Soooo... this week I write again about the boring part of developing: Software Construction


If you've read my ramblings on "The seventh Circle of Dev Hell", know that I have my problems with the toolchains for C++, so this is basically part 2 of the Dev Hell, but more structured and no random sentences. Since I don't think C++ veterans have any interest in a text of my first experiences with different C++ tools. I aim this at the C++ newbie, like I am.
I don't have a lot of experience with the toolchains, all of this are the first experience I had with them, so don't take it too seriously when I write "tool xy sucks", I havent worked with them for more than a few hours.
"What are the best tools to use" you ask? None of them, they all suck.


The Problem with the C++ tools
They are old, mostly.
As I sink more and more time into everything around the coding, I see now why C# and Java use a separate RE. I suddenly like Ant + JUnit. It is just so easy to set up build scripts and tests for your platfom, that happens to work on others as well.
I am very disappointed by the tools available for C++, comparing to what is at Java/C# disposal, they are shabby.
This is managable for a C++ newbie if you get some help from tools, like Eclipse CDT that takes care of your make files.
Good for you, but if your project should be platform indipendent, so should be your makefiles (traditional makefiles aren't afaik). And here is where the pain starts, here is where you sink too much time, here is where you have to learn more than you think.
There are tools around, like CMake or QMake. CMake is fit for the job, but you don't. It isn't an easy tool to work with, at least for me, it really starts to get on my nerves.
That's why you shouldn't use C++ for your first big project. You spend so much time figuring out how everything else besides the coding works, how you install tool XY, how do you link correctly, how the HELL do you set up a good cross plattform build environment??

Setting up such an environment isn't hard, if you have experience how you do it. I would love somebody explaining to me his/her setup why it was done that way and not otherwise...

But alas, there was nothing I could find that satisfied me. So the short story: I gave up.

I decided to not go for platform indipendece, I first aim for Linux 64 bit environment. And if the unexpected happens and the game suddenly gains huge popularity, I can make the project cross platform with roughly the same amount of work. But then, it would be worth the time.