Resources / C, C++, & SC3 Plugins

C, C++, and SuperCollider Plugin Writing

I have only three words of advice for you if you're just getting started with C or C++, and writing SuperCollider plugins:

Kernighan and Ritchie

Go straight to the source and get the ultra thin book, The C Programming Language (2nd Edition), written by the two guys who I think developed C. I got another book or two before I purchased this one, and all of them tried so desperately to make learning C and C++ so much fun, but actually all they do is give you literally 500 more pages to read and a whole lot of shitty bad jokes. The K & R book is awesome and so straight-forward and understandable, only 274 pages, I couldn't believe it. And if you've never programmed C or C++ and are wondering if you need to learn one before the other, I would definitely suggest learning C first, and then considering C++ as just an extension of the basic C stuff presented in the K & R book. Then, once you're ready, maybe consider a C++ book by O'Reilly...

This just in from my friend Andy Kopra:

"I wanted to suggest some additions to your resources web page. I think these two books about C and C++ are great introductions, but are still quite useful for more experienced programmers:

On to C++ by Patrick Henry Winston
& Winston's earlier book about C, On to C"

And attention potential SuperCollider plugin writers: even though SC3 is technically written in C++, you really don't have to even touch anything more than basic C to build most any plugin, at least I haven't had to touch an ounce of C++ since getting started. All of my questions have been answered by the K & R book and the SuperCollider developers list (sc-dev)...

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PLEASE NOTE: For a number of personal reasons I am currently unable to support this page and am unable to respond to any further questions, requests, demands, etc posted here. I sincerely apologize for this. The material above is simply presented as archival material (some of it incomplete) of a project that I am not actively involved with anymore, and it will probably not be updated any further. You are free to use it in whatever non-commercial ways you wish (see the CreativeCommons license below). In addition, feel free to use the comments-section below to post ideas, solutions, or to ask questions, but with the understanding that any queries will have to be answered by the community at large - not by me. Thanks for understanding.