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Both C++ and C# (pronounced C sharp, like in music annotation) are programming languages. As their names suggest, they are both offshoots of C, seeking to improve or specialize it.
C++ was more of an expansion, as programming languages are usually created or altered for a specific reason. C# is a larger alteration and more specialized.
There are a couple of key differences between the two. The main one is that C# is really only useful inside the Windows architecture, meaning that it doesn’t do you much good if you want to write programs for Android or iOS. C++, on the other hand, can be used for almost any operating system.
Secondly, C# is a very high-level language; that means that it’s closer to English and further from machine language. C++ is considered an intermediate language, as it has aspects of a high-level language at times, but at other times it’s close to machine language. It depends on what you’re using it for and what sort of program you’re writing.
Key Takeaways:
| C++ | C# |
|---|---|
| Is an intermediate language, having some aspects of higher syntax and machine language. | Is a higher-level language, as its syntax is similar to English. |
| C++ can be used to program for any architecture, such as Windows, iOS, and Linux. | C# is limited to systems with a Windows architecture, which limits its versatility. |
| Was invented by Bjarne Stroustrup, a Dutch student at Bell Laboratories. | Was created by Anders Hjisberg, who was part of Microsoft. |
| While largely an object-oriented language, it doesn’t require the use of classes. | This language is purely object-oriented and requires the use of classes. |
What Is C++?
C++ is an intermediate programming language. It was invented at American Telephone and Telegraph’s Bell Laboratories by a Ph.D. student named Bjarne Stroustrup. It has high flexibility as it can be used with all different operating systems, including Windows, Android, Linux, and iOS. It’s used for programming games, applications, and numerous other things.
While C++ is a versatile programming language, it has a steep learning curve, making it ill-suited to be a language for beginners.
As C++ is closer to older programming languages (namely, C), it lacks some automatically handled tasks like C#. That is part of what makes the language more difficult to learn, as you have to spell out more things for the program – such as memory management and bound checking.
While C++ is an object-oriented language, it doesn’t require you to use classes. Object orientation in programming is, in many ways, simpler than it appears. It just means that you’re able to define things as “objects” when you work.
An object doesn’t need to be what we’d think of as an object – for example, a sphere (though it can be). Objects can range from being a variable, a data structure, or a function with a memory allocation.
What Is C#?
C# is a higher-level programming language, meaning that its syntax is much closer to English than machine language. As it’s a more specialized language, it has a lot of features that make it easier to learn and use. These include a “garbage collector” that manages memory for you, as well as a compiler that takes care of bound checking.
However, due to the fact that it’s specialized, the language isn’t especially flexible. For one thing, whatever you’re writing must have a Windows-based system. That makes sense, as it was invented by a Microsoft team, the name C# first having been used in 1988.
C# is an entirely object-oriented language, which expands what you can do with it. However, unlike C++, C# also requires the use of classes. The way to think of classes is that they define a type of object. So if you’re defining a class, you’re not actually creating an object – you’re giving parameters for an object.
So if you, say, want to create a class of bicycles, you define the things a bike must have. For example: tires, handlebars, a seat, and a frame. Now, to create the object itself, you define in more detail – what type of tires, on or off the road? What color is the frame? Are the handlebars curved or straight?
Classes simplify the creation of objects and allow you to create multiple slightly different objects in a class quickly. For instance, you can have a green bike with off-road tires and a pink bike with curved handlebars.
Like C++, C# is in the C family of programming languages, meaning that they’re all based on C. Many different programming languages have come out of C, including C++, C#, Java, Cyclone, and D.
There are numerous other languages that have aspects of C in them, making the family of C languages include more than fifty languages. Several of them are very specialized, and not all of them are currently in use, but C++ and C# are not alone in their family by any means.
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Di has been a writer for more than half her life. Most of her writing so far has been fiction, and she’s gotten short stories published in online magazines Kzine and Silver Blade, as well as a flash fiction piece in the Bookends review. Di graduated from Mary Baldwin College (now University) with a degree in Psychology and Sociology.
