c++ compiler

D

Duster

Supreme [H]ardness
Joined
May 4, 2002
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I am looking for a free c++ compiler for windows. I have only programed in cmd prombt in unix and for embedded systems so I am not looking for anything to fancy. I want to make a program that reads txt files or something... nothing with a gui prob. Just want to play around with some ideas

 
MinGW - Compiler

Visual Studio C++ Express - I know you didn't ask for an IDE, but Visual C++ Express is an awesome utility. The best part is if you download it before November 7th, 2006 you get the product for free.
 
I hear Bloodshed's DevC++ is a nice IDE wrapped around the MinGW port of GCC (the compiler you're probably used to in the Unix world, or at least very similar).
 
Borland also provides a command-line version of their compiler for free.
 
there are 2 issues with cygwin that i've noticed.
first, i previously had mingw set up and once i installed cygwin, my path somehow got screwed up and i was unable to compile with mingw and i never could figure it out. (i've reloaded since that time)
second, if you compile something with mingw, you need the cygwin.dll or whatever to run it. if you want to distribute your program, you are bound by the cygwin license, aka gpl, which may or may not be an issue
 
tim_m said:
there are 2 issues with cygwin that i've noticed.
first, i previously had mingw set up and once i installed cygwin, my path somehow got screwed up and i was unable to compile with mingw and i never could figure it out. (i've reloaded since that time)
second, if you compile something with mingw, you need the cygwin.dll or whatever to run it. if you want to distribute your program, you are bound by the cygwin license, aka gpl, which may or may not be an issue
Click to expand...

The point of MinGW is that it does not require cygwin. If yours did, I bet you installed it incorrectly. More likely, you were using the Cygwin compiler and merely thought it was MinGW.
 
tim_m said:
second, if you compile something with mingw, you need the cygwin.dll or whatever to run it. if you want to distribute your program, you are bound by the cygwin license, aka gpl, which may or may not be an issue
Click to expand...

I originally thought that the DLL was LGPL but after looking at their site, it's not (although there is an exception that allows linking non-GPLed OSS without requiring changing the license to GPL). This seems kinda sill to me.
 
i should mention the only reason i installed cygwin was because i wanted an x client for xdmcp, not for the compiler. i never did get that working, i must have installed gcc without really thinking about it.
 
For MINGW, just keep it out of the %PATH%.

Then, create a special mingw cmd.exe shortcut like this:

Code: 
%COMSPEC% /K "set PATH=%SystemDrive%\mingw\bin;%PATH% && set RM=del && cd %USERPROFILE%\desktop && cls && echo MinGW 3.4.2 && prompt $P$_$_$G$S"
 
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