Overview of the differences between C, C++, and C#

Overview of the differences between C, C++, and C#

https://link.zhihu.com/?target=https%3A//csharp-station.com/understanding-the-differences-between-cc-and-c/The article translation comes from this link

01. C language

Dennis Ritchie created the C language in 1972 and published it in 1978. Ritchie designed C with the original intention of developing new versions of Unix . Until then, Unix used assembly language , which is the lowest . The birth of C language revolutionized programming and operating systems . The rest, as they say, is history.

• C is also a low-level programming language, and its efficiency is close to that of assembly .
• It provides a base -level way to access memory and requires very little runtime support.
• Due to the age of C, using C may bring some security improvements (fewer users, less possibility of hacker attacks)

Developers still use it for operating systems, kernel-level software development, hardware drivers, and applications that need to work with older code. (Just look at TIOBE, which ranked second in December 2019, second only to Java)

02、C++

C ++ can be said to be an extended version of C. It was developed by Bjarne Stroustrup, a Danish doctor of philosophy (Ph.D.). His goal was to enhance the C language and add object-oriented capabilities to it without sacrificing speed or efficiency .

• C++ is considered a mid-level language because it is based on the low-level C language and has some advanced capabilities.
• At the same time, C++ became another highly productive programming language. It will work with C when developing operating systems , and is also used in some high-end servers and PC software.
• C++ can write cross-platform programs and is widely used in many fields, such as game development, system programming, etc. (For example, the well-known King of Glory uses C++)

03、C#

C# is a high-level object -oriented programming language that was also created as an extension of C. It was developed in 2002 by Anders Hejlsberg, the leader of a team at Microsoft. It is based on the **.NET Framework**, but its core is still the C language.

• C# compiles code into byte -code instead of machine code (0101 binary).
• It runs on a virtual machine that translates bytecode into machine code on the fly .
• Based on the C language, features such as garbage collection , uninitialized variable checking , bound checking and type checking are added.

Speaking of which, C# has some features similar to Java, as well as JVM principles, etc.

C# is more commonly used for internal or enterprise applications rather than commercial software. Can be found in Client-side and Server-side development in the .NET Framework.

Summary of differences

C, C++ and C# are three different programming languages, and they are very different in design goals , features and application areas . Here's how they compare:

1. Programming paradigm:
   • C: C is a procedural programming language that focuses on writing procedures and functions .
   • C++: C++ is a multi-paradigm programming language that supports both procedural and object-oriented programming . It introduces the concepts of classes and objects, allowing the use of object-oriented features such as encapsulation, inheritance, and polymorphism.
   • C#: C# is a multi-paradigm programming language that is primarily object-oriented and also supports procedural and generic programming. It is designed to interact with the .NET framework and supports component-oriented programming .
2. Memory management:
   • C: In C, developers need to manually manage memory , including allocating and releasing memory.
   • C++: C++ provides automatic memory management , but still allows manual memory management. It introduces constructors and destructors to manage the life cycle of objects.
   • C#: C# runs on the .NET framework, has a garbage collection mechanism , and automatically manages memory . Developers do not need to manually allocate or free memory.
3. Platform compatibility:
   • C: C code usually has good platform compatibility and can be compiled and run on multiple operating systems .
   • C++: Code in C++ also has certain platform compatibility, but may require specific adjustments when it comes to aspects such as the graphical user interface (GUI).
   • C#: C# is mainly closely related to the .NET framework and is therefore more common in Windows environments. Although it can run on other platforms through Mono and .NET Core, it is mainly based on Windows .
4. Compilation and execution method:
   • C: C code is usually compiled into machine code and executed directly on the hardware .
   • C++: C++ code is also compiled into machine code , but object-oriented concepts are introduced, allowing the generation of classes and object-related structures.
   • C#: C# code is compiled into an intermediate language (IL) and then executed in the .NET runtime environment. This approach allows for cross-platform operation and some optimizations at runtime.
5. Application areas:
   • C: C is commonly used for system-level programming, embedded systems , and performance-critical applications.
   • C++: C++ is widely used in game development, graphical interface applications, system development, and applications requiring high performance.
   • C#: C# is commonly used in Windows desktop applications, web applications, mobile applications, and enterprise-level applications integrated with the .NET platform.

Overall, the choice of which language to use depends on the needs of the project, the experience of the developer, and the characteristics of the application. C is suitable for low-level development, C++ provides more abstract and object-oriented features, and C# is suitable for advanced application development on the .NET platform.