

Ask HN: was there actually a language called C+?  - BWStearns

Google could not resolve this bar argument. Google has proved inconclusive since most mentions of C+ seem to be either typos or uninformed but my impression is that if it did exist it would have been pre Internet. After somewhat thorough  searching iI&#x27;ve been unable to come to a conclusive result. Any input?
======
anaccountname
"I picked C++ because it was short, had nice interpretations, and wasn't of
the form "adjective C."' In C, ++ can, depending on context, be read as
"next," "successor," or "increment," though it is always pronounced "plus
plus." The name C++ and its runner up ++C are fertile sources for jokes and
puns - almost all of which were known and appreciated before the name was
chosen. The name C++ was suggested by Rick Mascitti. It was first used in
December of 1983 when it was edited into the final copies of [Stroustrup,1984]
and [Stroustrup,1984c]."

The Design and Evolution of C++; Ch. 3, p.64 - Bjarne Stroustrup

Based on that excerpt, I'd hazard to guess that there was never was a C+. If
there where, it's extremely unlikely that its Stoustrup participated in its
creation.

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dalke
Bill Kinnersley's Language List, with 2500+ languages, at
[http://people.ku.edu/~nkinners/LangList/Indexes/cindex.htm](http://people.ku.edu/~nkinners/LangList/Indexes/cindex.htm)
, does not contain a "C+" (specifically, see
[http://people.ku.edu/~nkinners/LangList/Indexes/cindex.htm](http://people.ku.edu/~nkinners/LangList/Indexes/cindex.htm)
).

That list is not complete. There are plenty of niche languages not present.
(The X*PLOR programming language, used in an old crystallography program, and
the SVL programming language, used in the molecular structure program MOE, are
not present.) But it means that C+ is at best obscure.

------
BWStearns
OP here: I was/am not joking in the question. Some dude was really claiming
that he learned/did real work in C+. I'm a youngin' so I didn't want to be an
ass if this was a pre-internet language which failed to be appropriately
recorded.

anaccountname/Zellio: I've seen that story about the naming logic for C++
(primarily the incrementer operater bit) which is what triggered my initial
suspicion of this C+(no more pluses) thing.

Judging by the responses thus far and the propensity of HN to punish the
uninformed question I am feeling relatively secure in my original assertion to
the other programmer who originated this argument that there is in fact no
such language as C+ (excluding of course something some random guy made that
was never used in any significant volume). That said if I am wrong please let
me know, cheers.

------
nmc
Thought this was a joke, but in case you are serious, you may be looking for
the C-based object-oriented version of ABCL [1].

[1]
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ABCL/c%2B#ABCL.2Fc.2B](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ABCL/c%2B#ABCL.2Fc.2B)

------
zellio
C++ is a play on the increment operator (++) in C. The language was originally
called C With Classes, but this was dropped in favour of the less wordy C++ or
C increment. To describe a language which was C but a step improved /
increased.

------
NAFV_P
Reminds me of this:

[http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/events/c-plus-
equality-c](http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/events/c-plus-equality-c)

------
memracom
There was also a language named C+@

[http://foldoc.org/C%2b@](http://foldoc.org/C%2b@)

