Transitioning from C# to C++, good references?

Question

I've just completed my second OOP class, and both my first and second classes were taught in C#, but for the rest of my programming classes, we will be working in C++. Specifically, we will be using the visual C++ compliler. The problem is, we are required to learn the basics of C++ ourself, with no transition from our professor. So, I was wondering if any of you know of some good resources I could go to to learn about C++, coming from a c# background?

I ask this because I've noticed many diffferences between C# and C++, such as declaring your main method int, and returning a 0, and that your main method is not always contained in a class. Also, I've noticed that all of your classes have to be written before your main method, I heard that this is because VC++ complies from the top down?

Anyway, do you know of some good references?

Thanks! (Also, is there somewhere out there where I can compare simple programs I've written in C#, to see what they would look like in C++, such as the one I wrote that is below)?

using System;
using System.IO;
using System.Text; // for stringbuilder

class Driver
{
const int ARRAY_SIZE = 10;

static void Main()
{
    PrintStudentHeader(); // displays my student information header

    Console.WriteLine("FluffShuffle Electronics Payroll Calculator\n");
    Console.WriteLine("Please enter the path to the file, either relative to your current location, or the whole file path\n");

    int i = 0;

    Console.Write("Please enter the path to the file: ");
    string filePath = Console.ReadLine();

    StreamReader employeeDataReader = new StreamReader(filePath);

    Employee[] employeeInfo = new Employee[ARRAY_SIZE];

    Employee worker;

    while ((worker = Employee.ReadFromFile(employeeDataReader)) != null)
    {
        employeeInfo[i] = worker;
        i++;
    }

    for (int j = 0; j < i; j++)
    {
        employeeInfo[j].Print(j);
    }

    Console.ReadLine();

}//End Main()


class Employee
{
const int TIME_AND_A_HALF_MARKER = 40;
const double FEDERAL_INCOME_TAX_PERCENTAGE = .20;
const double STATE_INCOME_TAX_PERCENTAGE = .075;
const double TIME_AND_A_HALF_PREMIUM = 0.5;

private int employeeNumber;
private string employeeName;
private string employeeStreetAddress;
private double employeeHourlyWage;
private int employeeHoursWorked;
private double federalTaxDeduction;
private double stateTaxDeduction;
private double grossPay;
private double netPay;

// -------------- Constructors ----------------

public Employee() : this(0, "", "", 0.0, 0) { }

public Employee(int a, string b, string c, double d, int e)
{
    employeeNumber = a;
    employeeName = b;
    employeeStreetAddress = c;
    employeeHourlyWage = d;
    employeeHoursWorked = e;
    grossPay = employeeHourlyWage * employeeHoursWorked;

    if (employeeHoursWorked > TIME_AND_A_HALF_MARKER)
        grossPay += (((employeeHoursWorked - TIME_AND_A_HALF_MARKER) * employeeHourlyWage) * TIME_AND_A_HALF_PREMIUM);

    stateTaxDeduction = grossPay * STATE_INCOME_TAX_PERCENTAGE;
    federalTaxDeduction = grossPay * FEDERAL_INCOME_TAX_PERCENTAGE;
}

// --------------- Setters -----------------

/// <summary>
/// The SetEmployeeNumber method
/// sets the employee number to the given integer param
/// </summary>
/// <param name="n">an integer</param>
public void SetEmployeeNumber(int n)
{
    employeeNumber = n;
}

/// <summary>
/// The SetEmployeeName method
/// sets the employee name to the given string param
/// </summary>
/// <param name="s">a string</param>
public void SetEmployeeName(string s)
{
    employeeName = s;
}

/// <summary>
/// The SetEmployeeStreetAddress method
/// sets the employee street address to the given param string
/// </summary>
/// <param name="s">a string</param>
public void SetEmployeeStreetAddress(string s)
{
    employeeStreetAddress = s;
}

/// <summary>
/// The SetEmployeeHourlyWage method
/// sets the employee hourly wage to the given double param
/// </summary>
/// <param name="d">a double value</param>
public void SetEmployeeHourlyWage(double d)
{
    employeeHourlyWage = d;
}

/// <summary>
/// The SetEmployeeHoursWorked method
/// sets the employee hours worked to a given int param
/// </summary>
/// <param name="n">an integer</param>
public void SetEmployeeHoursWorked(int n)
{
    employeeHoursWorked = n;
}

// -------------- Getters --------------

/// <summary>
/// The GetEmployeeNumber method
/// gets the employee number of the currnt employee object
/// </summary>
/// <returns>the int value, employeeNumber</returns>
public int GetEmployeeNumber()
{
    return employeeNumber;
}

/// <summary>
/// The GetEmployeeName method
/// gets the name of the current employee object
/// </summary>
/// <returns>the string, employeeName</returns>
public string GetEmployeeName()
{
    return employeeName;
}

/// <summary>
/// The GetEmployeeStreetAddress method
/// gets the street address of the current employee object
/// </summary>
/// <returns>employeeStreetAddress, a string</returns>
public string GetEmployeeStreetAddress()
{
    return employeeStreetAddress;
}

/// <summary>
/// The GetEmployeeHourlyWage method
/// gets the value of the hourly wage for the current employee object
/// </summary>
/// <returns>employeeHourlyWage, a double</returns>
public double GetEmployeeHourlyWage()
{
    return employeeHourlyWage;
}

/// <summary>
/// The GetEmployeeHoursWorked method
/// gets the hours worked for the week of the current employee object
/// </summary>
/// <returns>employeeHoursWorked, as an int</returns>
public int GetEmployeeHoursWorked()
{
    return employeeHoursWorked;
}

// End --- Getter/Setter methods

/// <summary>
/// The CalcSalary method
/// calculates the net pay of the current employee object
/// </summary>
/// <returns>netPay, a double</returns>
private double CalcSalary()
{
    netPay = grossPay - stateTaxDeduction - federalTaxDeduction;

    return netPay;
}

/// <summary>
/// The ReadFromFile method
/// reads in the data from a file using a given a streamreader object
/// </summary>
/// <param name="r">a streamreader object</param>
/// <returns>an Employee object</returns>
public static Employee ReadFromFile(StreamReader r)
{
    string line = r.ReadLine();

    if (line == null)
        return null;

    int empNumber = int.Parse(line);
    string empName = r.ReadLine();
    string empAddress = r.ReadLine();
    string[] splitWageHour = r.ReadLine().Split();
    double empWage = double.Parse(splitWageHour[0]);
    int empHours = int.Parse(splitWageHour[1]);

    return new Employee(empNumber, empName, empAddress, empWage, empHours);
}

/// <summary>
/// The Print method
/// prints out all of the information for the current employee object, uses string formatting
/// </summary>
/// <param name="checkNum">The number of the FluffShuffle check</param>
public void Print(int checkNum)
{
    string formatStr = "| {0,-45}|";

    Console.WriteLine("\n\n+----------------------------------------------+");
    Console.WriteLine(formatStr, "FluffShuffle Electronics");
    Console.WriteLine(formatStr, string.Format("Check Number: 231{0}", checkNum));
    Console.WriteLine(formatStr, string.Format("Pay To The Order Of:  {0}", employeeName));
    Console.WriteLine(formatStr, employeeStreetAddress);
    Console.WriteLine(formatStr, string.Format("In The Amount of {0:c2}", CalcSalary()));
    Console.WriteLine("+----------------------------------------------+");
    Console.Write(this.ToString());
    Console.WriteLine("+----------------------------------------------+");
}

/// <summary>
/// The ToString method
/// is an override of the ToString method, it builds a string
/// using string formatting, and returns the built string. It particularly builds a string containing
/// all of the info for the pay stub of a sample employee check
/// </summary>
/// <returns>A string</returns>
public override string ToString()
{
    StringBuilder printer = new StringBuilder();

    string formatStr = "| {0,-45}|\n";

    printer.AppendFormat(formatStr,string.Format("Employee Number:  {0}", employeeNumber));
    printer.AppendFormat(formatStr,string.Format("Address:  {0}", employeeStreetAddress));
    printer.AppendFormat(formatStr,string.Format("Hours Worked:  {0}", employeeHoursWorked));
    printer.AppendFormat(formatStr,string.Format("Gross Pay:  {0:c2}", grossPay));
    printer.AppendFormat(formatStr,string.Format("Federal Tax Deduction:  {0:c2}", federalTaxDeduction));
    printer.AppendFormat(formatStr,string.Format("State Tax Deduction:  {0:c2}", stateTaxDeduction));
    printer.AppendFormat(formatStr,string.Format("Net Pay:    {0:c2}", CalcSalary()));

    return printer.ToString();

}
}

Answer 1

C++ and C# are different languages, with different semantics and rules. There is no hard and fast way to switch from one to the other. You will have to learn C++.

For that, some of the resources to learn C++ questions may give you interesting suggestions. Search also for C++ books - see the definitive C++ book guide and list, for example.

In any case, you will need a good amount of time to learn C++. If your teacher expects you to just know C++ out of the blue, your school has a serious problem.

Answer 2

My advice is this:

Don't think of C++ in terms of C#. Start from scratch, and try to learn C++ from a good, solid C++ textbook.

Trying to map C++ into a C# way of thinking will not make you a good C++ developer - it's really very different. It's very hard to port from C# to C++ (not C++/CLI, but strait C++), because so much of C# is really the .NET framework, which will not be available when working in C++.

Also, there are very, very many things that are done differently in C++ than how you'd do it in C#. As much as C# generics look like C++ templates, they are very different, and that change really becomes pervasive when working in C++.

Your experience will make many things easier, but it's really better to think of it as what it is - a completely different language.