As seen in our previous posts, we will be using the GCC compiler for this. So once you’ve written your program, you need to compile it. Ensure that your project has the Debug and Release builds These two options will build files that will allow you to debug your code and execute it. Make sure you’ve selected the Debug and Release options. When you first start a new project, you will notice the window shown below. You won’t need this initially, but you should remember it because we will be using Code Blocks’ (limited) code-refactoring features. So the end result is a leaner, well-structured code that performs the same way it did before code refactoring. You can do all of that without changing the behavior of the code. You can shift around snippets, rename stuff, change different levels etc. Code refactoring is a method where you can clean out and structure your code by removing or modifying the code.

On the same premise, code blocks also offer a certain level of code-refactoring. But you can and should increase this threshold so that your code efficiency and quality increases. Code blocks, by default, has a low threshold to check for warnings. It’s pretty comprehensive Tools for good coding practicesĪ good piece of code always compiles with no errors or warnings. You can now just highlight the instruction you want to know the meaning of and press F1. Don’t forget to check the box that makes it the default help file. Locate the file in your downloads folder and add it to the IDE. Head on to Settings>Environment>Help Files.Ĭlick on add and give it a name. Let’s do that.ĭownload the CPP CHM file from here. Instead of googling it, you can just check everything about that instruction within Code Blocks!įor this, you’ll need to add a custom help file to Code Blocks. There’s an instruction you don’t quite understand. You bring that code into Code Blocks, build it and it works! But now you have to understand the stranger’s code. If you’re lucky enough, some kind bloke might give you a code snippet to try. So you wander into the realm of online help and ask around for help. There’s a C problem that you’re having trouble with. How to add a C/C++ custom help file to code blocks? We will highlight these differences as we begin coding.

For example, you’ll need to swap out void main() with int main(). If you are someone migrating from a DOS based IDE like Turbo C++, you will need to change a few things that will not work in code blocks. Let’s add to that to make writing the code a bit easier for you. We’ve seen how to type in the code in the Editor window in the last post. Note that using a file without creating a project first, though simpler to check small snippets of code, won’t allow you access to the debugger tool for that particular file. Give your file a valid path and start coding.

What is code blocks