Modern C++ Software Design (Intermediate)

Prerequisites and Language Hints Intermediate C++

Course participants should have at least one year of hands-on experience with the language. This includes a good understanding of the basic mechanics (header files, source files, compilation), a good knowledge of the syntax of C++ and its basic features (loops, control structures, functions and classes). Course participants can bring their own laptops, but HLRS will provide machines with an up-to-date C++ environment. For these, participants should have basic UNIX/Linux knowledge (login with secure shell, shell commands, simple scripts, editor vi or emacs).

If you will participate remotely, you should have access to an C++20 programming environment.

For similar courses, please have a look at the 3- or 4-day advanced C++ courses at LRZ , the 4 day course at VSC in Vienna or directly on Klaus Iglberger's course page.

Content levels

• Basic: 8 hours
• Intermediate: 15:30 hours
• Advanced: 2:45 hours

Learn more about course curricula and content levels.

Klaus Iglberger (External trainer)

After this course, participants will: 

• have gained knowledge about fundamental C++ programming concepts and idioms
• have a detailed understanding of template-based programming
• be able to properly design classes and class interfaces
• know about the importance of exception safe programming
• avoid the usual pitfalls in the context of inheritance 
• comprehend the advantages of value-based design 
• understand the virtue of clean code

All times are local times in the central European time zone (Berlin).

Local registration/drop in to zoom (8:30 - 9:00)

1st day course schedule (9:00 - 17:30)

• Concepts and the STL
  • Overview of the STL
  • STL Iterators
  • STL Algorithms
  • STL Containers

2nd day schedule (9:00 - 17:30)

• C++ Templates
  • Function Templates
  • Class Templates
  • Variadic Templates
  • Template Specialization
• Call Resolution
  • Name Lookup
  • Template Argument Deduction
  • Overload Resolution
  • Access Labels
  • Function Template Specialization
  • Virtual Dispatch
  • Deleting Functions

3rd day schedule (9:00 - 17:30)

• Class Design (I)
  • Compiler Generated Functions
  • Copy Elision
  • Object Lifetimes
  • RAII
  • Move Semantics

4th day schedule (9:00 - 16:30)

• Class Design (II)
  • Proper Handling of Member Data
  • Designing Classes
  • Const Correctness
• Dynamic Polymorphism
  • Inheritance: The Good Parts
  • Inheritance: The Bad Parts
  • Value Semantics: From Pointers to Values
  • Public Inheritance
  • Surprises in Object Hierarchies

Each participant will get a copy of all slides (PDF).

This course will be hybrid, i.e. it will take place at HLRS on-site but it will also be possible to attend online. Participants, online as well as on-site, have to be aware and agree that they might appear in the live video stream taken by a camera in the back of the lecture room or by a webcam on laptops. The live stream will not be saved. We strongly recommend to attend this course on-site since on-site attendance is much more effective and efficient in our experience. Therefore we might give priority to on-site over online participants during registration.

Registration closes on February 23, 2025.

• Students without master’s degree or equivalent: 40 Euro
• PhD students or employees at a German university: 115 Euro
• PhD students or employees at a university in an EU, EU-associated or PRACE country other than Germany: 180 Euro
• PhD students or employees at a university outside of EU, EU-associated or PRACE countries: 360 Euro
• Participants from public research institutes, public service providers or government: 600 Euro
• Other participants, e.g., from industry: 960 Euro

Link to the EU and EU-associated (Horizon Europe), and PRACE countries.

Our course fees include coffee breaks (in classroom courses only).

Tobias Haas phone 0711 685 87223, tobias.haas(at)hlrs.de