb.
You can also use shell <command>

You can use watch points which you can use like
watch <variable name>
watch <memory location>

Could anyone please tell me would it be enough to learn console programming ?

Console programming is programming where the file
being written to is tied to the screen.
Just about all programmers have to learn file access.