Powerful, flexible, complex: The origins of C++ date back 40 years, yet it remains one of the most widely used programming languages today. TechRepublic spoke to C++ creator, Bjarne Stroustrup, to find out why. Learn more in this free PDF download from TechRepublic.

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C++’s origins date back to 1979, when Bjarne Stroustrup, the programming language’s creator, first began work on the language that was then known as “C with Classes”. The language was initially designed as an improvement on the C programming language that added features based on object-oriented programming.

“C++’s success was obviously a surprise,” Stroustrup tells TechRepublic. “I see C++’s success as a function of its original design aims – efficient use of hardware, plus powerful abstraction mechanisms – and its careful evolution based on feedback from real-world use.” Now the language is the one of the most popular with developers and underpins systems and services around the world.