Cover of Thinking in C++

Thinking in C++

by Bruce Eckel · first published 1995

21mentions
11recommended by
20HN commenters
2008–2026first – last mentioned

55% recommend45% neutral

Why HN recommends it

Well-paced, clearly written C++ introduction that builds up from C and explains the whys and gotchas; suits C programmers moving to C++ and learners who want exercises. Free online, with a second volume.

Summarised by Claude from recommending comments

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Mentions per year

40 2007: 0 mentions2008: 2 mentions2009: 0 mentions2010: 4 mentions2011: 4 mentions2012: 0 mentions2013: 2 mentions2014: 1 mention2015: 0 mentions2016: 1 mention2017: 2 mentions2018: 0 mentions2019: 0 mentions2020: 0 mentions2021: 1 mention2022: 2 mentions2023: 0 mentions2024: 0 mentions2025: 0 mentions2026: 1 mention200720172026

What Hacker News says

  • mindcrime · Feb 28, 2011 · Recommends

    …down any further, but there was some good stuff there. Of the ones I didn't see, I'd throw out: The World Is Flat - Thomas L. Friedman Enterprise Integration Patterns - Gregor Hohpe & Bobby Woolf Thinking in C++ - Bruce Eckel

    on “What is the single most influential book every programmer should read?” ↗
  • jgalvez · Oct 5, 2008 · Recommends

    Can anyone recommend a book that deals with the web/server-side aspect of C++ coding? I'm nearly half way through Thinking in C++ by Bruce Eckel (wonderfully well written!) but it doesn't look like it's getting near there.

    on “Suppose I wanted to write a C++ based web application...” ↗
  • Daramarak · Feb 12, 2010 · Recommends

    I would look at Thinking in C++ by Bruce Eckel (http://mindview.net/Books/TICPP/ThinkingInCPP2e.html) It is a free resource, and gives you the whys and hows on most aspects of c++. Buy the book when you decide that you like it,…

    on “Learning C++ in 2010” ↗
  • nkassis · Oct 15, 2011 · Recommends

    Go find a copy of Thinking in C++ by bruce eckel. He has a free version of it online (also volume two about the standard library). The book is getting old but I still find it valuable and he builds up from C and teaches a whole lot…

    on “From C to C++: A quick reference for aging programmers” ↗
  • Moto7451 · Jan 2, 2014 · Recommends

    …my brother's university's Python based curriculum mentioned this. My community college's C++ based curriculum mentioned it in passing. I seem to remember it being mentioned in Bruce Eckel's excellent "Thinking in C++". That said, I'm kinda curious how much this affects Objective C objects.

    on “The Lost Art of C Structure Packing” ↗
  • jjesus · Feb 16, 2017 · Recommends

    I didn't see Bruce Eckel's Thinking in C++; the PDF is free: http://mindview.net/Books/TICPP/ThinkingInCPP2e.html I thought Eckel's book was especially good for someone who already had a background in C.

    on “Master C++ Programming with Open-Source Books” ↗
  • freedomben · Jan 16, 2021 · Recommends

    A bit of a side note here regarding the author. Bruce Eckel's book "Thinking in C++ Vols 1 and 2"[1][2] was possibly my favorite book ever read. Bruce is (in my personal opinion as an observer of people with zero professional training in psychology) a depth-first learner and naturally…

    on “The Problem with Gradle” ↗
  • mypalmike · Oct 16, 2017 · Recommends

    "Thinking in C++" by Bruce Eckel "Effective C++" by Scott Myers

    on “Essential C” ↗
  • wavesplash · Apr 16, 2008 · Recommends

    Download a copy of Bruce Eckel's Thinking in C++. He's superb at bringing to light the quirks of each language he writes about. http://www.mindview.net/Books/DownloadSites

    on “Ask YC: C++” ↗
  • nadam · Oct 16, 2010 · Recommends

    Probably I would not suggest this book otherwise, but if you are an experienced C programmer then Bruce Eckel's 'Thinking in C++' book might be for you. It explains to C programmers why object orientation is a good thing. It gradually shifts from C to C++. (If I remember correctly; I've read that book long years ago.) You can…

    on “Ask HN: Zero programming experience and badly want to learn. Where to start? ” ↗
  • jackhack · Nov 28, 2016 · Recommends

    …the senior developer's guidelines. Instruction was informal, and under supervision of others, yet I hadn't made a complete mindshift to OO until probably six months to a year after using it. I liked "Thinking in C++" (Bruce Eckel @ http://mindview.net/Books/TICPP/ThinkingInCPP2e.html ) quite a lot -- in fact I re-read it several times about six months apart and it seems I always pick up some new nugget of knowledge…

    on “Modern C [pdf]” ↗
  • mindcrime · Feb 21, 2011 · Recommends

    …have been many over the years, but I always got a lot of mileage out of those "Dietel and Dietel" books. People seem to either love those or hate them, but they seemed pretty good to me. Bruce Eckel's "Thinking in C++" was a good one as well. The Robert Sedgewick books are good for algorithms stuff. I own a copy of SICP, but still haven't gotten around to working through it. But I will, one day... yes, one day…

    on “Ask HN: HOW did YOU learn to program?” ↗
  • I recommend Happy Path Programming, with Bruce Eckel (author of Thinking in C++) and James Ward. It tends to focus on programming language topics rather than software engineering more broadly. I would give a link, but it doesn't seem to have a home-page.

    on “What are some of the best podcasts for developers?” ↗
  • Figs · Aug 7, 2011 · Mentions

    The term "functor" is widely used -- including such places as SGI's STL documentation (http://www.sgi.com/tech/stl/functors.html) and numerous other reference sites. According to Bruce Eckel's Thinking in C++ Vol 2 (in the section describing the Command Pattern), the term dates to 1992: > In Advanced C++: Programming Styles And Idioms (Addison Wesley, 1992), Jim Coplien coins the term functor which…

    on “"functors" in c++, ML, haskell, prolog” ↗
  • bad_user · Oct 20, 2011 · Mentions

    …it's worth it. Up until now I've been reading prose from project Gutenberg, online articles with the help of Instapaper and technical books available for free. Btw, on my Kindle I've also began reading Thinking in C++; Bruce Eckel has a very wordy style, but it's pretty cool if you have the patience and I think it's one of those technical books that can be read on a Kindle. I've been formatting it for Kindle, posted…

    on “Making of Prince of Persia now available as an ebook” ↗

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