Writing Screensavers for Windows in C++

Hi everybody, I hope somebody can help me. I am working on learning C and C ++ because I want to write screensavers and transfer them to CD's to sell.

Please tell me this is possible.

Also, do I need a compiler? What kind is best? My budget is really tight right now, so if there's a decent free one...

The screensavers that you get with Windows, you know, like the flags flying at you and the mouse running through the maze, all that- can I write that level of quality with C or C++?

Thank you so much. :)

1) Yes it's possible.

2) http://www.bloodshed.net/devcpp.html

3) Yes you can.

Thank you! If I start learning C now, how long is it going to take me? Do I have to know both C and C ++ to write a screensaver?

you're not gonna like this, but about 3 or 4 years for a commercial quality program.
you don't need to know C OR C++ to write a screensaver, there are several packages available that allow you to make screensavers. It really depends on what you want to do. if you just want a slideshow to show off your photography, that's pretty trivial. if you want to do something really cool like the electric sheep, it's gonna take a lot more work in graphics, math, networking, etc.

In short, if you just want to write a screensaver, stay away from C++.

I want to write really cool screensavers, someday up to the level of "mouse running through the maze upside down and giving everybody veritgo." I've already got programs for slideshow screensavers.

Did you mean it would take me three or four years to WRITE something like that, or learn how to?

I would have thought learn how to as huge games don't really take that long to write.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by bumfluff

I would have thought learn how to as huge games don't really take that long to write.

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you're obviously not still waiting for duke nukem forever then! :D

around 2-3 years to become a truly competent C++ programmer (i.e. able to design, code, debug and test a reasonably complex application to a commercial standard) and about 6 months - 1 year to write a 3d engine from scratch.

I'm assuming you're not doing this full time. If you're working at this 40 hours a week, you'll get there quicker.

don't forget you also need to learn about 3d math, which is a study in itself.

[QUOTE=ChaosEngine]

around 2-3 years to become a truly competent C++ programmer (i.e. able to design, code, debug and test a reasonably complex application to a commercial standard) and about 6 months - 1 year to write a 3d engine from scratch. QUOTE]

DRAT! HTML, this is not! :eek:

3-D math? What's that? (sigh) I guess the next question is, where do I learn that? :confused:

I wouldn't worry about the 3d math part yet. You're going to need to learn basic C or C++ programming before even THINKING about things like 3d math/programming.

Start with the tutorials on this here site. They are great tutorials, and were the ones that gave me my start to C++.

http://img97.imageshack.us/img97/4143/digitalart9qz.jpg
that's OpenGL code - the 5 lines under the /* Front */ comment are just the blue side of the cube.

doesn't look like much, but then multiply that by 6 and you have 1 cube. then look at a game written in OpenGL and try to count the shapes ;)

to anybody that's actually done game programming: shhhhh I'm trying to help get a point across