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Is it better to learn C or C++ if I'm a C#/Java/Swift programmer?
For people who are new to programming, especially those who never went through a "proper" Computer Science degree program but instead are either self-taught or went through a boot camp to get them to a point where they could be hired as a .NET, Java, JavaScript, Ruby, Python, etc programmer, and are now wanting to learn at a deeper level with a "real" language, is it better to learn C++ or eschew the superset and learn C directly?
- davismwfl 8y agoIt depends on your goals. I use C and C++ everyday, but I'd suggest if you are trying to learn how to deal with very low level concepts than C is probably the best thing to learn initially. So much has been written in C over the years, and so much continues to be developed in C that it is really a powerful tool to know and understand. There are plenty of good code bases to look at for either C or C++, but C will give you a rooted understanding of core concepts. Plus look at it this way, every time I use a higher level language I know that it is helping me get things done faster, but I also know everything it is having to do for me at a lower level. Which means when I debug it, I look at things differently than others whom don't have the same low level understanding. So IMO it makes you a better all around programmer even if you decide to work mostly in a higher level language. One draw back to that too, is you have to look at the obvious first and not get lost in the weeds.