Read some C++ literature like the C++ FAQ and you shouldn't be caught off guard any more, those pitfalls you mentioned are basic things. * there is no subtlety

Read some C++ literature like the C++ FAQ and you shouldn't be caught off guard any more, those pitfalls you mentioned are basic things. * there is no subtlety in the way includes work, they are simply merged into the file. * non-virtual inheritance is just normal inheritance. In case you meant non-virtual functions when using inheritance, that is also a very basic part of C++. As for the list, there's been a std::list for a very long time now. If your project is using custom lists then they either needed something very specific or are very very old. In that case, you should not criticize the language IMO. JS however can very well be lambasted, because new JS frameworks pop up often nowadays and they do exactly the same things in slightly different ways in 2015, not in 1997.