銆€ When it comes to C++ development tools on Linux, the landscape is vastly diverse and fragmented compared to Windows, where Microsoft’s offerings (VC, VS2005, etc.) dominate the field. On Linux/Unix, you have a wide array of options: Emacs, vi, eclipse, anjuta, kdevelop, and many more.
銆€銆€Under Windows
銆€銆€Development tools are mostly presented to end users as Integrated Development Environments (IDEs). For example, VS2005 integrates an editor, the macro assembler ml, the C/C++ compiler cl, the resource compiler rc, a debugger, a documentation generation tool, and nmake. Providing them as an integrated package is very convenient for beginners. However, this business model directly leads to poor user customizability, hinders automation, and offers weak integration capabilities with third-party tools. For instance, you cannot customize macros to handle repetitive operations; you miss out on the satisfaction of an automated makefile doing everything in one go; you cannot remotely log into a server to develop; and you cannot use some kind of “glue” to effectively invoke third-party tools (like text tools or string utilities). Their main advantages can be summed up as good commercial support and fool-proof development.
銆€銆€Under Linux
銆€銆€Linux development tools are carved into independent, small utilities, each handling a different task. For example, an editor (emacs, vim) is for editing programs, a debugger (gdb) is for debugging programs, a compiler (GCC) is for compiling and linking programs, performance analysis tools (gcov, gprof) are for optimizing programs, and a documentation generator (doxygen) is for producing documentation. At the same time, there are system tools and system knowledge that are very necessary to understand: the program automation mechanism makefile, the system glue shell, and system search tools like grep, locate, and find. Other tools (like ctags, OCI’s MPC, etc.), once mastered, will become sharp weapons in your arsenal.
銆€銆€This article primarily shares experiential insights on using Linux development tools. Given the sheer variety, we have neither the ability nor the necessity to introduce them all. While Linux IDE tools like eclipse and anjuta are practical and simple to use, they are not yet considered mainstream and will therefore not be highlighted. Furthermore, this article does not intend to be an operation manual for each tool; it focuses on introducing the problems each tool aims to solve, their operational mechanisms, and their main features.