C++ interface tutorials

kojikun · Post by **kojikun** » 2003-06-22 11:34pm

Ok, I've decided I'm going to try c++ for the game I want to make, since im familiar with c++. My problem, tho, is that I cannot find a single bloody tutorial on making interfaces and the like. Can anyone help?

Shinova · Post by **Shinova** » 2003-06-23 12:04am

Interface as in graphical menus and like?

You could try going for C Builder, which is C++ with all this stuff that let's you make menus, windows, and whatnot easily and such.

Just a suggestion.

kojikun · Post by **kojikun** » 2003-06-23 12:33am

and would you happen to also know something which allows the display of graphics, like a game display?

Pu-239 · Post by **Pu-239** » 2003-06-23 01:39am

Look up SDL. Also there are some OSS 3D engines out there. WxWindows is a wrapper for the Windows GUI interface.

Then again, if you are just learning C++, something simpler is suggested.

Slartibartfast · Post by **Slartibartfast** » 2003-06-23 02:18am

WxWindows with other free shit is what I use, someday I'll port my games to Macintosh and Linux

Crazy_Vasey · Post by **Crazy_Vasey** » 2003-06-23 06:42am

What are you after? For games there's SDL and OpenGL, if you want to do GUIs then there's the Win32 API, wxWindows, and a zillion other wrapper libraries.

GrandMasterTerwynn · Post by **GrandMasterTerwynn** » 2003-06-23 01:24pm

kojikun wrote:and would you happen to also know something which allows the display of graphics, like a game display?

For game graphics, I'd personally recommend OpenGL. Mostly because it's free, it's platform-insensitive, and there are about thousands of tutorials out there on how to program in it. An excellent OpenGL toolkit (suitable for small to medium-sized programs) can be found here

GLUT, the OpenGL utility toolkit

kojikun · Post by **kojikun** » 2003-06-23 10:23pm

well, OpenGL is good for later on, but right now I need to learn VC++ and such. Problem is, I cant find any GOOD tutorials on the net.

Slartibartfast · Post by **Slartibartfast** » 2003-06-24 02:51am

Oh and don't you dare touch that DirectX crap.

kojikun · Post by **kojikun** » 2003-06-24 02:57am

Slartibartfast wrote:Oh and don't you dare touch that DirectX crap.

Yes daddy. :p

Sarevok · Post by **Sarevok** » 2003-06-26 08:58am

Ok, I've decided I'm going to try c++ for the game I want to make, since im familiar with c++. My problem, tho, is that I cannot find a single bloody tutorial on making interfaces and the like. Can anyone help?

How good are you with C++ ? Do not even think about writting a game untill you can write a decent win32 application all by yourself.

Which compiler you use ? If you have VC++ consider using the MFC for the interface. It is simpler the Win32 API. But if you need flexibility and speed I suggest you use the Wind32 API even though it is complicated. However since you are wrtting a game the DDraw API may be more useful.

Oh and don't you dare touch that DirectX crap.

I have all the DirectX SDKs and find it quite useful.

What are you after? For games there's SDL and OpenGL, if you want to do GUIs then there's the Win32 API, wxWindows, and a zillion other wrapper libraries.

For framework libraries the MFC is recommended. It is written by some of the best programmers and is highly reliable. You may consider writting your own framework. The book "W++: Writting reusable code for windows" by Paul DiLascia is a good starting point in this direction.

well, OpenGL is good for later on, but right now I need to learn VC++ and such. Problem is, I cant find any GOOD tutorials on the net.

If you want to be programmer you must have the urge read a LOT of books. I suggest you begin with "Beginning Visual C++" by Ivor Horton. It covers everything from C++ basics to writting windows applications.

GrandMasterTerwynn · Post by **GrandMasterTerwynn** » 2003-06-26 01:32pm

kojikun wrote:well, OpenGL is good for later on, but right now I need to learn VC++ and such. Problem is, I cant find any GOOD tutorials on the net.

Actually programming and debugging in the Visual C++ environment is really easy (it has a decent debugger/execution tracer). What you want to learn is MFC (Microsoft Foundation Class) so you can learn how to write the basic Windows interface to your C++ program. Sure you could learn the basic Win32 API, but it's like trying to stuff a 350 small-block into a Honda Civic. Yes, it's powerful, but it's godawful hard to do and really isn't worth the effort (since, to be honest, the bulk of your programming time will be spent writing your OpenGL stuff anyway.)