Thread: If I already know C++ is it worth learning C?

Hey guys, I was thinking about learning C++ and I have very good knowledge of java so I feel it wouldn't be too hard for me. My question is whether it's worth learning C after I know C++? Would people say it was really easy to learn C if I know C++? (not C#, because I think that is somewhat different?)

Thanks!

Interesting.

Most people learn C and then graduate to C++.

It has been a few years since I programmed in C/C++ (college knowlege) but it shouldn't be too difficult to learn C, especially if you know Java and C++.

Now going from C to C++ is somewhat of a challenge because C++ is Object Oriented.

If you know C++ very well, C would be very easy to learn. So no, I don't think it would be worth going out of your way to do C. For example, in a job interview, knowing C++ very well would be good enough to hire you to do C programming.

Once you know C++ you know C too, they have exactly the same syntax. C++ is C just with additional object oriented features.

It actually depends, because some work use C language (like microprocessor programming), and additional knowledge in C language won't hurt you either. I think, it would be a plus if you have both language proficiency.

Learning C wouldn't hurt IMO, Someday it might get you a job.... Just read up on it, it is very similar to C++.

It really depends, I think. You can use everything from C in your C++ code, but you can also write perfectly good C++ programs without using the power pure C gives you.
If you want to learn C, I would learn it before C++, since you will learn a lot about how your machine works and the move to C++ won't be difficult because you already know OOP and most of the stuff C++ adds to C from Java. The only thing that will teach you more about how the CPU does things is assembler, but that is a very different style of writing code.

I went from C to Java. Tried C++ a bit and never liked it very much partly due to the complexity of the language. Somehow, I felt the transition to OO language was smoother with Java than C++. Also, the flexibility of writing C syntax in a C++ compiler didn't help much either.

I would think that if you are really comfortable with C++, you shouldn't have too much problem picking up C. Is there any specific reason for wanting to pick up C? There aren't that many companies using C these days unless they are dealing with creating frameworks from the scratch and direct harware interactivity & speed is of main concern.

All those saying that C is easy once you know C++, I disagree. C++ and Java are similar with their object-oriented features, but C is in a completely different ballpark. You may be able to pick up the syntax fairly easily, but writing a complete application becomes a lot more challenging. If you're looking for a serious job in the field, at least have a little experience with C under your belt.