The process of building a modern C++ application can be quite complex and time-consuming. Developers have to solve several problems related to performance, programming language difficulties, the process of finding bugs, etc.
In order to solve these problems, special powerful tools like the C++ code maker have been developed. They make the development process easier and faster. In this article, we will look at the main tools that make it easy to create C++ applications.
What is a C++ code maker?
Which C++ code makers are the most popular?
What are significant issues C++ developers face?
How can I simplify the C++ program creating process?
Can I rename a symbol in the C++ program?
Am I able to convert between pointer and instance?
How do I create a method from existing code?
Does it help me type C++ code faster?
How do I debug crash dumps?
What is a C++ code maker?
A C++ code maker is a software that provides several handy tools and features for writing code. Among them are smart code completion, automatic code generation, displaying errors in code, displaying documentation, and more. Depending on different C++ code makers, their functionality may differ.
Which C++ code makers are the most popular?
One of the most powerful and popular C++ code makers is Visual Studio. It is available for various operating systems. Visual Studio provides a lot of advanced tools for automating coding, debugging, and deploying applications. At the same time, the advanced setup of Visual Studio may seem quite complicated to you.
The next popular C++ code maker is Code::Blocks. It is a lightweight C++ editor that has all the basic tools for developing C++ applications. Code::Blocks also has features such as profiling, code coverage, and code analysis. The main disadvantages are the outdated user interface and unsuitability for use in high processing and data computation.
Eclipse is one of the most simple and powerful open-source C++ code makers. It has a very clear interface, which even a beginner can easily figure out. Eclipse provides a wide range of development tools. It also supports a lot of additional plug-ins. A serious disadvantage of Eclipse is its high memory consumption.
What are significant issues C++ developers face?
- Working with pointers. Using pointers in large C++ projects can be the cause of high memory usage. In addition, pointers can be quite tricky to deal with. Their misuse can lead to malfunction or failure of the entire system.
- Working with dirty legacy code. Often, when working with old projects, it becomes necessary to develop and maintain legacy code. Working with such a code is labor-intensive. It is necessary to constantly refactor. In this case, there is a high risk of creating bugs.
- Multi-threading development. There are no built-in threads in C++. Therefore, working with parallel threads is quite complicated. This requires highly skilled programmers who can correctly design and implement the work of threads. However, different bugs can still occur. It may be difficult to reproduce and meltdown them. In this case, advanced tools for debugging multi-threaded programs are very useful.
- No built-in garbage collector. When using C++ pointers, developers should always take care to clean up memory when the pointers are no longer in use. Otherwise, a memory leak may occur, since C++ does not have a built-in garbage collector.
- C++ is an unsafe programming language. This is because it uses pointers, global variables, and friend functions.
- C++ is a rather difficult programming language to learn. This is especially true for novice developers. It is affected by its syntax, the presence of pointers, the need to manage memory, and multiple inheritances.
How can I simplify the C++ program creating process?
The Visual Assist for Visual Studio C++ extension helps you make the application development process easier and faster. It offers a wide range of convenient and reliable tools for refactoring, generating, debugging code, and more.
Can I rename a symbol in the C++ program?
In the refactoring process, it is often necessary to change the name of a file, a class, or some of its members. Visual Assist allows you to quickly rename the symbol you want and all its dependencies in your project using quick action ‘Rename’.
Am I able to convert between pointer and instance?
With Visual Assist, you can change a pointer object to a reference object and vice versa. In this case, the conversion occurs not only in the declaration of the object but also in all places of its use, if necessary.
How do I create a method from existing code?
It is very easy to move existing code into a separate method. Simply highlight the lines of code you want and choose the ‘Quick Action Extract Method’.
The parameters and type that the method returns will be generated automatically. You only need to specify the name of the method. The old code is automatically replaced with a call to the newly generated method.
Does it help me type C++ code faster?
Visual Assist allows you to use acronyms to write code faster. It expands acronyms into characters available in the current context. You can also use abbreviations to select an item from a drop-down list.
If you don’t remember the full name of the desired function or object, you can enter only part of the name and Visual Assist will expand your abbreviation to characters that are valid in that context.
Another feature that can significantly speed up the process of writing code is smart suggestions. They allow you to automatically insert entire lines or blocks of code that are appropriate in the current context.
How do I debug crash dumps?
To help you debug more efficiently, Visual Assist provides a Memory View. It displays the call stack with the memory addresses pointed to by the current stack pointer. The Memory View shows detailed information from the corrupted call stack. It includes the following data:
- Address of ESP/RSP pointers
- Content stored at the specified address
- The name of the module that contains the specified address
- The name of the symbol in the memory address
Summary
In this article, we have listed significant difficulties that C++ developers often face. We also explored tools that help solve emerging problems.
Download the Visual Assist for Visual Studio extension and develop C++ applications easily and hassle-free.
