Professional C++

Chapter 2. Designing Professional C++ Programs

Before writing a single line of code in your application, you should design your program. What data structures will you use? What classes will you write? This plan is especially important when you program in groups. Imagine sitting down to write a program with no idea what your coworker, who is working on the same program, is planning! In this chapter, we'll teach you how to use the Professional C++ approach to C++ design.

Despite the importance of design, it is probably the most misunderstood and underused aspect of the software-engineering process. Too often programmers jump into applications without a clear plan: they design as they code. This approach inevitably leads to convoluted and overly complicated designs. It also makes the development, debugging, and maintenance tasks more difficult. Although counterintuitive, investing extra time at the beginning of a project to design it properly actually saves time over the life of the project.

Chapter 1 gave you a refresher course in the C++ syntax and feature set. Chapter 7 returns to the details of C++ syntax, but the remainder of Part I focuses on programming design.

After finishing this chapter, you will understand:

• The definition of programming design

• The importance of programming design

• The aspects of design that are unique to C++

• The two fundamental themes for effective C++ design: abstraction and reuse

• The specific components that make up a program design in C++

What Is Programming Design? ...