The C++ Programming Language, 4th Edition

Book Preface

C++ feels like a new language. That is, I can express my ideas more clearly, more simply, and more directly in C++11 than I could in C++98. Furthermore, the resulting programs are better checked by the compiler and run faster.

In this book, I aim for completeness. I describe every language feature and standard library component that a professional programmer is likely to need. For each, I provide:
• Rationale: What kinds of problems is it designed to help solve? What principles underlie the design? What are the fundamental limitations?
• Specification: What is its definition? The level of detail is chosen for the expert programmer; the aspiring language lawyer can follow the many references to the ISO standard.
• Examples: How can it be used well by itself and in combination with other features? What are the key techniques and idioms? What are the implications for maintainability and performance?

The use of C++ has changed dramatically over the years and so has the language itself. From the point of view of a programmer, most of the changes have been improvements. The current ISO standard C++ (ISO/IEC 14882-2011, usually called C++11) is simply a far better tool for writing quality software than were previous versions. How is it a better tool? What kinds of programming styles and techniques does modern C++ support? What language and standard-library features support those techniques? What are the basic building blocks of elegant, correct, maintainable, and efficient C++ code? Those are the key questions answered by this book. Many answers are not the same as you would find with 1985, 1995, or 2005 vintage C++: progress happens.