In C++ I Cannot Grasp Pointers and Classes

Question

I\'m fresh out of college and have been working in C++ for some time now. I understand all the basics of C++ and use them, but I\'m having a hard time grasping more advance

Answer 1

You may find this article by Joel instructive. As an aside, if you've been "working in C++ for some time" and have graduated in CS, you may have gone to a JavaSchool (I'd argue that you haven't been working in C++ at all; you've been working in C but using the C++ compiler).

Also, just to second the answers of hojou and nsanders, pointers are very fundamental to C++. If you don't understand pointers, then you don't understand the basics of C++ (acknowledging this fact is the beginning of understanding C++, by the way). Similarly, if you don't understand classes, then you don't understand the basics of C++ (or OO for that matter).

For pointers, I think drawing with boxes is a fine idea, but working in assembly is also a good idea. Any instructions that use relative addressing will get you to an understanding of what pointers are rather quickly, I think.

As for classes (and object-oriented programming more generally), I would recommend Stroustrups "The C++ Programming Language" latest edition. Not only is it the canonical C++ reference material, but it also has quite a bit of material on a lot of other things, from basic object-oriented class hierarchies and inheritance all the way up to design principles in large systems. It's a very good read (if not a little thick and terse in spots).