Are there any good free C++ IDE's for X?

phillytphillyt
Posted:
in Mac Software edited January 2014
I have generally used my PC as a programming environment(still transitioning to X) but I have to do a midterm for one of my classes and my Macbook Pro is a much better computer than the lab computers. Basically can anyone recommend a good IDE that is free so I can do simple console C++ applications, no windows programming needed at this moment. Thanks a lot.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 8
    mr. memr. me Posts: 3,221member
    Xcode ships with every new Mac and with every retail copy of MacOS X.
  • Reply 2 of 8
    kickahakickaha Posts: 8,760member
    Of course, if you're just producing a simple console C++ app, then vi + gcc would do you fine as well... Xcode would be quite overkill IMO. It has a non-insignificant learning curve, while, for simple things, gcc and make will get you 95% of the way there in very little time.
  • Reply 3 of 8
    gregmightdothatgregmightdothat Posts: 1,709member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Phillyt


    I have generally used my PC as a programming environment(still transitioning to X) but I have to do a midterm for one of my classes and my Macbook Pro is a much better computer than the lab computers. Basically can anyone recommend a good IDE that is free so I can do simple console C++ applications, no windows programming needed at this moment. Thanks a lot.



    Use Xcode, and when creating your project, choose "C++ Tool."
  • Reply 4 of 8
    splinemodelsplinemodel Posts: 7,311member
    Dude, vi?



    I will admit that I'm in the vi hate-club, although I have no desire to start another vi vs. the world debate. But the bottom line is that if the dev platform is a modern computer with plenty of power and a GUI, which you obviously have, I can't see why anyone would honestly be compelled to use vi. Project Builder and Text Wrangler are probably the two easiest to use and nicest programs you can use to write basic code on the mac. From there you can use gcc as you normally would.
  • Reply 5 of 8
    kickahakickaha Posts: 8,760member
    Eh, just because if he's going to be triggering gcc from the command line, then working *in* the command line is just as easy as TextEdit, IMO.



    I've seen too many students get forced to learn an IDE/toolset/whatever, and get totally lost on the actual *lesson*. The tools should be as simple as possible for simple programming. Xcode/TextMate/TextWrangler/etc are great tools for the professional, but the student shouldn't have to spend most of their time learning a specific tool just to get to the lesson they're supposed to be learning.



    I mean really, for a simple console app in C++, any text editor will do. Typing 'gcc test.cpp' at the command line is a lot easier than learning Xcode for quick projects.



    OTOH, Phillyt, if you're going to be serious about programming, then by all means *do* learn the best of class IDEs and editors - they will help you tremendously as your projects become more complex. It's always good to cut your teeth on the basics, however, just so you know what the shiny happy IDE is doing under the covers.
  • Reply 6 of 8
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member
    Here.
  • Reply 7 of 8
    rogue27rogue27 Posts: 607member
    I prefer BBEdit for coding and an open console window for compiling with gcc. It's not that tough to Command-Tab back and forth.



    Text Wrangler should be good as well, for I understand it's a stripped down BBEdit.



    I'd avoid vi. I used to use it, but it requires memorizing lots of keyboard shortcuts and it has been made obsolete by recent advances in computing such as arrow keys and mice.



    On the command line, nano is okay. All of the Control-Shortcuts are displayed at the bottom of the screen, so it is easy to learn.



    At any rate, download apple's developer tools at http://developer.apple.com first. That will install GCC and XCode among other things.
  • Reply 8 of 8
    phillytphillyt Posts: 12member
    Thanks a lot for the heap loads of advice guys! I will check out all of these options. I have experience using emacs for lots of text editing so maybe I'll use that with GCC. I'll also check out Xcode. I'm a CS major at a university so maybe I should get used to the Xcode IDE. On a side note, at my school, they offer a seminar on Mac Application development so I'll check that out next semester to learn about ObjectiveC and Cocoa stuff. Thanks again for all the help.
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