This article covers major differences between C and C++ programming language. C++ relates to object-oriented programming (OOP) paradigm. However, C is still favorite language in software development industry.
In the field of programming, it is very common to find the C and C++ languages, both are the most used programming languages for low-level programming and embedded systems (that do not run on a computer but on another type of device). Other languages like Java have replaced C and C++ from the dominant position that they had in the high-level programming.
Therefore, in this article we will point out the major differences between C and C++ programming languages, beginning with their definitions and characteristics.
Key differences between C and C++ programming languages
C language
C is a programming language developed by Dennis Ritchie in 1970 and based on the paradigm of structured programming. This is presented as a general-purpose language that gives the programmer full control over their programs since it allows low-level programming. This means that it allows direct control of functionalities such as access to memory and other programming resources.
At the same time, C provides high-level structures that facilitate the programming of large systems. This language began to be used in the writing of the Unix operating system from which Linux is derived (Operating System that allows using various programs such as text editors, games, Internet browsers, etc.).
In 1978, with the publication of “The C Programming Language” by Brian Kernighan and Dennis Ritchie, the programming language C reached great popularity and became the reference language for the computer community.
Some of the defining characteristics of this programming language are:
- The files of C are saved with extension c, example practica.c
- Only operators &&, || y !
- The printf and scanf functions are used for input and output (IO) flows
- It has no support for object-oriented programming
- Libraries in C end with .h (they are headers) such as math.h and time.h
C++ language
C++ is a programming language created by Bjarne Stroustrup during the first half of the 1980s, in order to provide C with mechanisms that would allow the use of the object-oriented programming paradigm, since the C language had no support for it. Therefore, he quickly succeeded in replacing it. Its initial name was C with Classes but later the symbolism (++) was added to represent that it referred to C incremented.
In principle, C++ was totally compatible with C, that is, any program written in C was a program valid also for C++, although it was not the case otherwise. This option was designed with the purpose of allowing the programmer greater ease for the adoption of the new object-oriented programming language.
Some of the features of C++ are the following:
- The C++ files are saved with extension cpp (c plus plus), such as practica.cpp
- The well-known logical operators AND, OR and NOT can be used as words in the C++ language
- The cout and cin are used as the input and output stream
- It has support for object-oriented programming
- Libraries in C++ are headers, but the conventional ‘.h’ the extension has removed and ‘c’ is added at the beginning, such as cmath and ctime
Inattention to the indicated in the previous definitions, it can be said that the main differences between C and C++ are:
- C files are saved with extension “c” while C++ files are saved with extension “cpp” (c plus plus)
- The well-known logical operators AND, OR and NOT can be used as words in the C++ language or as operators, whereas in C, only operators &&, || y !
- In C, the printf and scanf functions are used for the input and output (IO ) flows, whereas, in C ++, cout and cin are used as input and output flows
- In the paradigm of object-oriented programming, we use Classes, where the C language does not have support for it, whereas C ++ does
- C libraries end with h, while for C ++, the ending ‘.h’ is removed and ‘c’ is added at the beginning, such as cmath
We will add more differences between C and C++, Stay with us.