Development of 64-bit C/C++ applications. Lessons.


We regularly write articles on development and testing of 64-bit C/C++ programs. Each of the articles presents different viewpoints on 64-bit software development. But much information of these papers is repeated because we have to introduce the readers into the subject and various definitions. Unfortunately, it makes the process of reading series of articles very boring and therefore does not allow the readers to thoroughly study the issues of 64-bit software development.
We decided to unite all our knowledge into a single work where we will study all the questions concerning 64-bit programming at once. We have too many materials to arrange them in one article, so we decided to make it a course of lessons.
Let me briefly describe the course "Lessons on development of 64-bit C/C++ applications" and its contents.
The course concerns development of 64-bit applications in C/C++ language and is intended for those developers who use Visual Studio 2005/2008/2010 environment. Developers working with other 64-bit operating systems will also learn much interesting. The course will cover all the stages that allow the programmer to create a new safe 64-bit application and port an existing 32-bit code to a 64-bit system.
The course consists of 28 lessons devoted to studying 64-bit systems, issues of 64-bit software building, methods of searching for errors specific to 64-bit code and code optimization. We will also touch upon such questions as estimating the cost of migration to 64-bit systems and rationality of this move.
The authors of the course are me (candidate of physico-mathematical sciences Andrey Nikolaevich Karpov) and candidate of technical sciences Evgeniy Alexandrovich Ryzhkov. So we are ready to discuss this course here, explain various details to you, correct some mistakes if any and consider your opinions.
Course contents: