Getting Started

This track is for complete beginners who have never written a line of code. We start from "what is an editor" and work up to getting your first C++ program actually running and making vscode understand your code. Every step is a click, every step has a screenshot placeholder, and anything command-line lives behind a fold.

By the end, you'll have a working C++ setup on Windows (vscode, a compiler, CMake), a multi-file project building, and an editor that does completion, jump-to-definition, and diagnostics right. After that, head to Volume 1 for the language itself, Volume 7 to go deeper on builds, or Volume 8 for embedded work — this track just gets you to the door.

For the detailed multi-route setup (MSVC vs MinGW, vcpkg, Linux), see the environment chapter of Volume 1 · Fundamentals. This track walks a single painless route and skips the comparisons.

Chapters

01What Is an Editor, What Is a Compiler→02Installing the Three Things You Need to Write C++→03Your First C++ Program — Getting Hello to Run in vscode→04When the Project Grows — Multiple Files, and CMake Shows Up→05Making vscode Understand Your Code — Install clangd, Watch the Red Lines Vanish→06It Runs — Where Next→