# Borland C++ Help **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 21, 2003, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/borland-c-help/208678 "2003-10-21T12:45:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Achilles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dc4da7/32.png) [@Achilles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Achilles)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/borland-c-help/208678/1 "2003-10-21T12:45:00Z")
I have been told (by my C prof.) that I can use the Borland C++ compiler to compile C. Fine. How? I try to use Borland C++ Compiler 3.2. Everytime I start it up (this is from memory, as the software is at home, & I am in work) it starts me in a “Form”. Fine - I close that. Behiond the “Form” is what looks like a basic text editor, but when you go to save it, it give you a “C++ Project” extension - something like “.cpp”. Obviously I need, “.C”. So I change it. Fine. When I edit my file and save it, and try to “Run” which should compile, give any error messages and then execute, it does that count-down / compile thing and then an error message about some debugger .dll file being non-existant. Fine. Scrap that. I get onto [borland.com](http://borland.com) and download the free C++ Builder 5.5. Unpack to C:. Then I read the “readme.txt” file. I gives some horribly unintelligible message about changing file extensions in the “bin” file. WTF ? I am usually okay at installing hardware / software, but this time I am failing miserably. Anyway - I’m now 1 week behind in my lectures because I cannot do the excercises that the prof. sets for the weekend. SOMEONE PLEASE HELP !!! ---
**Author:** ![Achilles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dc4da7/32.png) [@Achilles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Achilles)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/borland-c-help/208678/2 "2003-10-21T15:12:59Z")
Bump. Pleeeease. Anyone ??? ---
**Author:** ![hobophobic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/77aa72/32.png) [@hobophobic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hobophobic)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/borland-c-help/208678/3 "2003-10-21T15:24:25Z")
C is simply a subset of C++. This means that any C++ compiler should be able to compile C just fine. You should be able to leave the file extension as cpp and compile any C program in the same way you would a C++ program. If you keep to the C subset of C++, your program will compile on any pure C compiler as well. ---
**Author:** ![troub](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troub/32/14802_2.png) [@troub](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/troub)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/borland-c-help/208678/4 "2003-10-21T16:53:01Z")
So it sounds like you’re using a multiple-document Windows IDE to write your code in. That’s fine. I think it might be similar to Microsoft’s Visual C++ (I only ever used the DOS version of the Borland compiler). Do you have to create a “project” first, then write and save your .c or .cpp files in the project? In Visual C++, as far as I know, you can’t just open it up, type out some code, and compile it (actually, I just tried it and you can, but it prompts you to create a “project workspace”). Have you read any of the documentation? Asked your professor? ---
**Author:** ![z1221z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ee7513/32.png) [@z1221z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/z1221z)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2003, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/borland-c-help/208678/5 "2003-10-21T18:47:06Z")
> [@](#): > > C is simply a subset of C++. Strictly speaking, this is not true. Two of the differences I remember offhand are the data type of character constants (int in C, char in C++) and the precedence of the ? (conditional) operator. To the OP: I´m not really familiar with Borland C++, but I think you should create a console project (File-\>New-\>Console Wizard or something like that). That creates an application that runs in a dos box, and the entry point is the main() function, just like “normal” C compiler. I´m afraid I can´t help you with your linker problems. ---
**Author:** ![Achilles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dc4da7/32.png) [@Achilles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Achilles)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2003, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/borland-c-help/208678/6 "2003-10-22T14:29:04Z")
Thanks guys. I’ll give it another bash…